Album Vs Album: Metallica - Ride The Lightning / Master Of Puppets

[@jimmypage9540]

I 100% agree, my favourite album of all time is Ride the Lightning as well.

[@collt091]

Same

[@Macho_Man_Randy_Savage]

I'm in the same boat, these 2 are both such classics and captures Metallica in their prime of classic Thrash. My top Metallica albums. It's just sad Cliff never got to see how highly regarded these albums are and it was in part thanks to him that we have these gems.

[@laurisaarinen1126]

I feel like most times the hardcore Metallica fans answer is RTL, while the more casual fan will pick MOP.

[@boysfromthebush2013]

But then people that appreciate Orion will lean towards mop

[@damewanpli2152]

​@@boysfromthebush2013call of ktulu >>Orion no offence

[@josephayers7395]

​@@damewanpli2152Highly disagree. Orion was better

[@jewel_throne2950]

@@josephayers7395Call of Ktulu is peak Metallica, Orion is an alright song

[@ironfloydica3651]

Both are pretty close for me, but Master Of Puppets is my favorite album of all time. When I first started getting deep into Metallica, I’d say Ride The Lightning mainly because of Fade To Black. But the more I started exploring their discography, I started to love ...And Justice For All. Then I loved RTL, AJFA, and MOP the same. But now that I’ve been listening to all of these albums for a while now, there’s an obvious winner: Master Of Puppets. Each song on here is a Masterpiece. Battery is an AMAZING opener, Master Of Puppets is my favorite song by them and one of my favorites of all time, The Thing That Should Not Be is EXTREMELY underrated. Amazing song! Welcome Home (Sanitarium) is just amazing. It opens up all nice and calm, then rips your face off once the solo comes! Disposable Heroes has one of my favorite solos on the album, so it’s a pretty good song only for that! Leper Messiah is probably my least favorite song on the album, but it’s still sick! Everything else on the album is just a bit better. If it was an 8/10, then everything else would be a 9 or 10/10. Orion... I don’t need to explain. Just a roller coaster of a song. Amazing. And then the closer: Damage, Inc. This song is so underrated. That bass intro is so eerie and mysterious, and the rest of the song is fast and thrashy (Just How most like Metallica) And it’s just amazing. Over all Infinity/10 album. RTL is still amazing, but I just find MOP more enjoyable overall. 👍

[@brandondickie3456]

From what I’ve learned, when they went into the studio in 1985 to begin recording puppets, their goal was to take Ride the lightning and make it like 10x better, to master it, and I think the fact that the album is so popular probably hurts it, but for me, I favor MOP because of its tone. The original mixing arguably hurts it, and I don’t think the roaring Mesa Mark iic+ -> modded JCM800 guitar tone doesn’t come out enough in the mix, but to me, Master just sounds like it’s more serious in its themes and the way the songs are delivered. Ride talks a lot about death, via the death penalty, electric chair, fade to black, trapped under ice, and though that isn’t the only theme of the album, it’s what I mainly remember about it. People (myself included) often relate the colder sounding guitar tone to the cold feeling of death. It’s an amazing and unique tone that makes the album iconic. No buts about it. Master talks, in a way, about fates worse than death. Fates that make you wish you were dead (I think Fade to black does this though as well) Religious manipulation. Manipulative televangelists. The death of James’ mother due to her specific religious beliefs about medicine and health. drug addiction. Innocent young people being sent to their demise in the destruction of mass warfare, seen as disposable heroes. Justice is my second favorite album because it also masterfully dives into disturbing themes in a similar but not identical fashion (Johnny got his gun, injustice, Dyer’s eve, unbearable grief over Cliff, not just by the band but the entire world, killing all of humanity, blackening and blistering the earth, mental illness, depression, anxiety, fear, helplessness, destined death), and the aggressive tone of the instruments and vocals help push these themes masterfully. I’m sorry I wrote so much, I just had a lot I wanted to say. It’s all just my opinion though. MOP will be my favorite till the end, when I fade to black, and the end is blackened.

[@StrangerE0ns]

Here’s something interesting My favorite is Master, my twin brother’s is Ride, and my dad’s is Justice

[@baldmetalnerd]

MOP was my entry point to metal period so it's definitely "special" to me. But I generally prefer RTL as well.

[@integrity101]

I vote Ride The Lightning. I like the sound of the album more. Fade to Black over Welcome Home. Call Of Ktulu over Orion. Fight fire over battery, Its very close tho. They are both 10s. I guess maybe i prefer the less progressive style of RTL over MOP. Album vs album is cool. Definitely do more. Also, Dont be afraid to dig in and do 10-15 minute videos, especially about your favorite band/album. I'm a caveman so i dont do social media, YT is toxic enough for me and I'm guilty of getting pulled into non sense on YT, dont need more. Lol. FYI you can do KZbin polls also. Imbedded in each video. Album vs album ideas (mixing in 21st Century albums would be interesting): Death Magnetic vs Hard Wired Black Sabbath (1970) vs Heaven & Hell (1980) Reign In Blood vs Seasons In The Abyss Peace sells vs Rust in peace Among the living vs spreading the disease Worship Music vs for all kings The new order vs the gathering

[@OldHead]

All great ideas! Thanks!

[@legobobafeet3650]

I dont like fight fire.. Thats probably the only thing I disagree with. WE ALL SHALL DIE For some reason sounds like WE ALSO DIE to me and I can't unhear it which make me hate it

[@raipier]

Master is the more polished album and when they peak with how they want to sound and perform. However Lightning is my favorite for the reason you said, especially yhe combo of thr raw thrash sound mixed with the heavier crunch and melodic interludes. Also the album's filler in the songs is better than the filler on Master when it comes to those long 6-8 min songs.

[@DAVIDMIGUELANGEL1970]

am going to tell a personal anecdote of how I came to listen to metallica the first time was in 1988, I had about 4 years listening to heavy rock, and in Venezuela at that time because of the issue of the record companies that I had a phobia of heavy rock It was very limited. Only one listened to what was released by Kiss, Van Halen or finally one day in that year 1988. A rocker friendship came along with the Master of Puppets album by a band called Metallica. I recommend it to myself. When I heard it, the first thing I I said what a better pod to my brother, also a rocker, a big fan of maiden, I put it on him but I didn't catch his attention, but months later they lend me the ride the light album, something scratched and since I didn't have time to listen to it, my brother takes it to listen to it at the house of a well-known fan of the cure they heard the metallica ride it was like a 180 degree turn I can tell you that that fan of the cure said goodbye and became a rocker and fan of metallica he bought a battery and was in many bands ,pe ro in short, both albums are very good, I think that ride the ligthing was looking for a way to exceed the expectations of their debut album, instead master of puppets is how to stay and meet the expectations of the fans of the time an equal album or better quality as its predecessor

[@marlon8380]

Another tough one but Master Of Puppets for me

[@winterunterseher8937]

Yeah I've always had the same problem when trying to rank Metallica albums when it comes to these two. They're very similar in style, production, attitude/tone, etc., so it's very tricky for me to rank them. Sometimes I'll tie them both at number one, or either will switch places from number one to number two, or sometimes I'll even go further and put AJFA at number one and these two at number 2 and 3 or both at number 2. It is very tricky though when ranking albums as I take many factors about them that I like/dislike into account, such as production, lyrics, vocal performance style, music/tempo speed, amount of headbangable/catchy/heavy riffs, memorability, etc.

[@zachrobinson7175]

My top 5 Metallica Albums are 1. Master of Puppets 2. And Justice For All 3. Ride The Lightning 4. Kill ‘em all 5. The Black Album Puppets is my favorite album of all time

[@drachireidnoc6659]

You can't go wrong with either one of them. My personal preference is Ride the Lightning. However, I think Master of Puppets has the better instrumental in Orion and opener in Battery.

[@redvince5627]

Ride the Lightning is my favorite Metallica album as well, with Master of Puppets being a VERY close second

[@zyroniv9143]

Yeah, the typical red vs blue case.

[@Lyka-clock]

Master is for Metallica what Hemispheres was for Rush. The instruments have a buttery smooth clarity but manage to be heavy as hell. You can now hear subtle bass parts and the mix is just awesome. I almost forgot how creative Kirk's lead playing was and he didn't rely on the wah so much. The band really never got back to this level. I'm sure Cliff's passing was a big part of it. I love Ride, it's ground breaking metal for sure. I wore out that cassette tape. It's just that the creativity, production and lyrics of Master are too good to put 2nd.

[@robreynolds9349]

I have always said MOP. Someone commented the casual fan would probably pick MOP> Well I am a die hard Metallica fan.Been on board with KEA in 1983 and yes I am that old.. I had to have the record store in this small town to order it to get it.I loved Kill and RTL but Master just goes to a next level. Their composing and playing had progressed and the most iconic riff was the title song. "Master Of Puppets.I have had this discussion with many metal heads and like your poll always split.So after all that MOP is the best IMO.

[@OldHead]

It’s hard to disagree with anyone’s opinions on these albums.

[@jarredcurry1466]

​@OldHead exactly I mean flip a coin. Can't go wrong either way. I'm with you on this one though RTL is my all time favorite album period. If I only had one album to choose for the rest of my life to listen to it'd be RTL.

[@Tikus_90]

RTL: OLD TESTAMENT MOP: NEW TESTAMENT Both biblical albums

[@mikexlr8]

Creeping Death definitely solidifies RTL as Old Testament lol. Just another reason why it’s Old Testament lol.

[@Demonico-j7x]

The Godfather - The Godfather Part II Goodfellas - Casino Alien - Aliens

[@richardbayen3665]

Personally, my all time favorite Metallica album is Ride The Lightning

[@realitygutter9694]

"Ride the Lightning" is James' favorite also, you know, most things in life are not coincidental \m/

[@whatchatalkinboutwillis9894]

1 Master of Puppets 2 Ride the Lightning - For me Disposable Heroes Puts Master Over the Top - Intense - Im a Hardcore Fan of the First - Master of Puppets was My first time Album Hearing Metallica in 1989

[@zachdproductions123]

Subbed! This one is a bit of a tough call. These are my two favorite Metallica albums, but I'd probably go with Ride The Lighting!

[@OldHead]

Thanks for watching and subbing!

[@JCStorm76]

I’d probably pick Ride The Lightning just but I actually like Kill ‘Em All better than both

[@MrRoundthetwist]

Both 10/10 .. impossible for me to pick one over the other

[@andrewtaylor7565]

There’s no wrong answer tbh! Personally I’m for MOP! But you can’t go wrong with the first four albums! Would probably be my top 5 albums ever if you add appetite for destruction!!!! 🤘🏻

[@liamsagucio61]

Ride the Lightning is the best thrash album of all time

[@Vitalij_Letunivskij]

ride the lightning

[@nicholasbsoumai]

I love them both - and respect anyone's opinion (Metallica are my favourite band with Megadeth and Death) but for me, Master of Puppets is that next step in song writing, and just really overall my favourite album of all time

[@yoiamhere4737]

Heck yeah I absolutley love rtl it's my fav album of all time!

[@anthonypagnotta6752]

Ride the lightning is the greatest album of all time hands down

[@MichaelCollins-ev4sv]

Ride the lightning has great songs such as Fade to Black, Call of Ktulu, For Whom the Bell Tolls. But master of puppets has Battery, title track, Orion, Leper Messiah. I’m giving this one to Master of Puppets

[@12012channel]

I can't pin point why but I like RTL significantly more than MOP. I have not listened to either album in a long time but I remember they did have slightly different tone from each other. If I remember correctly the RTL tone and atmosphere was what I would consider more cold and icy. If I go by what I listened to the most it would be RTL, AJFA, KEA, MOP then the black album. I am not going to lie and say I was a Metallica fan since James Hetfield was born or something like that. I was introduced to Metallica during the black album and ended getting the black album plus the previous albums by the end of the week and that was the order in which I have ranked Metallica albums since.

[@AnthonyLeeBand]

Damn that’s a hard choice, I can’t decide, I really like fight fire w fire so I pick lighting

[@vengeance_falls_9610]

Ride The Lightning has this eerie cold production, and Master of Puppets is a bit cleaner and slightly more progressive. This is a tough one when you love both records.

[@meloralovesdarkness2495]

RTL only because it was so Breakthrough, and it was my first Metalica album that I ever heard. My second is Kill em All, then Master. After is Justice, then Garage Days, Then I do not like this band this band after the Black, which was = Eh??! Sorry, I know that this band is your Fave, but they Really went down hill after I think... Great video Again! I am new to knowing your channel!

[@proapocalypse1448]

Ride The Lighting for me but to me it just barely edges out Master but I'm talking a sliver here. And when you add Justice it makes it even harder to decide. Kill em all is awesome too but less awesome than the next 3. After that no other albums qualify to beat the first 4.

[@JamesEvans-uh7nu]

RTL love the tone

[@deathrider7]

I had the picture disc of RTL and someone nicked it. MOP is awesome.

[@sesimie]

'93 i Entered Thrash with what i thought was a song "Ex Cell ent Enter Night" I was quickly corrected but intrigued. Then i discovered my older cousin had Ride the Lightning, Master of Puppets, The Black Album and And Justice for all. Also Rust in Peace......and i became a life long Metalhead. I listened to all these albums hundreds of times. Now that I'm 41 I'll still rank my fav songs of all time....1. Fade to Black 2. Master of Puppets 3. For whom the Bell tolls 4. One 5. Tornado of Souls 6. Enter Sandman. Sure Dyers eve might have the greatest solo....sure Black Album is the best selling metal album of all time...But for me RTL just captures everything with no weak songs. Yeah even Escape. I'm not a big fan of the Thing that should not be....but i absolutley am mesmerized by ktulu. RTL is for me Pure unfiltered 'TallicA. MoP is better studiowise. But like you put it...they are very close. Ride the Lightning is No.1!

[@tigrou1426]

I get your point of RTL being a middle ground, both retaining the aggression of KEA and foreshadowing the next, more progressive and ambitious albums (MOP and AJFA). But out of the two I would vote for MOP, because: 1- I prefer the clearly established, latter approach than the "middle ground", I think it makes for a more cohesive (coherent? sorry, English not my first language) album overall (MOP) 2- the production seems better on MOP; the reverb on RTL (especially on vocals) was never my taste 3- there is not a single song I dislike on MOP, whereas some songs on RTL are a bit weaker to me (and they are one after another on that record). However when comparing the respective songs from each record, I must admit that there are several songs that I do prefer from RTL: Bellz over Thingy, Creep over Damage, and Ktulu over Orion. Also I prefer that the eerie instrumental closes the record on RTL. This structure in the tracklisting just makes more sense to me. So I choose MOP over RTL... and AJFA is yet a bit above them, in my opinion!

[@mikexlr8]

These two albums are hard to choose a winner. I prefer James’ deeper vocals on MOP compared to RTL. Instead of comparing Bells to Thingy, I’d compare Bells to Puppets, For me Puppets > Bells Fade to Black vs. Sanitarium. For me Fade > Sanitarium Ktulu vs. Orion For me Orion > Ktulu Creeping Death vs. Battery For me it’s a tie. Fight Fire w/ Fire vs. Disposable Heroes For me Disposable Heroes > Fire Imo it really comes down to whether you like Thrash more or not. I can’t ever put AJFA ahead of these two because the bass isn’t there. Been a fan since I was 11. I’m 43 now. Both albums are 10/10.

[@kalebdivney8393]

I have Ride The Lightning on record too

[@ByloBand]

I agree with your take 100%. One other way to differentiate between the two is that Mustaine has a stronger presence on Lightning (officially anyway).

[@apocalyptusmaximus8769]

Mustaine barely had a presence on RTL. Two riffs.

[@ГохаЗверь]

This is two best albums of Metallica, this albums with participation of Cliff Burton, r.i.p. Cliff.

[@ArchieJDChannel]

RTL is my favourite metallica album. MOP comes second. The first 5 metallica albums are all metal masterpieces.

[@longingbydesign]

Ride the Lightning was my entrance into metal, and just as many others, I find it hard to pick a favorite out of these two. I have to say though, that in the course of the many years Master of Puppets has proven to be a much more frequent listen for me (with And Just for all even beating it my quite a margin), so based on replayability, I'd rather pick MoP. Another reason for this would be that MoP has a very unique, depressive sound, which I never heard on any album by any band ever again.

[@Demonico-j7x]

My entry point into Metallica came in the Load/Reload era. Fuel, The Memory Remains, Until It Sleeps and Unforgiven II were the four songs I really loved as a kid. Somewhere along the way I found out about the black album and then even more amazing to me was their thrash metal days before that. I pretty much listened to their catalogue back to front. As an older listener now I can confidently proclaim that RTL is my favourite of theirs.

[@kyleparris8375]

"Ride the lightning" for me ⚡.

[@Now-we-re-cooking-with-gas]

It's always interesting to ask those who prefer RTL what the weaker songs are on that particular album??? Typically 'escape' and 'trapped. Then the same question for MOP??? Typically there isn't one which doesn't make sense/doesn't add up 🤔

[@OldHead]

I don’t think Escape or Trapped are weak songs.

[@tiborosz1825]

Music and lyrics on MOP more complex than RTL. Each track on both records is a counterpart except orion an ktulu which is not on the same queue.

[@nat3dogoneg337]

Track for track they are neck and neck to me until you get to the song “Escape” on ride the lightning. That is the only song I personally could do without. MOP doesn’t have a single song I would skip. Therefore I would give it the slightest of edges lol

[@MisterMetalFan666]

Didn't you say in another video Anthrax was your favourite band?

[@OldHead]

They’re one of my favorites. But Metallica is my number 1.

[@solarvortex5793]

I have to go with MoP. Not a fan of fight fire, have to pick battery in the opener spot Master of Puppets is the best metallica song so have to go with that Love thing that should not be but have to pick for whom the bell tolls Fade to black is amazing but welcome home is my favorite metallica song. Love trapped under ice, pure thrash. Not a fan of disposable heroes really. Leper Messiah has a very interesting meaning while escape feels like the odd one out on RtL For the instrumentals have to go with orion, this song takes me on a journey Creeping death is a top 5 metallica song, going with that With a score of 5 to 3 Master wins for me

[@michaelfishman5768]

Two Beasts Love them both But if I had to pick Probly Ride The Lightning. I Listened to it more. but make no mistake about it Master Of Puppets. is a great albums.

[@michaelfishman5768]

Look ou for the Metallica album no release date but it's coming.

[@ashrichardson8804]

Master of puppets for me quite comfortably.

[@matthalsey1346]

You look like you should be in Amon Amarth 🤣 great band should do a feature on them 😊

[@rodge816]

I demand a recount! Puppets vs Justice! Who comes out on top?

[@integrity101]

I will say this, screw it, put MOP in multiple polls. MOP vs Justice would be interesting also.

[@apocalyptusmaximus8769]

Justice is better than all of em.

[@oldenyz3148]

Master of puppets for this old guy- hit me harder because I actually heard it 1st.

[@hank35682]

Not even a question easily RTL 🤘

[@Korawitbeam12]

Ride the lightning is the best

[@musclecarfan74]

Ride the Lightning is my favorite.

[@kimfarr5399]

Master sounds better ,but lighting is epic

[@Jamie16611]

This is hard. MOP for me doesnt have a bad song on it, along with it Battery, MOP, Sanitarium, Orion, Leper messiah and TTTSNB Are legendary. But RTL Has such an iconic line-up and the only song i skip is escape, I mean for more casual Metallica fans, out of both records they would probably take more from RTL because FWTBT, Fade to Black, Creeping Death, FFWF, And RTL, are all instant classics, but RTL is a harder listen as its heavier, the mood of the album is much more menacing. Personally i prefer RTL, I think a better comparison would be Ride the lightning to ...And Justice for All. because they are similar and easier to compare,

[@johnp82]

Master is without question better than Lightning. Better performance and better production. And like you said, more ambitious songwriting.

[@YeblyaSlona]

It's literally like rate two diamonds

[@floydzepplin1218]

Tough choice of two great albums...but I have thought about this before. Master of Puppets IMO

[@Demonico-j7x]

Ride The Lightning is my favourite. I know this is sacrilegious but I tend to skip over MOP for some reason. Not that I don’t like it or think it sucks but I just prefer RTL and AJFA.

[@MortanAMrk]

I still dont get why people sometimes call Trapped Under Ice a weak song like did they listen to the same song, its a fucking powerhouse bro, 100% my favourite metallica song and maybe even favourite ever which tips rtl over for me

[@armoblood7291]

Only a weak song relative to rest of album

[@bvdaussiemetalhead9338]

Equally awesome for me🤘

[@codyroycroft9064]

Ride the lightning rules when I think of Metallica that’s what I think

[@mygalaxy-3654]

Impossible choice!! I flip flop year to year!!

[@668_neighbor_of_the_beast6]

Master for me ( but I would pick AJFA if given the choice). Cheers

[@yoiamhere4737]

Do peace sells vs rust in peace!!!

[@OldHead]

Great idea!

[@yoiamhere4737]

@@OldHead I will definitely participate

[@TinchoRinaldi2023mar]

I prefer Master Of Puppets

[@fraydiethemachine7541]

RTL is diverse and the thrashy stuff is not that good except Fight Fire meanwhile MOP have kinda good ballad but the thrashy stuff is way better than RTL, songs like Battery, Disposable Heros, Damaged Inc and the title track.

[@slaitanik6667]

MÁSTER OF PUPPETS👊👿

[@harukakigani106]

Started with black album, then AJFA in quick succession then hearing them Metallica live on radio, 92 I think playing No Remorse, The Thong That Should Not Be, and Creeping Death etc I was like hell I missed something here then went in search for the other albums and ended up loving the first three up till "Puppets" and then realising the "Black album" is nowhere near as good so I agree with you Ride The Lightning is Better than Master Of Puppets but in my opinion only marginally

[@orlandoking]

The *Thong* That Should Not Be 😂

[@troutonland26]

My reason for why ride the lightning is better is Master of puppets has the thing that should not be

[@thenewhate1]

i'm always between KEA and RTL musically and harmony wise RTL is better, technically MOP

[@Xxrocknrollgod]

I think I like lightning better

[@hemispheres789]

Ride the Lightning is the ultimate thrash album (along with Rust in Peace). MOP is good, but to me, it's got nothing on its predecessor

[@noahsandvik9370]

I think that Master Of Puppets is more iconic but Ride The lightning got better hits

[@marcosfernandezmartinez5284]

Iron Maiden vs Killers.

[@thomasakatidalforce7987]

I think the key difference that gives MOP the edge is the drumming. Lars was never that great a drummer but MOP had much better drumming. The drumming on RTL is fairly amateurish-basic and robotic. Other than that the albums are very close.

[@wojosquad4680]

I honestly feel like Mop is kinda of a rehash and has more filler

[@tommott77]

Ride the Lightning is better but Kill em all is the best

[@scpfoundationtm1249]

master of puppets is my favorite song but ride the lightning is just a better album

[@armoblood7291]

I think master of puppets > RTL=AJFA

[@RC-oe6gy]

Ride the lightning for me,master of puppets not even in top 2 for me as prefer kill em all,gotta add just watched a video with some bloke ranking he's top 10 overrated guitar players that he don't like and he put kirk hammett in 5th words fail me he's a genius guitar player.

[@gbottesini]

The Fast, Thrashy Opener: Battery wins over Fight Fire With Fire (very close though) The Title Track: Master Of Puppets wins over Ride the Lightning (RTL is amazing, but MOP is the greatest metal song ever) The Ballad: Fade to Black wins over Welcome Home (Sanitarium) The Heavy Mid-tempo: For Whom the Bell Tolls wins over The Thing That Should Not Be (poor Ktulu, can't get a win) The Instrumental: Orion wins over The Call of Ktulu (second L for Ktulu, but as a consolation prize, S&M version wins) The Other Fast, Thrashy One: Trapped Under Ice wins over Damage, Inc (very close though) The 6th Track That No One Cares That Much: Leper Messiah wins over Escape (not even close, even the band hates Escape) The One With all the Dies: Creeping Death wins over Disposable Heroes (not even close, but Disposable Heroes is awesome) Total: 4 x 4 (make it 4.5 x 4 for RTL because of the S&M version of Ktulu)

[@mrswimshady9691]

Rtl sorry not sorry

[@richarddietz9612]

Who cares both classic album old head

[@GodsavedTrump]

This isn't easy. I'm back and forth on this one. RTL with a slight edge.