Heaviest Metallica Songs

Not necessarily the most epic or the 'best', but the heaviest Metallica songs that hit you like a ton of bricks and weigh you down like a lead anchor. Fast, slow, or moderately paced... Heaviness is all that matters.
The Top Ten
1 Fight Fire with Fire

To be honest, this is FAR heavier than Slayer, and every other Metallica song is not. Metallica are melodic thrash, but this song, it's so heavy that it's hard to consider it thrash metal. There's a reason this is #14 on the heaviest songs of all time.

Let's be honest here, this is their fastest and heaviest riff. It really tests your endurance on the guitar and your ability for fast and accurate picking. 'Sad but true' their heaviest song? I really love that song as well, but that is just ridiculous. come on guys!

Fight Fire With Fire is the heaviest Metallica song. It is Metallica's only Extreme Thrash song, and is super fast. The song is about "Nuclear annihilation, describing the world right before and during a nuclear apocalypse." That is a very metal topic.

I was looking for nothing else matters because, let's face it, that's the heaviest riff of all time. Gotta be at least a million bpm. Super heavy distortion. But, since I couldn't find it, I'm just going with what was number 1 on the list.

2 Sad But True

This list is just ridiculous. they were extra soft in the 90's. they had all their heaviness in the albums kill 'em all and ride the lightning. there should be nothing from the black album, load and reload. even though st. anger was a bad song, it was definitely their heaviest.
and one more thing, why isn't the death magnetic songs on this list? all nightmare long should undoubtedly be number one.

Always thought this song had the nastiest riff. Fast does not always equal heavy and Sad But True delivers with a slow but punishing riff. Easily the heaviest Metallica song to date.

Even though this song may not be fight fire with fire, whiplash, or anything like that. This song will pack a punch in the first 5 seconds of the song

This was the song someone said that was good for pulling teeth. It was the last thing that they heard before it happened.

3 The Thing that Should Not Be

Easily the most heavy song on there list of songs. Listen to there Seattle performance, and you will see how heavy this epic song can get! Sad but true is heavy, but no where near as heavy as this and many other songs. I think it is just the most recognizable heavy song.

This is my favorite Metallica song and for good reason. This song has the best lyrics and meaning and it's obviously the heaviest.

This is by far the heaviest Metallica song out there. The riffs in Fight Fire with Fire are fast therefore making it more thrash than heavy. The Thing That Should Not Be is slower and has a lot more weight making it sound WAY heavier. Amazing song!

Even jason states that it is their heaviest song out there

4 Harvester of Sorrow

By far the heaviest Metallica song. Sad but True comes close, but it doesn't quite pull it off

That riff hits like a nuclear powered jackhammer

The angriest and heaviest of Metallica songs.

Most aggressive James Hetfield vocals

5 Damage, Inc.

This has to be Metallica's heaviest song. For Whom the Bell Tolls is the most intense, Dyers Eve is the most aggressive and fastest, but the most well-rounded in terms of heaviness (intense and aggressive) has to be Damage, Inc.

Why is sad but true on top? Like SERIOUSLY!?

Way heavier than Dyer's and Sad but True. Fight fire with fire is fast. I wouldn't call it heavy!

Songs great... Pretty heavy lyrics and head-banging

6 Leper Messiah

The intro could own whatever song mentioned before...

Most underrated heavy metal song ever

7 Dyers Eve

The riff is crazier than any other song! Fight fire with fire is mental, but dyers eve has a riff that megadeth would do and even SLAYER!

This song will make you want to slaughter something, and if you do, let the rage out in the pit, or go nuts on some rapist with a screwdriver.

This song blasts you from beginning to end. Reminiscent of Damage Inc.

Metallica's fastest for sure but in heaviness about 3rd for me.

8 2 x 4

It's definitely one of the top four heaviest from the Load and Reload era. But most of the songs from the 80s are heavier than thus,

9 Battery

This, One, Master of Puppets, For Whom The Bell Tolls, and Ride The Lightning all NEED to be in the top 10. People like those songs so much that they don't understand how heavy they are! Fight Fire With Fire is not as loved as those classsics, yet it's #1 on the list!

The main riff is of thrash perfection and the lyrics always get my blood boiling: "Pounding out aggression, Turns into obsession, Cannot kill the battery". This is when Metallica were in their prime.

Thrash metal of the purest form. The fact that this is below 2x4 is insanity!

This one is just as heavy as Fight Fire With Fire, so how could 2x4 be heavier than this?

10 Devil's Dance

This is one of the few thrashers from ReLoad. Sad But True is the heaviest, but Devil's Dance is very heavy, too.

The Contenders
11 Blackened

Fight Fire With Fire is definitely the heaviest but Blackened, Master of Puppets, Ride The Lightning, Creeping Death, One, Battery, and For Whom The Bell Tolls all need to be near the top. People love those songs so much that they don't realise how heavy they are.

The bit where he says "opposition, expectation, cancellation etc" is the heaviest part. Almost slayer standard.

The riff somewhere in the middle of the song is really heavy. Also James' vocals.

This should definitely be considered the heaviest Metallica song

12 St. Anger

I have to say St. Anger is one of Metallica's heaviest. Although it's not their best, it definitely beats out most of the other albums. Its best competition is probably Master of Puppets

This crappy song is only the heaviest because of the atrocious drum beats by the equally atrocious Lars Ulrich

Not even the heaviest on St. Anger. Listen to My World.

13 Whiplash

I think the whole top 5 should be stuffed with Kill 'em All songs.

Classic Kill 'Em All sound.

14 Bad Seed

This song is in no way "heavy"

15 Creeping Death

Top 10, definitely. The intensity, the darkness, and the brutality of the down picking in this song with evil distortion on top makes this almost as heavy as Fight Fire with Fire. ESPECIALLY the bridge riff with a die chant over the top.

The heaviest Metallica song, so intense, and with Cliff chanting "DIE!" over that breakdown, yeah.

Especially with Jason chanting "Die! ".

How is 2x4 above this?!

16 The Unnamed Feeling

Song about beating depression. Very heavy

Heaviest Metallica song, so much chugging and pulling strings, and C tuning.

Heavier than sad but true

17 Disposable Heroes

If you play any of these Metallica songs on guitar, this one would be at the top of the list. It's fast paced, heavy, and sends you "back to the front"!

Who put 2X4 on this list? This song is 100,000 times heavier. It's in the top 10 heaviest songs ever.

Really hard, heavy, and intense. Also my favorite.

The most brutal song

18 Human

The song projects a very grim, aggressive feeling, as if you are being weighed down. This is definitely at least one of the heaviest Metallica songs out there that I've heard.

19 Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
20 All Nightmare Long

Should be top 10. Fight Fire with Fire is the clear number one, but this song is heavy and amazing, just like Fight Fire with Fire.

Best song from Death Magnetic, heavy riff, fast solo, I love this!

This whole album should be on here

21 Master of Puppets

Totally rad, heavy song. The song runs on nightmare fuel.

This song is so aggressive.

Why is this not in the top 10.

22 ...And Justice for All

This, blackened and whiplash are, in my opinion the heaviest metallica songs

The riff during the verse is one of the heaviest metallica riffs there is.

23 The Struggle Within
24 For Whom the Bell Tolls

This is super heavy, this is Metallica's doomiest song, and Bad Seed, 2x4, The Struggle Within, and Devil's Dance are Heavier than this? There are WAY too many mainstream fans voting.

26?! Are you serious. These people listen to too much Load and Reload!

Vote this up, get this to at least #5! It's too doomy for doom metal!

This makes Fight Fire With Fire and Sad But True sound like soft rock.

25 Eye of the Beholder

I'm in doubt between all AJFA songs, Creeping Death, Battery, Sad But True and Leper Messiah, but will go with this one

Come on, this song is one of the heaviest metal songs!

This song is too underrated.

This one should be in the top 10.

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