Death Magnetic

Metallica's ninth studio album of original music, Death Magnetic, was recorded between March 14, 2007 and May 22, 2008 at Sound City in Los Angeles, Shangri-La in Malibu, and Metallica's HQ in San Rafael, California. Produced by Rick Rubin, Death Magnetic is Metallica's first album to feature Robert Trujillo on bass. The album was nominated for five Grammy Awards and won two, including Best Metal Performance for "My Apocalypse." ​

James Hetfield discussed the philosophy behind Death Magnetic: "The theme of our new album is that we’re all gonna die sometime. Just like the poles of a magnet, some people are drawn to death and others are repulsed by it, but we all have to deal with it."​

IMAGES:​

Band portrait taken in support of Death Magnetic, 2008. From the Collection of James Hetfield​

Spiral notebook of proposed Death Magnetic t-shirt artwork, 2008. Some images contain band member initials noting preferences. From the Collection of James Hetfield​

VIDEO:​

Video footage of James Hetfield and Robert Trujillo discussing the writing of "The Day That Never Comes" from Death Magnetic, 2008. From the Metallica Collection