For Whom The Bell Tolls: Cliff Burton Survives

Cliff woke up that night with the driest throat he'd had in years. It could have been the weather. It was too for him cold up here in Sweden, he liked it much better in California. Whatever it was, he had to get up and get a drink. He got out of his bed which he had won for the night. He stretched for a second. He felt a bump, he grabbed onto something. The entire bus flipped. He looked and saw that just a minute ago, he would have died. Cliff tried to catch his breath. Everyone was awake now, they managed to catch their breath and they were glad everyone was okay. It seems they slipped over some black ice. They were glad they had avoided something that could have been fatal. Metallica always had a little bit of fear whenever they toured in Sweden afterwards.
 

MacCaulay

Banned
maybe they keep the long hair? not sell out so completly?

Ah, come on. The newer albums are closer to their old stuff. Heck, the album where they changed there sound the most was the Black Album. Kill 'Em All and Ride the Lightning were all 6 minute songs with massive tempo changes and long guitar solos, then all of the sudden here comes the Black Album with 3 minute songs in your regular verse/verse/refrain/verse setup.


I like this idea. If they keep this then they'll probably be the most stable lineup in metal.
 
...And Justice with Cliff!

wooohooo! great to see you get started. eagerly awaiting new posts. Guess we are now looking towards the end of the tour and the beginning of the recording of Justice. I read at one stage that despite recruiting Jason Newstead for Justice they buried his bass playing in the mix. They also recorded one of the Garage days EPs at this point "to introduce Jason to the world". Think that would be "Garage Days Re-Revisited" but i'm not 100%.:D
 
1987/1988
Metallica

Metellica finished their Damage Inc. Tour after they returned to the States and began recording a new album. Titled "...And Justice For All" was released MArch 5th 1988, it would show breat examples of the talent the band was known for. Cliff Burton's bass work on this album would be considered some of his finest. The album won a grammy for Best Heavy Metal/Hard Rock performance in 1989

Track listing: ...And Justice For All
To Live is to Die (10:22) (Mostly composed by Cliff Burton, inspired by his near death experience, became a hit an a fovrite of most bassists)
...And Justice For All (9:50) (Written by all four members of Metallica equally, another hit)
One (7:27) (The huge hit off of the album, considered a perfect example of thrash metal)
Blackened (6:40) (Progressive piece, a fan favorite)
Eye of the Beholder (6:24) (Instrumental, a fan favorite)
Tomorrow (5:44) (Lesser known song, mostly listend to by drummers)
Chained Mercy (6:00) (Lesser known song, mostly listened to by bassists)


The ..And Justice For All tour would be a huge success, solidifying the bands status as one of the top metal bands.

Megadeth

Around the same time Metallica finished their Damage Inc tour, Megadeth finished their Peace Sells tour, At which point Frontman Dave Mustaine fired Lead Guitarist Chris Poland and Drummer Gar Samuelson, upon holding auditions for the postitions, he discovered Brothers "Diamond" Darrell Abbott and Vinnie Paul Abbott. They would join Mustaine and David Ellefson for Megadeth's third album "So Far, So Good... So What", released January 8th, 1988. The album continued a streak of solid, praised Megadeth albums, and introduced the influecial style of Abbott's guitar playing.

Track listing: So Far, So Good... So What
In My Darkest Hour (6:20) (Tribute to Mustaine's ex-grilfriend he only refers to as Diane, he wrote this song in one sitting upon hearing of her death. Became a hit with it's popular music video.)
Liar (4:02) (Inspired by Mustaine's rocky relationship with former guitarist Chris Poland and an insane ex-girlfriend of Diamond's, is a fan favorite.)
Suicide Note Pt I (4:44) (Softer, slower song with dark lyrics)
Suicide Note Pt. II (4:44) (Controversial song that became a huge hit due to the controversy that came with it, considered to have one of the greatest solos of all time)
Fissure (3:18) (Instrumental, popular amoung hardcore fans of both Megadeth and the many bands of the Abbott Brothers)
Hellfire (4:05) (Lesser known song, mostly listened to for it's lyrics)
Anarchy in the U.K. (cover) (3:30) (popular cover version, preaised by metal fans, loathed by punk fans.)


The following tour was successful but problems arose between Mustaine and the Abbott Brothers, who would leave the band before it's European leg of the tour, Mustaine replaced them with Guitarist Marty Friedman and Drummer Nick Menza


Anthrax

Not much changed for the Band Anthrax in the late eighties, who released Amoung the Living on March 22nd, 1987. It was a huge succes fo the band.

Track listing:
Amoung the Living (5:15) (Fan favorite)
Caught in a Mosh (4:59) (Major hit, became an anthem for metalheads.)
I Am the Law (5:57) (Became a fan favorite, and later became an unexpected hit after it was featured in 1995 hit movie Judge Dredd)
A Skeleton in the Closet (5:32) (Lesser known song)
Indians (5:42) (Another hit)
Run to the Hills (Cover) (4:00) (Attracted attention of Iron Maiden fans and pleased Anthrax fans as well.)
Immitaton of Life (5:00) (Lesser known song)


Slayer

Slayer attempted to release the Album South of Heaven in 1988, but controversy from Reign in Blood left them without a label. At this point Slayer began reworking their band to avoid further problems with record companies.
 
great start!

Was there a Justice tour in RL? Must have been, guess just don't know about it because Metallica weren't so big on filming themselves back then.

Like the updates on what other metal bands are up to.
 
1989/1990

Metallica

Metallica breifly considered a softer sound in 1989, but the choice was made to continue with their current powerful style and continue to lead thrash metal. They released the album The Unforgiven June 3rd 1990, and it was this album that proved thrash metal would not die with 80's.

Track listing: The Unforgiven

The Unforgiven (7:08) (Huge hit, It starts out softer but explodes into thrash metal around the 3 minute mark, became one of Metallica's most memorable songs and is conctantly played on the radio)
Wherever I May Roam (5:56) (Another hit, the guitar solo is one of the favorites of Metallica fans)
Vengeful Death (5:44) (Fan favorite, would be covered by many other bands)
Nothing Else Matters (6:28) (A thrash song about love, an admitted gulity pleasure by most fans)
The Killing Storm (6:43) (Instrumental, a fan favorite, contains a popular bass solo)
One Million Lies (4:34) (Lesser known song, loved by drummers)
Overcharged (6:55) (Powerful, agressive song played at at many sporting events, a fan favorite)
The Final Night (7:54) (A huge hit, and became the encore for most Metallica concerts after the release of the album)

Megadeth

Megadeth jumped right into their next album after their So Far...So Good tour, titled Rust in Peace and released , it would prove Megadeth as a rival to Metallica's throne. It would win two Grammies in the year of 1990

Track Listing: Rust in Peace

Holy Wars...The Punishment Due (6:32) (major hit, Inspired by an event in Northern Ireland were the crowd misinterpeted Dave Mustaine yelling "This one's for the cause." Before playing Anarchy in the UK.)
Hangar 18 (5:14) (The band's defining piece as well as a major hit, became the biggest fan favorite)
Torando of Souls (5:19) (Another major hit)
Take No Prisioners (3:26) (Lesser known song)
Five Magics (5:40) (Lesser known song)
Poison Was the Cure (5:20) (Lesser known song)
Lucretia (3:58) (Lesser known song)
Paranoid (3:22) (Popular cover, attracted Black Sabbath fans)
Megadeth (7:28) (Major hit, contains two popular guitar solos, was #1 on MTV's top 40 title tracks)
Rust in Peace...Polaris (5:44) (Major hit, became a radio hit)


Anthrax

Athrax released it's next big album, Be All, End All on December 129th 1990

Track Listing: Be All, End All

Be All, End All (6:18) (Major hit, constant radio play)
Anti-Social (4:19) (A popular cover of the Trust song)
Dances With Wolves (5:34) (Features the new rising band Pantera, last minute adition to the album, named after the popular movie, becomes a major hit)
Intro to Reality (3:55) (Instrumental, lesser known)
Got The Time (2:44) (Popular cover of the Joe Jackson song)
Endless War (6:00) Lesser known song)
Born Souless (4:32) (Lesser known song)

Slayer

Slayer returns under a new label, though a bit toned down, they return with their hit album Years Of War on August 5th 1990.

Track Listing: Years of War

War Ensemble (4:54) (The major hit of this album)
Born of Fire (3:12) (Hit instrumental)
Temptation (3:31) (Fan favorite)
Seasons in the Abyss (6:50) (Fan favorite)
Ghosts of War (4:21) (Lesser known song)
Skeletons of Society (4:35) (Lesser known song)


Pantera

After their brief time with Megadeth, The Abbott Brothers return to their old band Pantera, who would release the hit album Cowboys from Hell July 30th, 1990.

Track Listing: Cowboys from Hell

Cowboys from Hell (4:06) (Huge hit)
Cemetery Gates (7:03) (Major hit)
Psycho Holiday (5:48) (Major Hit)
Cat Scratch Fever (4:32) (Popular Ted Nugent cover)
Message in Blood (3:42) (Lesser known song)
Hatred (5:32) (Lesser known song)
Heresy (4:20) (Lesser known song)
The Sleep (5:55) (Lesser Known song)
 
bob rock

did cliff not get along with bob rock or something? might be worth investigating the various producers that metallica used for their albums.:rolleyes:
 
Was there a Justice tour in RL? Must have been, guess just don't know about it because Metallica weren't so big on filming themselves back then.

Like the updates on what other metal bands are up to.

Yes...there was sort of two. They toured with the Monsters of Rock (Van Halen off the OU812 album was headliner....Scorps, Dokken, and Kingdom Come). They had an official tour with Queensryche and Suicidal Tendencies (odd concert, since Queensryche was doing their Silent Lucidity stuff, but the tour was all Operation Mindcrime).
 

Caspian

Banned
There are an awful lot of covers being released in this timeline.

For Pantera, are they going to continue with their glam/power sound, move to thrash, or turn towards groove?

Also, if you're keeping the Big 4 thrash, this could have an effect on the Florida death metal scene, as there won't be as much of a difference between the genres.
 
Until now, there has only been mention of US thrash metal bands. Even back then, the metal scene was much more muti-faceted. Is there going to be anything about the evolving European metal scene which, objectively and sujectively, is much livelier and colorful than the US metal scene OTL? Thrash metal isn't everything. I even have to say that compared to some of the stuff that has sprung up in the nineties and 2000's, it is nearly one-dimensional and boring. Consider European Power Metal, the Gothenburg school of Melodic Death Metal, Symphonic Metal, Folk/Viking/Pagan Metal and so on and so on. Will we hear or read about Blind Guardian, Nighwish, In Flames, At the Gates, Ensiferum, Amon Amarth, Dark Tranquillity...........? What about Iron Maiden?

Yes, dammit, my metal world is a bit Eurocentric. But the best stuff has come and still does come from Europe. And nevertheless I am a huge Metallica fan although the last 15 years have been kinda hard to take ;)
 

Caspian

Banned
Until now, there has only been mention of US thrash metal bands. Even back then, the metal scene was much more muti-faceted. Is there going to be anything about the evolving European metal scene which, objectively and sujectively, is much livelier and colorful than the US metal scene OTL? Thrash metal isn't everything. I even have to say that compared to some of the stuff that has sprung up in the nineties and 2000's, it is nearly one-dimensional and boring. Consider European Power Metal, the Gothenburg school of Melodic Death Metal, Symphonic Metal, Folk/Viking/Pagan Metal and so on and so on. Will we hear or read about Blind Guardian, Nighwish, In Flames, At the Gates, Ensiferum, Amon Amarth, Dark Tranquillity...........? What about Iron Maiden?

The biggest immediate influences would probably be on the thrashier styles. After thrash, Florida death metal, evolving as it did out of thrash metal, will probably be the first to be affected.

Looking at the tracklist for Scream Bloody Gore and comparing it to the most recent Death demos, most of the songs already existed, so I doubt there will be any immediate changes to SBG and consequently the scene.

Ooh, other than the changes to groove, I now wonder what changes might occur to the grunge scene. I'm not sure I see many changes to black metal - the Norwegian bands were mostly influenced by Venom, Bathory, and Celtic Frost, if I remember correctly.
 
I have plans to incorporate A few death metal bands, a few European bands, and one grunge band (That one should be easy to guess. As well as some other things.

They will all be closer to thrash however as this is a thrash centered timeline.

We could see some of the Classical metal bands popping up in this timeline near the end of it, We've just got to get there.
 
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