Metallica - Load

When Load arrived in 1996 as the follow-up to Metallica -- the best-selling album of the Soundscan era -- it announced that the band had no intention of simply repeating themselves. Produced by Bob Rock and now certified five times platinum, the album remains one of the most ambitious and wide-ranging records in the Metallica catalog, drawing on blues, rock, and country influences without ever losing the raw power that made them legends.

Fan favorites "Until It Sleeps," "Hero of the Day," and "King Nothing" are all here, and this remastered edition brings an added bonus for longtime fans -- the original extended version of "The Outlaw Torn," presented in its full form for the first time ever after manufacturing limitations forced an edit on the original release.

The audio has been remastered by Reuben Cohen at Lurssen Mastering under the oversight of executive producer Greg Fidelman, with vinyl lacquers cut by the legendary Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering. The result is Load as it was always meant to be heard, pressed on double 180gm vinyl, housed in a gatefold jacket, and including a digital download.