Metallica’s Master of Puppets Honored by U.S. Library of Congress

Metallica’s Master of Puppets album has been chosen to be preserved by the United States Library of Congress on the 2015 registry. The Library of Congress has claimed that Metallica’s Master of Puppets album is of great historical significance. Metallica’s Master of Puppets album was  released on March 3, 1986 by Elektra Records. The album was the band’s third release and set the tone for the emergence from their original thrash metal sounds into an arena of new sonic explorations.

The developing sound the band defined on Master of Puppets is reason why the recording is being registered with the Library of Congress according to government officials.The statement read that Master of Puppets “shows the group moving away from its thrash-metal history and reputation and exploring new ideas”. The statement defined thrash music as “Thrash, a reaction against the pop metal of the early 1980s, aimed to renew metal by emphasizing speed and aggression.” The Library of Congress also stated that Metallica’s Master of Puppets Album went on to  “break free of thrash orthodoxy.” This was an extraordinary statement by the Library of Congress.

The Library of Congress has been preserving art since the year 1800. It was established during the Presidency of John Adams by an act of congress It was first established as simply a library for congress. In 1814, the library which was housed in the Capitol Building was burnt down by the British. A new library was built and filled by Thomas Jefferson’s private collection of over six thousand books and works of art. Over the years, the Library has grown to house millions of works deemed of significant importance to the history and culture of the United States.

Library of Congress Website

Written by Brian Kachejian

Updated August 20, 2020