Enter Night: A Biography of Metallica Paperback – August 21, 2012

Five stars for a thorough and interesting review of each band member and their respective backgrounds, as well as what was going on with the band and what they (and producers) were trying to achieve with each album and even many individual songs. It proved to be one of those books that I couldn't wait to start reading again to shed light on what would happen in the next few months/years/events for the band. Since reading and finishing the book I've found myself listening more to Metallica and thinking about what it was going through at the time the song was wrote and what went into writing that particular song. Admittedly I did not like how freely the author would criticize or speak ill of many songs and some albums, some of which I think were some of Metallica's better songs and work overall. These are Mick Wall's personal opinions, and he is certainly entitled to them, but I didn't appreciate nor value his thoughts on them, I read the book to know about the band itself. I would recommend this book to anyone who is a Metallica fan or even just a fan of hard rock music.

Some reviews mentioned that the author was biased, a fan, but that was definitely my take on this book. In fact, it seems that the author is quite open in his criticisms and exposes clearly when Metallica took more let's say business oriented decisions, how Lars and James planned the changes the band went through, how they found the replacements for Ron McGovney and Dave Mustaine before they were kicked out of the band, and so on.The book's greatest asset is it's open, honest and very detailed narrative of the band's trajectory, each member's personality, defects and problems. The changes that influenced each album are widely mentioned, the influences that the band had (like Ulrich's fixation with Axl Rose, etc.) and so on.It's a great read for Metallica, metal and overall music fans alike. The only aspect that I did not really like was his criticism of ...And Justice For All, which despite agreeing that it's the weakest of the first 5 albums, it's still a great album. But again, each one it entitled to one's opinion.

Wall knows how to write a story: if you know him for his great pieces and interviews in Kerrang!, you won't be surprised by how wonderfully this bio flows. Just like many of us out there, he clearly has a deeper love for old Metallica than he does for the modern day version, but his mix of music fan/critic approach is nothing short of wonderful.You can divide the book into five chapters, and get lost in each of them: the Lars-centered phase, when our favorite Danish drumming troll morphs from obsessed fan into musician, the Mustaine beginning, that probably laid the foundations that built the true Titans of Thrash, the Burton years, when Metallica evolved into the monster we know and love, the Black Album phase, that turned them into rock stars, and...well, and the rest, when older fans like me sort of lost contact with the band, because - let's face it - from Load to Death Magnetic, we haven't really heard another top notch track from the gang.My personal favorites are the unfolding of the Burton years and the creation of Ride and Master, depicted by Wall with the necessary touch or melancholy, and the anticipation and subsequent explosion of the Black masterpiece.I liked this book so much I listened to Justice three times in a row...guess that says it all.

I just finished this book about an hour ago. Its is amazing. I like it because mick wall the author gives his opinions about the band instead of just the facts. Though I disagree with some of his assertions (ie. ...and justice for all review and the mid-ninties new look), I am glad that he wrote this amazingly detailed book about a formerly great band. Metallica has not made a good album since 1988 and at this point seems to be a nostalgia act. I would like for them to make new great music but that would take a lot of effort and at this point metallica doesn't want to put a lot of effort into it.I disagree with MW that the new mid-ninties makeup and eyeshadow look turned off fans. because its about the MUSIC not what they look like. If the music was good---does anyone really care about their looks! In addition, after the grunge phase of the early 1990's, mw suggest that rock was on the decline so metallica had to come with with a new musical angle. I disagree - look at Pantera, Slayer, and tool. All great bands that increased their fan base and earnings in the late 1990s and 2000s. Metallica CHOSE to make poor music because they reached the level of success where you can live off your old material and people will still go to the concert.Mw is honest about lars being a poor drummer. its rare that journatlists say that openly. most journalists want access so they suck up to the band members. Thanks for your honesty!!!No one goes to a metallica show for the st. anger, load, (untitled), and death magnetic material. People go for the 1980s material. metallica knows this too. thats why they mainly play that in concert; if they didn't no one would go to their concert.Best book about metallica written.

Great book on the story of the band. But I really wanted to know about the inspirations for the songs. There was a little bit of it but not much.

Enjoyed the book. Got in depth to the beginnings of the worlds greatest band.

This biography takes Metallica through their darkest moments as well as their moments of glory and tells us how they really felt about it, any other biography has accomplished this which shows us that this Biography is the one you should buy, I promise you, you won't regret it!Metallica is not just a great rock band but almost a religion and a movement to millions of people not just during the 80's but to the day when they still produce awesome music! Hope they continue like this! Thank You for this great music: Ulrich, Hetfield, Mustaine, Hammett, Burton, Newsted, Trujillo and all the people which were, are or will be involved in Metallica!