...And Justice for All (1988)

...And Justice for All is Metallica’s fourth studio album and their first without Cliff Burton, therefore is also the first to feature Flotsam and Jetsam bassist Jason Newsted. The anger and outrage the band feels at the time is evident everywhere, in the lyrics, in the cover and in the music itself. The album in it’s entirety is nothing but a shout of protest.

     

       The album saw Metallica take a highly progressive approach with their compositions, the songs having complex guitar sections with incredibly long and fast solos. The album is probably Metallica’s most technical and yet with brutally heavy riffs, speedy solos and spitfire drumming. The drumming is extremely noteworthy here, Ulrich having produced some of his best pieces on this album. The production is dry, almost sterile and leaves a lot left to be desired. The bass is almost inaudible through out the length of the album, one among many (rather weird) things that has lead to this album being called a flawed masterpiece. Like with their previous albums melody is key in the beginning half of the album after which it’s brutal thrash to finish anything left standing.

     

      Being the album that came right after Burton’s death, the songs are soaked and drenched with the band’s emotion. Conceptually the album has an almost uniform theme running, that of modern society in decay. Lyrically the album deals with war, nuclear winters, corruption, euthanasia and in general the various injustices prevalent in society. This ideology is also seen on the album cover, where Lady Justice, or Doris as the fans call her, is seen in ruins. Justice getting raped to put it quite bluntly.

An epic intro is followed by some deadly shredding and fantastic drumming. 

Yeah, it’s Blackened, amongst the most well-loved and easily recognizable pieces of this album. The riff drills just right into your mind and puts you in a head banging mood. Hetfield is at his very furious best vocally. After the second chorus you are hit by a blast of melody, a Kirk special, that adds melody to an otherwise aggressive song. The song is about nuclear warfare and its consequences - a nuclear winter. A great album opener that sets the adrenaline going.

...And Justice for All, the title track, is one of Metallica’s longest non instrumental song. It is their most difficult and ambitious composition, with all the band members showcasing their craft. This is the only song in the album to feature the bass clearly. The song consists of multiple guitar sections with the solos and riffs extended leading to lengthy jams. The intro of the song is very melodic and requires the use of three guitars. Lyrically the song is about corruption and social in justice and is conveyed quite effectively with the reference of Lady Justice being raped.

Eye of the Beholder begins with a slow riff that gathers momentum as the song carries on, Ulrich’s drumming forms the backbone of the riff creates an interesting vibes. The song has a more direct approach with it being along the lines of songs from their earlier albums. Vocally, the song sees Hetfield going for slight changes in pitch to match the guitar work. It also has another great execution by Hammett. Lyrically the song deals with the freedom of speech.

 
One - Metallica’s most  heart wrenching number ever, a powerful composition both musically and lyrically. The song tells the story of a soldier who’s lost his limbs, and all his senses but his mind works perfectly leaving him a person who has nothing to do but to live the rest of his life imprisoned in his own body. The song begins with the sound of staccato machine gun fire, artillery bursts and a helicopter within the first 19 seconds adding a spine-chilling effect that gels with the mood of the song. Brilliant solos from Hammett in an acoustic background lead to the Hetfield passionate cries. The feeling of pain and helplessness in Hetfield’s voice is truly amazing. The song gets heavier as it progresses with the mellow acoustic parts making way for electrics. At just about 4:39 the song switches from heavy metal to pure thrash. “Darkness, imprisoning me, absolute horror...”,these famous words give me goosebumps every time I listen to them. Ulrich’s double bass replicates the machine gun fire recreating the atmosphere where the soldier sadly met with his fate. What follows is simply out of this world, Kirk uses the guitar as a wand and lets go a solo which only he can come up with, the solo sums up the whirlwind of emotions going through the soldiers mind. A minute of sheer musical genius. A song that has captured the imagination of people across the world, and by far, the best song in the album.

The Shortest Straw begins with a good, steady riff, Hetfield barks out the vocals instead of singing that gives the song an aggressive tone. The highlight of the song is Kirk’s solo, a solo to which you absolutely have to air guitar to. The song is about the blacklisting that took place during the fifties when communism was outlawed.

Up next, Harvester of Sorrow starts off with a crackerjack of a riff, it brings dark atmosphere in the song. It is a song dominated by anger, frustration and sorrow, the heavy guitar riffs and the bass and drum rolls only confirm this. Ulrich effectively transmits all his wrath with his pounding. Kirk as always delivers a good solo but the solo is far too short for my liking. The song deals with a sad man who uses drugs and alcohol as recreation leading him to torment his family and finally murdering them.

Frayed Ends of Sanity is again a song which brings with a dark atmosphere, Hetfield’s vocal prowess incorporated into the riff is something novel for the band. A textbook thrash riff follows the intro, the song loses plot somewhere in between with it getting very monotonous. The paranoia and the ability to distinguish fantasy from reality is the main theme of the song.

To Live is to Die is Metallica’s last instalment in their trilogy of instrumentals with the first two being Call of the Ktulu and Orion. From the lyrics the bit “...cannot the Kingdom of Salvation take me home” comes from Cliff Burton’s memorial stone. Incidentally Burton is given the songwriting claims. The song begins with a nice medley of acoustic symphonies. The riffs, coming in short bursts have a sort of sedative effect at times, but that then again is relatively speaking and is bound to happen given the energy the rest of the album packs. It’s also one of the few songs where the bass is audible for the better part of the song. It’s almost like mournful thrash if such a thing were possible. A fitting epitaph for the legendary Burton.

If To Live is to Die had calmed you down, then get ready to thrash that fucking neck because Dyer’s Eve is all about speed! The song is about Hetfield’s troubled childhood and how he was brought up in a strict environment leaving him exposed to the world outside after his mother‘s death. The passion and emotion Hetfield displays in this song is mesmerizing, Ulrich’s great drumming somehow portrays his feelings, his mood et al and this song is a great example for that. What a great way to end the album.

Overview : ...And Justice for All showcases some of the band’s most progressive and technical leanings, showing just what the band was capable of. This album was among many that set the precedence for technical thrash among the late eighties and early nineties. Everything - the vocals, the guitarring, the drumming and the overall performance as a band will leave you in awe. The angst the band feels resonates everywhere, the cover, the lyrics and the songs. It’s almost like they’re doing it just because they can. A well composed piece of intelligent thrash metal that saw the band slowly bid adieu to their thrash roots. Newsted’s bass being fairly inaudible and unrecognizable cannot be used to judge the man’s talents. At the end of the day it’s a great album, but one that’s not meant for everyone.

Genre: Thrash Metal, Heavy Metal

Track Listing :

Title	Write(s)	Length
1."Blackened"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Newsted	6:41
2."...And Justice For All "	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett	9:46
3."Eye of the Beholder "	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett	6:30
4."One "	Hetfield, Ulrich	7:27
5."The Shortest Straw "	Hetfield, Ulrich	6:36
6."Harvester of Sorrow"	Hetfield, Ulrich	5:46
7."The Frayed Ends of Sanity "	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett	7:44
8.”To Live is to Die”	Hetfield, Ulrich, Burton	9:48
9."Dyers Eve"	Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett	5:13

Total Album Time : 65:29

Personnel/Contributors :

James Hetfield — Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar

Kirk Hammett — Lead Guitar

Jason Newsted — Bass, Backing Vocals

Lars Ulrich — Drums, Percussion

Stephen Gorman — Mix Engineer

Release Date : 25 August 1988

Recorded : 28 January - 1 May,  at One on One Studios in Los Angeles

Supporting Tour : Damaged Justice Tour

Trivia : 

This is the first album with Jason Newsted, right after the death of Cliff Burton.

The song One is the first Metallica song to have a video, after years of resisting pressure to do so.

One is also the song that won Metallica it's first Grammy Award, in the category for Best Metal Performance.

...And Justice for All was Metallica's first album to be nominated for a Grammy Award but lost to Jethro Tull's Crest of a Knave amidst much controversy.

Cliff Burton receives co-writer's credits on the song To Live is to Die.

The bass is almost inaudible through the entirety of the album.

The concept behind the cover was given by Hetfield and Ulrich who wanted to show "Lady Justice getting raped". The cover depicts Lady Justice cracked and splintered, bound by ropes, her breasts exposed and both her scales filled with dollars. The album title "...And Justice for All" appears as a graffiti scribble at the left bottom. 

The Seattle show in 1989 is part of Metallica's Live Shit : Binge and Purge, a live album that contained footage and audio from various concerts. 

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