Metallica marked the 35th anniversary of their groundbreaking album Master of Puppets by playing its opening track, “Battery,” on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert last night.

Introducing the performance, Colbert noted that the LP “had such an impact that it was added to the National Recording Registry in the Library of Congress.”

You can watch the clip below.

Released on March 3, 1986, Master of Puppets became one of the most influential metal records of all time, but its success was marred by the death of bassist Cliff Burton, who was killed in a bus crash while the band toured in support of the release.

Speaking on the 30th anniversary in 2016, frontman James Hetfield said: “I think Master of Puppets signifies for a lot of people – and it does for me as well – the pinnacle of the Cliff Burton era with Metallica, obviously. But also it was still rebellious. Back then, it was just still the four of us in a van out to conquer the world.”

Drummer Lars Ulrich reflected that the album was “kind of the culmination of the journey that had started, I guess, four or five years before with James and I getting together, writing some songs, Kirk [Hammett] and Cliff joining at separate times.”

Current bassist Robert Trujillo, who joined in 2003, observed: “Master of Puppets, to me, defines a really amazing time for Metallica, a high point in a strong period in their writing. I think it’s when the band really kind of found this niche. ... It’s not just music, but there’s so much more to it. It’s art. Even the album cover is art. It’s just this wonderful ball of energy.”

 

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