Metallica is giving ‘ReLoad’ the full treatment. The band’s quadruple platinum seventh studio album arrives June 26 in a Limited Edition Deluxe Box Set via Blackened Recordings, remastered by Reuben Cohen at Lurssen Mastering with Greg Fidelman overseeing. Pre-orders are live now, and they’re loaded with instant grat material including remastered, instrumental, and live versions of “The Memory Remains.” Listen here.
Originally released November 18, 1997, ‘ReLoad’ was the third consecutive Metallica album to debut at number one on the Billboard 200, spending nearly 80 weeks on the chart and hitting number one in six countries. The 1995-1997 sessions at The Plant in Sausalito, California, found James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett, and Jason Newsted pushing into expanded creative territory, from the hurdy-gurdy and violin on “Low Man’s Lyric” to Marianne Faithfull’s haunting guest vocal on “The Memory Remains.”
The Deluxe Box Set is a thoroughly curated document of the 1997-1998 era. It includes the remastered album on 180g double vinyl, a “The Memory Remains” 7″, and ‘Live at Ministry of Sound ’97’ on 140g triple vinyl. The 15 CDs span the remastered album, never-before-released riff collections, demos, rough mixes, B-sides, rarities, and a deep catalog of live material.
Four DVDs round out the audio content with behind-the-scenes and in-studio footage, live performances, on-air and television appearances, the band’s pop-up at the CoreStates Complex Parking Lot in Philadelphia, and visits to Seoul. Memorabilia includes 13 Rorschach Test cards, an 11×17 Gimme Fuel poster, a Pushead print, guitar and bass picks, lyric sheets, three laminated tour passes, and a 128-page deluxe book with never-before-seen photos and stories from the people who were there. This is a one-time numbered pressing.
The reissue also launches the #GetTheReLoadOut fan cover competition, the follow-up to last year’s wildly popular #GetTheLoadOut. This round adds a second category, welcoming performance and visual artists alongside musical cover submissions. A different ‘ReLoad’ track gets highlighted each week throughout the competition, with two Grand Prize Winners each taking home a Metallica-autographed Deluxe Box Set.
“The Memory Remains (Live in Philadelphia)” video is out now. ‘ReLoad’ (Remastered) arrives June 26. Pre-order at metallica.lnk.to/reloadreissue.