Beyond Magnetic

Summary

Beyond Magnetic is the second extended play by American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released to coincide with the band's 30th anniversary shows, in which they released a new song for all four days of the shows. It was originally released as a digital download exclusively on iTunes on December 13, 2011.[1] All four songs featured on Beyond Magnetic were recorded for the group's Death Magnetic sessions but had not been released.[2][3] Beyond Magnetic was released on CD on January 30, 2012 internationally and on the following day in the United States. As of September 2016, it has sold over 210,000 copies in the U.S.[4]

Beyond Magnetic
EP by
ReleasedDecember 13, 2011 (2011-12-13)
RecordedApril 2007 – May 2008
Genre
Length29:08
LabelWarner Bros.
ProducerRick Rubin
Metallica studio release chronology
Lulu
(2011)
Beyond Magnetic
(2011)
Hardwired... to Self-Destruct
(2016)

Release edit

The band stated the following about the EP:[5]

During the Death Magnetic album sessions in 2007 and 2008, we originally recorded 14 songs. When it came time to pick the songs for the final album, we decided on 10 songs that you've all come to know over the last three years... Some of you may have heard bits and pieces of those other songs on 'Mission Metallica' (remember 'Mission Metallica'?!) or heard rumors about them during the recording process, and wondered, 'What ever happened to those other four songs???.' We kept them in the vault and decided to pull them just for this special celebration, so here are the four leftover tracks from the Death Magnetic sessions. They are ROUGH mixes, unfinished to their original degree of mixing from March '08. These four songs were released as a gift to our closest fans, the members of our Fan Club, to enjoy. Now they're being made available to you.

On January 3, 2012, Metallica announced that Beyond Magnetic was to be released as a CD on January 31 in the U.S. and January 30 internationally.[6] It was also announced that the EP would be released on vinyl, and would be made available on April 21 in celebration of Record Store Day.[7]

Reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [8]
Consequence of SoundD−[9]
Metal Forces6/10[10]
Rolling Stone     [11]

Reviews of Beyond Magnetic have been largely positive. AllMusic gave it a rating of four out of five stars, and reviewer Stephen Erlewine called the EP "as potent as its 2008 parent".[8] Consequence of Sound, however, found the album "pointless", because the band's best material had already been packaged together successfully for Death Magnetic, leaving "a half hour of rough cuts" behind "for good reason."[9]

During its first week of release, Beyond Magnetic sold 36,000 copies and peaked at number 29 on the Billboard 200.[12] The album has sold 210,000 copies in the United States as of September 2016.[13]

Track listing edit

All lyrics are written by James Hetfield; all music is composed by Metallica

No.TitleLength
1."Hate Train"6:59
2."Just a Bullet Away"7:11
3."Hell and Back"6:57
4."Rebel of Babylon"8:01
Total length:29:08

Credits edit

Writing, performance and production credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[14]

Personnel edit

Metallica edit

Production edit

  • Rick Rubin – production
  • Lindsay Chase – production coordination
  • Kent Matcke – production coordination (at HQ only)
  • Greg Fidelman – recording
  • Mike Gillies – recording
  • Sara Lyn Killion – recording assistant
  • Joshua Smith – recording assistant
  • Adam Fuller – recording assistant
  • Vlado Meller – mastering

Artwork and design edit

Studios edit

Charts edit

Release history edit

Region Date Label Format
Worldwide December 13, 2011 Warner Bros. digital
International January 30, 2012 Warner Bros. CD
United States January 31, 2012 Warner Bros. CD
North America April 21, 2012 Warner Bros. Vinyl

References edit

  1. ^ "BLABBERMOUTH.NET - METALLICA's 'Beyond Magnetic' Cracks U.S. Top 40 - Dec. 21, 2011". Roadrunnerrecords.com. Archived from the original on January 7, 2012. Retrieved January 9, 2011.
  2. ^ "News | Four Previously Un-released Tracks On iTunes". Metallica.com. December 12, 2011. Archived from the original on March 29, 2014. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
  3. ^ "BLABBERMOUTH.NET - METALLICA Releases 'Beyond Magnetic' Digital EP". Roadrunnerrecords.com. Archived from the original on January 7, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2011.
  4. ^ "Upcoming Releases: Hits Daily Double". Hits Daily Double. Archived from the original on August 29, 2016.
  5. ^ "Metallica releases Beyond Magnetic EP". Consequence of Sound. December 12, 2011. Archived from the original on January 8, 2012. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
  6. ^ "METALLICA: 'Beyond Magnetic' To Receive CD Release". Blabbermouth.net. January 3, 2011. Archived from the original on January 8, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2012.
  7. ^ "Metallica's 'Beyond Magnetic' EP to Receive Vinyl Release". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved March 3, 2012.
  8. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Beyond Magnetic - Metallica at AllMusic
  9. ^ a b Young, Alex (January 30, 2012). "Metallica – Beyond Magnetic EP / Album Reviews". consequence.net. Consequence of Sound. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  10. ^ Fisher, Mark. "METALLICA – Beyond Magnetic (2012) / Album / EP Reviews". www.metalforcesmagazine.com. Metal Forces. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  11. ^ Fricke, David (February 23, 2012). "Metallica Beyond Magnetic Album Review". www.rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 16, 2012.
  12. ^ "METALLICA's 'Beyond Magnetic' Cracks U.S. Top 40". Blabbermouth.net. December 21, 2011. Archived from the original on January 7, 2012. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
  13. ^ "Upcoming Releases". Hits Daily Double. HITS Digital Ventures. Archived from the original on September 28, 2016.
  14. ^ Beyond Magnetic (liner notes). Metallica. Vertigo Records. 2012.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Metallica – Beyond Magnetic". Hung Medien.
  16. ^ "Metallica Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard.
  17. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Metallica – Beyond Magnetic" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved December 5, 2021.
  18. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2012. 6. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ.
  19. ^ 19, 2012/ "Oricon Top 50 Albums: March 19, 2012" (in Japanese). Oricon.
  20. ^ "Charts.nz – Metallica – Beyond Magnetic". Hung Medien.
  21. ^ 5, 2012/40/ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  22. ^ "South Korea Circle Album Chart". On the page, select "2012.02.19~2012.02.25" to obtain the corresponding chart. Circle Chart
  23. ^ "South Korea Circle International Album Chart". On the page, select "2012.02.19~2012.02.25" to obtain the corresponding chart. Circle Chart
  24. ^ 18, 2011/7003/ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  25. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
  26. ^ "Metallica Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  27. ^ "Metallica Chart History (Digital Albums)".[dead link] Billboard.
  28. ^ "Metallica Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard.
  29. ^ "Metallica Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard.
  30. ^ "Metallica Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard.
  31. ^ "Metallica Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard.
  32. ^ "Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2012". Billboard. Retrieved March 7, 2021.

External links edit

  • Beyond Magnetic at AllMusic
  • Beyond Magnetic at Metallica's official website