Death Magnetic

Death Magnetic is the ninth studio album by Metallica, released in September 2008 on Warner Bros. Records and produced by Rick Rubin, a conscious return to the complex, long-form song structures of the classic thrash era after the commercial hard rock of the Load/Reload period and the divisive St. Anger experiment. Rubin's involvement was significant: he had no prior metal production history but brought an outsized reputation as a sonic architect who had revitalized Johnny Cash and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and his approach, emphasizing live recording, dynamic range, and extended soloing, addressed nearly every fan complaint about the previous album. Robert Trujillo plays bass throughout, his first full studio appearance with the band following his 2003 hire, and Hammett's guitar solos return prominently throughout the nine-to-ten-minute track structures. The album was simultaneously praised by fans who had felt alienated by the band's post-Black-Album direction and criticized by audiophiles for its extreme loudness in mastering, what became known as the 'Death Magnetic loudness war' controversy, in which the album's dynamic range was found to be significantly inferior to the Guitar Hero 3 game rip of the same tracks. Death Magnetic debuted at number one in 32 countries, including the Billboard 200, and has been certified four-times platinum in the United States.