Battery (song)

"Battery" is a song by the American heavy metal band Metallica, and serves as the opening track to the band's third studio album, ''Master of Puppets.''

Background and composition

The song is composed in the key of E minor. It has a similar structure to the opening track of ''Ride the Lightning'' ("Fight Fire with Fire") and ''...And Justice for All'' ("Blackened"). The song begins with an acoustic guitar introduction before drums and bass guitar come in with distorted guitars playing a more melodic sequence. Then the song cuts into a very fast thrash metal riff which is the base for the rest of the song.

James Hetfield improvised the main riff to the song while relaxing in London.

Lyrical meaning

The lyrics discuss control of anger over one's behavior. However, the theme of the song is based around the San Francisco thrash scene in the 1980s. The most prominent club played by Metallica was the Old Waldorf at 444 Battery Street in downtown San Francisco. The lyric "Cannot kill the family, Battery is found in me" is a statement that society does not understand the scene and that those within it ("the family") will defend it as a show of solidarity against the glam metal scene that was popular in the Los Angeles area. The tone of the song is of familial ties and the positive release of energy through interest in metal.

Reception

AllMusics Steve Huey called the songs "Battery" and "Damage, Inc." "two slices of thrash mayhem".

A readers' poll in ''Rolling Stone'' placed "Battery" at number 9 on its 10 Best Metallica Songs list.

''Kerrang!'' ranked the song number 5 on its 20 Greatest Metallica Songs Ranked list, commenting, "Echoing Ride The Lightning's superb Fight Fire With Fire in its medieval-tinged acoustic opening before bombing headlong into a masterclass in lean, taut thrash metal, Battery was the fine-tuned statement of intent from a band ready to make their serrated sound a platinum success."

''Revolver'' magazine hosted a fan poll and "Battery" was ranked number 4 out of "Top 5 Metallica Songs".

''Loudwire'' ranked "Battery" at number 7 in its "Best Metallica Songs" list.

''Billboard'' ranked the song at number 4 on its "Top Ten Greatest Metallica Songs" list.

Performances

The song was first played live on March 27, 1986, along with the songs "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" and "Damage, Inc".

"Battery" used to be a constant part of the band's live set list, frequently as either the opening or closing song. In some cases, it was used as a song before the intermission in concerts. Since 2008, the song shares its spot with other album openers such as "Blackened" or "Fight Fire with Fire", usually near the end of the main set or even in the encore, due to regular setlists rotation. When played live, the song may stop before the interlude and James Hetfield asks the crowd, "Are you alive?... How does it feel to be alive?" (This can be heard on the live album '' S&M''.)

"Battery" has been played live 1000 times up to April 2025.

Cover versions

* Eric Knudtsen (Flotsam & Jetsam), Dave Lombardo (Slayer), Mike Clark (Suicidal Tendencies) and Robert Trujillo (Suicidal Tendencies), 2000, on the tribute album '' Metallic Assault: A Tribute to Metallica''. Lombardo played the song with Metallica on stage when Lars Ulrich missed the 2004 Download Festival, and Trujillo became a member of Metallica in 2003.
* Lagwagon borrows the line "smashing through the boundaries/lunacy has found me" on the song "Raise A Family" on their 2000 album '' Let's Talk About Leftovers''.
* Die Krupps, 2002, on the tribute album '' A Tribute to the Four Horsemen''.
* Dream Theater, 2002, along with the entire ''Master of Puppets'' album, as part of its world tour in 2002, which has been released as an official bootleg recording.
* Prototype, 2002, on ''Phantom Lords - A Tribute to Metallica'', released by Dwell Records.
* Sum 41, 2003, during the ''MTV Icon'' of Metallica, and randomly through the 2009–2010 tour dates.
* Ensiferum, 2004, on the compilation album ''EvIL Ultimate Metal Covers #55'' and their single ''Tale of Revenge''.
*Machine Head, 2006, on the compilation album ''Remastered: Metallica's Master Of Puppets Revisited'', and is also included as a bonus track on some versions of the band's album '' The Blackening''.
* Van Canto, an ''a cappella'' metal band, on its 2006 debut album ''A Storm to Come''.
* Harptallica, a harp tribute duo, covered the song's introduction on the 2007 album ''Harptallica: A Tribute''.
* Deftones, 2009, on the second night of the band's One Love For Chi concerts, with accompaniment from Dave Lombardo (Slayer) on drums, Alexi Laiho (Children of Bodom) on guitar, Robert Trujillo (Metallica) on bass guitar, Daron Malakian and Shavo Odadjian ( System of a Down) on guitar and bass guitar respectively, and Greg Puciato (The Dillinger Escape Plan) on vocals.
* Beatallica, a mash-up band that combines Metallica and The Beatles, combined "Battery" with "The Ballad of John and Yoko" to create "The Battery Of Jaymz And Yoko" on the 2009 '' Masterful Mystery Tour'' album.
* Animetal, 2012, on the album ''Animetal Rebirth Heroes'', the riff of "Battery" appears throughout the song "Touch".

In popular culture

*The song appears as one of playable tracks in Rock Band 2, '' Guitar Hero: Metallica'' and '' Fortnite Festival''.
*The song appears in the 2011 indie film '' Hesher''.
*The song appears in the 2012 film '' Project X''.
*The song appears in the 2013 film Metallica: Through The Never.

Controversy

On August 13, 2018, a man named Chris Watts murdered his family. A report on the situation included how Watts Googled lyrics to Metallica's "Battery" after he had disposed of the bodies of his pregnant wife and children. It stirred up controversy in the media, some reports trying to link the song to the murder.

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the ''Master of Puppetss liner notes.

Metallica

* James Hetfield – vocals, rhythm guitar
* Lars Ulrich – drums, percussion
* Kirk Hammett – lead guitar
* Cliff Burton – bass

Production

* Metallica – production
* Flemming Rasmussen – production, engineering
* Andy Wroblewski – assistant engineer
* Michael Wagener – mixing
* Mark Wilzcak – assistant mixing engineer
* George Marino – mastering, remastering on 1995 re-release
* Howie Weinberg, Gentry Studer – 2017 remastering

Certifications

References

{{Metallica songs

Metallica songs
Songs written by James Hetfield
Songs written by Lars Ulrich
1986 songs