METALLICA – HOLLYWOOD PALLADIUM 1985 SOUNDBOARD (CD-R)

Description

Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, CA, USA 10th March 1985 STEREO SBD
★A truly powerful stereo soundboard!!

　Metallica in 1985 embodied the ideal of the new, brutal music genre, “thrash metal.” Now, an official leaked soundboard recording has emerged, delivering their blazing, heavy sound directly from the mixing console.

　This release captures the “March 10, 1985 Hollywood Palladium performance,” a stereo soundboard recording. 1985 was a busy year for the band, as they were performing at famous festivals around the world while also working on “MASTER OF PUPPETS.” Let’s first take a look at their activities at that time to understand the context of this release.

●1984
– January 7-22: North America #1 (6 shows)
– February 3-12: Europe #2 (6 shows)
– March 27 + April 8: UK (2 shows) ← *MARQUEE 1984
《March 14 ‘RIDE THE LIGHTNING’ completed》
– June 6-10: Europe #3 (5 shows) – July 20
+ August 3: North America #2 (2 shows)
– August 29: Le Bourget performance
– November 16 – December 20: Europe #4 (25 shows)
●1985
– January 10 – March 19: North America #3 (55 shows) ← ★HERE★
– August 17 ‘MONSTERS OF ROCK 1985’
– August 24 + 31: North America #4 (2 shows)
《September ‘MASTER OF Production of ‘PUPPETS’ begins》
– September 14th: ‘METAL HAMMER FESTIVAL 1985’
– December 29th + 31st: North America #5 (2 shows)

[An otherworldly soundboard experience, like plugging something into your ears]
　This is METALLICA in 1984/1985. The tour consisted of numerous small dates scattered throughout the year, too numerous to be called a tour, and only the “Europe #4” at the end of 1984 and the “North America #3” at the beginning of 1985 were designated as the “RIDE THE LIGHTNING Tour.” This Hollywood Palladium performance is the 51st show of the latter. While there are other classic press releases from this period, such as our store’s masterpiece “MONSTERS OF ROCK 1985 (Zodiac 141)” and the standard pro-shot of “METAL HAMMER FESTIVAL 1985,” this release captures a different, more typical club tour performance. It was a headline show, with ARMORED SAINT as the opening act.

　The soundboard recording from that show is famous for being included as an LP in the ‘RIDE THE LIGHTNING’ 30th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set, and this release is that leaked master. The exact circumstances are unclear, but it’s a master obtained through an independent channel and was probably leaked during the production of the box set. In fact, it’s a genuine “excavated official-quality” sound that is in no way inferior to the official version.

　Moreover, it’s not just high-quality sound. The stereo soundboard, recorded directly from the mixing console, is ferociously rough but incredibly direct. The guitars and bass have an unusually direct connection, as if plugged directly into your ears, and the drums give you an immersive feeling, as if you’ve stuck your head into the bass drum. The vocals burst forth from “inside,” as if James has possessed your brain cells. Clearly, the rawness of being completely unprocessed and unadjusted is pushed to the forefront, but that’s precisely what makes this brutal thrash paradise so irresistible. The beautiful roar is so pleasurable that you want to be tormented forever. It’s a sadistic soundboard that might awaken a sexual fetish you never knew you had.

[A concentrated set that brings the thrash era to life]
　This is the kind of sound that will be unleashed in a full 60-minute show that distills the essence of thrash’s groundbreaking albums, ‘KILL ‘EM ALL’ and ‘RIDE THE LIGHTNING’. As mentioned earlier, the “METAL HAMMER FESTIVAL” pro-shot footage from this period is famous, so let’s organize the setlist while comparing it to that.

● Ride the Lightning (5 songs)
– Fight Fire With Fire / Ride The Lightning / For Whom The Bell Tolls / Fade To Black / Creeping Death
● Others (5 songs + α)
– Kill ‘Em All: Phantom Lord (★) / (Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth / No Remorse / Seek & Destroy / Motorbreath
– Cover: Am I Evil?
*Note: Songs marked with “★” were not included in the “METAL HAMMER FESTIVAL” pro-shot.

…And so it goes, with the raw, impulsive tracks from ‘RIDE THE LIGHTNING’ and ‘KILL ‘EM ALL’ bursting forth with tremendous force. From the ferocious charge of “Fight Fire With Fire” to the structural beauty of “Ride The Lightning,” the brutal riff of “Phantom Lord,” and Cliff Burton’s solo “(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth,” the raw, unadulterated sound directly from the mixing console is etched into your brain. “Phantom Lord” in particular is a repertoire that wasn’t seen on the “METAL HAMMER FESTIVAL” pro-shot, and experiencing it in this soundboard quality is a luxury unique to this release.

　The ‘RIDE THE LIGHTNING’ 30th Anniversary Box Set commands a premium of over five figures on the used market, and even if you manage to get your hands on it, you can’t even listen to it without an LP player. This release, however, allows you to easily enjoy that hard-to-find official leaked soundboard recording. METALLICA in 1985 embodied the ideal of the new brutal music genre, “thrash metal.” Please, let yourself be thoroughly blown away.

★A stereo soundboard recording of the “March 10, 1985 Hollywood Palladium performance.” It is believed to have leaked during the production of the ‘RIDE THE LIGHTNING’ 30th anniversary box set, and the raw, unadulterated sound directly from the mixing console is a genuine, officially-quality unearthed recording. The official box set is a hard-to-find item, costing over 5000 yen even secondhand and limited to LPs, but this can be enjoyed at an affordable price.

(60:10)
1. The Ecstasy Of Gold
2. Fight Fire With Fire
3. Ride The Lightning
4. Phantom Lord
5. (Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth
6. For Whom The Bell Tolls
7. No Remorse
8. Fade To Black
9. Seek & Destroy
10. Creeping Death
11. Am I Evil?
12. Motorbreath

James Hetfield – Guitar, Vocal
Lars Ulrich – Drums
Cliff Burton – Bass
Kirk Hammett – Guitar