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Hero of the Day: Metallica Unloads Massive 'Load' Box Set

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Metallica Load box

Metallica Load box

We'll spare you additional ribald jokes and puns in sharing that Metallica have announced their latest sprawling box set reissue, this time dedicated to their sixth studio album - 1996's Load.

Available June 13, the centerpiece of the Load reissue campaign is a box that'll offer 15 CDs, six LPs and four DVDs featuring the remastered album, rare single material, scores of unreleased outtakes (from demos to rough mixes), audio or video of five full shows and plenty additional concert recordings, music videos, TV appearances and more. Weighing in at 10 pounds, with an end-to-end running time of some 30 hours of material ("1839:31" reads the hype sticker, a callback to the original pressing's advertised running time), the box will also include plenty of collectibles in the package, including replica tour items, art prints, guitar picks, a patch, lyric reprints and 128 pages of liner notes in a hardbound book. A download card will feature all the audio for digital listening, as well. The album, remastered by Reuben Cohen at Lurssen Mastering, will also be pressed on double vinyl and cassette, with a 3CD edition offering two bonus discs of highlights from the outtakes and live material. (The live disc in that set will include a few tracks only available on DVD in the big box, along with a take on "Bleeding Me" at a Stockholm gig in November 1996 that seems to be nowhere else.)

Anticipation was high at the time for the latest offering from Metallica. After building a reputation through the '80s as one of the premier thrash-metal outfits, their self-titled 1992 release (known to fans as "The Black Album") was blunt-edged but radio-friendly, with a trio of Top 40 hits in America including "Enter Sandman" and "Nothing Else Matters." If fans were baffled by that material, Load was an even stranger step for the band, trading in thrash for a sound that combined elements of the early '90s alt-rock explosion and even blues and classic rock influences like Jimi Hendrix, Aerosmith and ZZ Top. Drummer Lars Ulrich's rhythms were scarcely without a double-bass pedal, frontman James Hetfield and guitarist Kirk Hammett traded their usual rhythm-lead dynamic several times, and the album's artwork - featuring a striking, multi-species bodily-fluid creation by artist Andres Serrano and a high-gloss photoshoot by Anton Corbijn - was even admittedly a headscratcher for Hetfield. (Even Load's running time was excessive: closing track "The Outlaw Torn" had to be trimmed to fit on the CD's 79-minute manufacturing limitations, but was released in full on some CD singles; that version is among the bonus material in the box.)

Load spent a month atop the Billboard charts and had the best-selling opening week for an album in 1996, which must have surely offset lines in reviews like Melody Maker's "It's as if the jackboot grinding the human face were to take occasional breaks for a pedicure." In any case, hardcore Metallica fans - and we know there are many - will have plenty to celebrate when Load reloads this summer. (It remains to be seen what the band will do with 1997 follow-up Reload; will Reload reload? Is this too much?)

The expanded Load comes from Metallica's label Blackened Recordings on June 20. The full track breakdown and pre-order links are below. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

Load (Deluxe Box Set) (Blackened Recordings, 2025)

15CD/6LP/4DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
3CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
Cassette: Official Store

+ included on 3CD edition

LP 1-2/CD 1: Remastered album (released as Elektra 61923, 1996) +

  1. Ain't My Bitch
  2. 2 X 4
  3. The House Jack Built
  4. Until It Sleeps
  5. King Nothing
  6. Hero of the Day
  7. Bleeding Me
  8. Cure
  9. Poor Twisted Me
  10. Wasting My Hate
  11. Mama Said
  12. Thorn Within
  13. Ronnie
  14. The Outlaw Torn

LP 3: "Mama Said" Picture Disc

  1. Mama Said
  2. Ain't My Bitch (Live at Irvine Meadows Amphitheater, Irvine, CA - 8/4/1996)

LP 4-6: Loadapalooza '96 (Live at Irvine Meadows Amphitheater, Irvine, CA - 8/4/1996)

  1. Intro Jam
  2. So What
  3. Creeping Death
  4. Sad But True
  5. Ain't My Bitch +
  6. Whiplash
  7. Fade to Black
  1. King Nothing
  2. One
  3. Until It Sleeps
  4. For Whom the Bell Tolls
  5. Wherever I May Roam
  1. Nothing Else Matters
  2. Enter Sandman
  3. Encore Jam
  4. Last Caress
  5. Master of Puppets
  6. Overkill

LP 4, Tracks 2-3 released on "Mama Said" U.K. CD single #2 - Vertigo 578 873-2, 1996
LP 4, Track 5 released on "King Nothing" CD single - Elektra 64197-2, 1996
LP 4, Track 6 and LP 2, Track 1 released on "Mama Said" U.K. CD single #1 - Vertigo 578 871-2, 1996

CD 2-6: Shadowcast (Outtakes) (previously unreleased except where noted)

  1. Riff Tape Intro
  2. Bitch ("Ain't My Bitch" Riff)
  3. 2 x 4 (Riff)
  4. 2 x 4 (Riff II)
  5. Jack ("The House Jack Built" Riff)
  6. Jack ("The House Jack Built" Riff II)
  7. Load ("King Nothing" Riff)
  8. Mouldy ("Hero of the Day" Riff)
  9. Boss ("Bleeding Me" Riff)
  10. Boss ("Bleeding Me" Riff II)
  11. Believe ("Cure" Riff)
  12. Believe ("Cure" Riff II) +
  13. Believe ("Cure" Riff III)
  14. Streamline ("Wasting My Hate" Riff)
  15. Streamline ("Wasting My Hate" Riff II)
  16. NC-17 ("Thorn Within" Riff) +
  17. NC-17 ("Thorn Within" Riff II)
  18. Ronnie (Jam)
  19. Outlaw ("The Outlaw Torn" Riff)
  20. Streamline ("Wasting My Hate" Demo)
  21. Load ("King Nothing" Demo)
  22. 2 x 4 (Demo)
  23. Mouldy ("Hero of the Day" Demo) (previously released on "Hero of the Day" U.K. CD single #2 - Vertigo METCX 13, 1996)
  24. NC-17 ("Thorn Within" Demo)
  25. Jack ("The House Jack Built" Demo)
  26. Believe ("Cure" Demo)
  27. Dusty ("Poor Twisted Me" Demo)
  28. Ronnie (Demo)
  29. Outlaw ("The Outlaw Torn" Demo)
  1. Bitch ("Ain't My Bitch" Demo)
  2. Boss ("Bleeding Me" Demo) +
  3. Mama ("Mama Said" Demo) (previously released on "Mama Said" U.K. CD single #2 - Vertigo 578 873-2, 1996)
  4. Boss ("Bleeding Me" Vocal Idea)
  5. Thorn Within (Guilty) ("Thorn Within" Vocal Idea)
  6. Egypt ("The House Jack Built" Vocal Idea)
  7. Mama ("Mama Said" Vocal Idea)
  8. The Blue and the Gray (and the Red) ("Ronnie" Vocal Idea) +
  9. Poor Twizted Me ("Poor Twisted Me" Vocal Idea)
  10. F.O.B.D. ("Until It Sleeps" Vocal Idea) (previously released on "Until It Sleeps" U.K. CD single #1 - Vertigo METCD 12, 1996)
  11. Bitch ("Ain't My Bitch" Take 15)
  12. Streamline ("Wasting My Hate" Take 5)
  1. 2 x 4 (Take 16) +
  2. NC-17 ("Thorn Within" Take 18)
  3. Believe ("Cure" Take 14)
  4. Load ("King Nothing" Take 16) +
  5. Jack ("The House Jack Built" Take 16)
  6. Dusty ("Poor Twisted Me" Take 12) +
  7. Ronny ("Ronnie" Take 16)
  8. Boss ("Bleeding Me" Take 9)
  9. Mouldy ("Hero of the Day" Take 16)
  10. Outlaw ("The Outlaw Torn" Take 12)
  11. Mama ("Mama Said" Take 15)
  12. F.O.B.D. ("Until It Sleeps" Take 7)
  13. Mama ("Mama Said" New Arrangement Take 7)
  1. Streamline ("Wasting My Hate" Original Arrangement Rough Mix) +
  2. Jack ("The House Jack Built" Original Arrangement Rough Mix)
  3. Bitch ("Ain't My Bitch" Original Arrangement Rough Mix) +
  4. 2 x 4 (Original Arrangement Rough Mix)
  5. Load ("King Nothing" Original Arrangement Rough Mix)
  6. Believe ("Cure" Original Arrangement Rough Mix)
  7. 2 x 4 (Re-Edit Version 1 Rough Mix)
  8. Dusty ("Poor Twisted Me" Vocal Comp Rough Mix)
  9. NC-17 ("Thorn Within" Scratch Vocal Rough Mix)
  10. Jack ("The House Jack Built" Re-Edit Version 1 Rough Mix) +
  11. Streamline ("Wasting My Hate" Edit Version 1 Rough Mix)
  12. Mouldy ("Hero of the Day" Scratch Vocal Rough Mix)
  13. F.O.B.D. ("Until It Sleeps" Rough Chorus Vocal Idea Mix) +
  14. Believe ("Cure" Kirk Solo Comp 1 Rough Mix)
  1. Load ("King Nothing" Kirk Solo Comp 2 Rough Mix)
  2. Bitch ("Ain't My Bitch" Original Ending Alternate Mix)
  3. Mouldy ("Hero of the Day" Instrumental Mix) +
  4. Boss ("Bleeding Me" Lead Vocal Comp Rough Mix)
  5. Mama ("Mama Said" Acoustics Only Alternate Mix) +
  6. Ronnie (Instrumental Rough Mix)
  7. Streamline ("Wasting My Hate" Fraze Slam Mix)
  8. Mama ("Mama Said" No Band Alternate Mix)
  9. Load ("King Nothing" Lead Vocal Comp Rough Mix)
  10. Ronnie (Vocal Comp Rough Mix)
  11. Jack ("The House Jack Built" More FX Alternate Mix)
  12. Outlaw ("The Outlaw Torn" Outlaw of Torn Vocal Tag Alternate Mix) +

CD 7: B-Sides & Rarities (* previously unreleased)

The Whole Motörhead-ache Mess

  1. Overkill
  2. Damage Case
  3. Stone Dead Forever
  4. Too Late Too Late
  5. The Chase is Better Than the Catch *
  6. (We Are) The Road Crew/Overkill (Reprise) *

Alternate Edits

  1. Mama Said (Radio Edit)
  2. The Outlaw Torn (No More Manufacturing Limits!)

The Remixes That Should Not Be

  1. Until It Sleeps (Herman Melville Mix)
  2. Hero of the Day (Outta B-Sides Mix)
  3. King Nothing (Tepid Mix)
  4. Hero of the Day (Unreleased Aux Mix) *

Misc. Shit

  1. Mama Said (Live on Later...with Jools Holland - 11/13/1996) *

Tracks 1-4 released on "Hero of the Day" U.K. maxi-CD single - Vertigo METCY 13, 1996
Track 7 released on "Mama Said" U.K. CD single #1 - Vertigo 578 871-2, 1996
Tracks 8 and 11 released on "The Memory Remains" U.K. CD single #2 - Vertigo METDD 15, 1997
Track 9 released on "Until It Sleeps" U.K. CD single #2 - Vertigo METCX 12, 1996
Track 10 released on "Hero of the Day" U.K. CD single #1 - Vertigo METCD 13, 1996

CD 8-9: Escape from the Studio '95 (Live At Donington Park, Castle Donington, England - 8/26/1995) 

  1. The Ecstasy of Gold
  2. Breadfan
  3. Master of Puppets
  4. Wherever I May Roam
  5. The God That Failed
  6. Fade to Black
  7. 2 x 4 (previously released on "Until It Sleeps" U.K. CD single #1 - Vertigo METCD 12, 1996) +
  8. Kill/Ride Medley: Ride the Lightning/No Remorse/Hit the Lights/The Four Horsemen/Phantom Lord/Fight Fire with Fire (previously released on "Hero of the Day" CD single - Elektra 64248-2, 1996) +
  9. Bass Doodle
  10. For Whom the Bell Tolls
  11. Devil's Dance
  12. Donington Jam
  13. Creeping Death
  1. Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
  2. Harvester of Sorrow
  3. Guitar Solo
  4. Nothing Else Matters
  5. Sad But True
  6. One
  7. Last Caress
  8. Seek & Destroy
  9. Enter Sandman
  10. So What
  11. 2 x 4 (Live At Astoria 2, London, England - 8/23/1995)
  12. Devil's Dance (Live At Astoria 2, London, England - 8/23/1995)

CD 10-11: Club Shows and Rehearsals (previously unreleased except where noted)

Live at Slim's, San Francisco, CA - 6/10/1996

  1. Intro Jam
  2. So What
  3. Creeping Death
  4. Sad But True
  5. Ain't My Bitch
  6. Whiplash
  7. Fade to Black
  8. King Nothing +
  9. One
  10. Until It Sleeps
  11. For Whom the Bell Tolls
  12. Wherever I May Roam
  1. Nothing Else Matters
  2. Enter Sandman
  3. Encore Jam
  4. Last Caress (w/ Jim Martin)
  5. Master of Puppets
  6. Overkill
  7. Motorbreath

Poor Rehearsing Me (August '96)

  1. Wasting My Hate (Hun Sound Rehearsal)
  2. The House Jack Built (Hun Sound Rehearsal)

100.7 WMMS-FM Coffee Break Concert, Cleveland, OH - 2/19/1997

  1. Last Caress
  2. King Nothing
  3. Devil's Dance
  4. Wasting My Hate
  5. Hero of the Day +
  6. Whiplash
  7. Motorbreath

CD 10, Tracks 7-9 and 12 and CD 11, Tracks 1 and 4-7 released on The Fan Can #2 - Metallica Fan Club FC-002, 1997

CD 12-13: Poor Norwegian Me '96 (Live At The Spektrum, Oslo, Norway - 11/23/1996) (previously unreleased)

  1. Intro Jam
  2. So What
  3. Creeping Death
  4. Sad But True
  5. Ain't My Bitch
  6. Whiplash
  7. Bleeding Me
  8. King Nothing
  9. One
  10. Wasting My Hate +
  11. Bass/Guitar Doodle
  12. Nothing Else Matters
  13. Until It Sleeps +
  14. For Whom the Bell Tolls
  1. Wherever I May Roam
  2. Fade to Black
  3. Seek & Destroy/Fight Fire with Fire
  4. Encore Jam
  5. Last Caress
  6. Master of Puppets
  7. Enter Sandman
  8. Encore Jam #2
  9. Am I Evil?
  10. Motorbreath
  11. Bleeding Me (Birmingham, England Rehearsal)
  12. Until It Sleeps (Birmingham, England Rehearsal)
  13. The House Jack Built (Birmingham, England Rehearsal) +

CD 14-15: Poor Touring Me '96-'97 (previously unreleased)

  1. Intro Jam (Live at Rosemont Horizon, Chicago, IL - 2/9/1997)
  2. So What (Live at Forum København, Copenhagen, Denmark - 11/26/1996)
  3. Creeping Death (Live at Great Western Forum, Los Angeles, CA - 12/20/1996)
  4. Sad But True (Live at Palazzo dello Sport, Rome, Italy - 9/26/1996)
  5. Ain't My Bitch (Live at McNichols Sports Arena, Denver, CO - 1/24/1997)
  6. Hero of the Day (Live at Miami Arena, Miami, FL - 4/19/1997)
  7. Whiplash (Live at Point Theatre, Dublin, Ireland - 10/9/1996)
  8. Bleeding Me (Live at Westfalenhalle, Dortmund, Germany - 10/21/1996)
  9. King Nothing (Live at Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, PA - 3/26/1997)
  10. One (Live at Saskatchewan Place, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada - 5/26/1997)
  11. 2 x 4 (Live at Sportovni Hala, Prague, Czech Republic - 9/9/1996)
  12. Wasting My Hate (Live at Velódromo de Anoeta, San Sebastian, Spain - 9/18/1996)
  13. Devil's Dance (Live at Madison Square Garden, New York, NY - 3/10/1997)
  1. Bass/Guitar Doodle (Live at Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, NM - 1/8/1997)
  2. Nothing Else Matters (Live at Estádio do Restelo in Lisbon, Portugal - 9/20/1996)
  3. Until It Sleeps (Live at Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, NV - 1/10/1997)
  4. For Whom the Bell Tolls (Live at Prins Van Oranjehal, Utrecht, The Netherlands - 11/12/1996)
  5. Wherever I May Roam (Live at Spokane Arena, Spokane, WA - 5/16/1997)
  6. Fade to Black (Live at Centre Molson, Montreal, Quebec, Canada - 3/28/1997)
  7. Kill/Ride Medley (Live at Spodek, Katowice, Poland, 9/8/1996)
  8. Encore Jam (Live at Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, OH - 4/16/1997)
  9. The Shortest Straw (Live at Flanders Expo, Ghent, Belgium - 9/14/1996)
  10. Master of Puppets (Live at Barrowland, Glasgow, Scotland - 10/10/1996)
  11. Enter Sandman (Live at The Omni, Atlanta, GA - 4/22/1997)
  12. Encore Jam #2 (Live at Le Dome, Marseille, France - 10/2/1996)
  13. Fuel (Live at Rosemont Horizon, Chicago, IL - 2/9/1997) +
  14. Breadfan (Live at Seidenstickerhalle, Bielefeld, Germany - 11/11/1996)
  15. Overkill (Live at Earls Court, London, England - 10/12/1996) +

DVD 1: Studio Shit + U.K. Shenanigans

  1. Rehearsals at The Plant Pt. 1
  2. Writing in Lars' Dungeon Pt. 1
  3. A Week and a Half in the Life of Metallica Pt. 1: London - Soundcheck/2 x 4/Devil's Dance
  4. A Week and a Half in the Life of Metallica Pt. 2: Castle Donington - 2 x 4/Kill/Ride Medley/Devil's Dance

DVD 2: Molson Ice Polar Beach Party (Live At The Big Igloo, Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, Canada - 9/3/1995

  1. Soundcheck
  2. Backstage
  3. The Ecstasy of Gold
  4. Creeping Death
  5. Master of Puppets
  6. Wherever I May Roam
  7. Harvester of Sorrow
  8. Fade to Black
  9. 2 x 4
  10. Bass Doodle
  11. For Whom the Bell Tolls
  12. Devil's Dance +
  13. Seek & Destroy
  14. Guitar Doodle
  15. Nothing Else Matters
  16. Sad But True
  17. One
  18. Enter Sandman
  19. So What
  20. A Week and a Half in the Life of Metallica Pt. 1: Tuk

DVD 3: Poor Swedish Me '96

  1. Intro Jam
  2. Last Caress
  3. Creeping Death
  4. Sad But True
  5. Ain't My Bitch
  6. Whiplash
  7. Bleeding Me
  8. King Nothing
  9. One
  10. Devil's Dance
  11. Bass/Guitar Doodle
  12. Nothing Else Matters
  13. Until It Sleeps
  14. For Whom the Bell Tolls
  15. Wherever I May Roam
  16. Fade to Black
  17. Kill/Ride Medley
  18. Encore Jam
  19. So What
  20. Master of Puppets
  21. Enter Sandman
  22. Encore Jam #2
  23. Breadfan
  24. Overkill

DVD 4: On the Air - Music Videos and TV Performances

  1. Until It Sleeps (promo video)
  2. Hero of the Day (promo video - director's cut)
  3. Mama Said (promo video)
  4. King Nothing (promo video)
  5. Hero of the Day (U.S. promo video)
  6. Hero of the Day (U.K. promo video)
  7. Hero of the Day (Cowboy Footage)
  8. MTV Motherload (U.S. Version)
  9. MTV Motherload (Euro Version)
  10. Until It Sleeps (Live on the MTV Video Music Awards, Radio City Music Hall, New York, NY - 9/4/1996)
  11. Hero of the Day (Live on Top of the Pops, BBC - 9/27/1996)
  12. Wasting My Hate (Live on Later...with Jools Holland - 11/13/1996)
  13. Mama Said (Live on Later...with Jools Holland - 11/13/1996)
  14. King Nothing (Live on Later...with Jools Holland - 11/13/1996)
  15. Last Caress/So What (Live on the MTV Europe Music Awards, Alexandria Palace, London, England - 11/14/1996)
  16. Mama Said (Live on Sverige-Sovjet, STV Studios, Stockholm, Sweden - 11/15/1996) +
  17. King Nothing (Live on the American Music Awards, Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, CA - 1/27/1997)
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Mike Duquette

Mike Duquette (Founder) was fascinated with catalog music ever since he was a teenager. A 2009 graduate of Seton Hall University with a B.A. in journalism, Mike paired his profession with his passion through The Second Disc, one of the first sites to focus on all reissue labels great and small. His passion for reissues turned into a career, holding positions at Legacy Recordings and Rhino Records and contributing to Allmusic, Discogs, City Pages, Ultimate Classic Rock and Mondo Records, for whom he penned liner notes for his favorite piece of music: John Williams' Oscar-winning score to 'E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial.' Born and raised in New Jersey, Mike lives in Astoria, Queens with his wife, a cat named Ravioli, twin daughters and a large yet tasteful collection of music.

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