{{Infobox Single

| Name = Battery

| Cover =

| Artist = [[Metallica]]

| Album = [[Master of Puppets]]

| B-side =

| Released = August 1, 1986

| Format =

| Recorded = September-December 1985, Sweet Silence Studios [[Copenhagen]], [[Denmark]]

| Genre = [[Thrash metal]]

| Length = 5:10

| Label = [[Elektra Records|Elektra]]

| Writer = [[James Hetfield]] / [[Lars Ulrich]]

| Producer = Metallica, [[Flemming Rasmussen]]

| Certification =

| Chart position =

| Last single = "[[Master of Puppets (song)|Master of Puppets]]"<br>(1986)

| This single = "'''Battery'''"<br>(1986)

| Next single = "[[Welcome Home (Sanitarium)]]"<br>(1986)

| Misc =

"'''Battery'''" is a song by the American [[heavy metal music|heavy metal]] band [[Metallica]]. It is the opening track and was released as the second single from their third album, ''[[Master of Puppets]]''.

==Structure==

As with "Fight Fire with Fire", the opening track from the previous album, ''[[Ride the Lightning]]'', "Battery" begins with a slow, clean guitar part. In this case, four acoustic guitars are layered harmonically before the drums and bass come in with distorted guitars playing a more melodic version of the acoustic part. This lasts until 1:06, when the guitars cut into a very fast [[thrash metal]] riff that is the basis for the rest of the song. The song also features a heavy bass line by [[Cliff Burton]] and a fast drum pattern by [[Lars Ulrich]].

==Lyrics==

In keeping with the general "control" theme of ''Master of Puppets'', the lyrics of "Battery" discuss the control that [[anger]] can have over one's [[behavior]]. The title refers to "battery" in the sense of "[[assault]] and [[Battery (crime)|battery]]", as shown by these lyrics: "''Smashing through the boundaries / [[Lunatic|Lunacy]] has found me / Cannot stop the battery''". In addition to the thematic interpretation of "battery" as control, the song is an homage to the Old Waldorf Club on Battery Street, San Francisco.{{Citation needed|date=June 2010}} Some critics contend that the title actually refers to an artillery battery; Punknews interpreted it as "Hetfield (singing) of a war tactic as the aggressor," personifying destruction.

==Live==

"Battery" used to be a constant part of the band's live [[set list]], frequently as the opening or closing song. In some cases, it is also used as a song before the intermission. Since 2008 the song has usually been dropped from setlists. When played, the song may stop before the interlude, and [[James Hetfield]] asks the crowd "Are you alive?... How does it feel to be alive?" (this can be heard on the live album ''[[S&M (album)|S&M]]'') and followed by the solo played by [[Kirk Hammett]]. The beginning is not played by the band but instead the actual recording is used (recently dropped 1/2 step in key, since the band tunes 1/2 step down). In the live version of the song played on the ''[[Live Shit: Binge & Purge]]'' album, intros to the songs "No Remorse", "Ride the Lightning", and "[[So What?]]" are played in the song. When performed with the [[San Francisco Symphony]] in 1999, the intro up to the thrash riff was instead played by string players in the symphony, utilizing [[pizzicato]] in the beginning (the original acoustic) then with bows for the rest.

As seen in the documentary ''[[Some Kind of Monster (film)|Some Kind of Monster]]'', the auditioning of future bassist [[Robert Trujillo]] started, on his request, with "Battery".

==Critical reception==

[[Allmusic]]'s Steve Huey called the songs "Battery" and "Damage, Inc.", "two slices of thrash mayhem".<ref name="AllMusicReview">{{cite web| title = Allmusic Review - ''Master of Puppets''|author = Huey, Steve|publisher = [[Allmusic]]|url = {{Allmusic|class=album|id=r12990|pure_url=yes}}|accessdate = 2008-06-26 }}</ref>

==Covers==

*This song (along with the entire ''[[Master of Puppets]]'' album) was covered by [[Dream Theater]] as part of their world tour in 2002 and has been released as an official [[Bootleg recording]].

*This song was [[cover version|covered]] by the band [[Machine Head (band)|Machine Head]] for ''[[Kerrang!]]'''s ''Master of Puppets: Remastered'', and is also included as a bonus track on some versions of their album ''[[The Blackening]]''.

*The song was also covered by the [[a cappella]] metal band [[Van Canto]] on their debut album "A Storm to Come".

*On "Animetal Rebirth Heroes", [[Animetal]] uses the riff for "Battery" throughout the entire song "Touch" with some changes in between.

*This song was covered by the band [[Ensiferum]] for ''Evil Ultimate Metal Covers'' No. 55. It was also featured on the single "[[Tale of Revenge]]".

*[[Beatallica]] a [[Mashup (music)|mash-up]] band that combines Metallica and [[The Beatles]] combined Battery with [[The Ballad of John and Yoko]] to create ''The Battery Of Jaymz And Yoko'' on their ''[[Masterful Mystery Tour]]'' album.

*[[Die Krupps]] covered the song for ''[[A Tribute to the Four Horsemen]]''.

*This song was covered by Eric AK (Flotsam & Jetsam), [[Dave Lombardo]], [[Mike Clark (guitarist)|Mike Clark]], and [[Robert Trujillo]] for ''[[Metallic Assault: A Tribute to Metallica]]''. Dave Lombardo would play the song with Metallica on stage when Lars Ulrich missed the 2004 Download Festival, and Robert Trujillo would become a member of Metallica in 2003.

*This song was [[cover version|covered]] by [[Prototype (band)|Prototype]] for ''Phantom Lords - A Tribute to Metallica'' released by Dwell Records in 2002.

*[[Harp]] [[tribute act|tribute duo]] [[Harptallica]] covered the song's introduction on their album ''[[Harptallica: A Tribute]]''.

*Pop-punk band [[Lagwagon]] borrows the line "smashing through the boundaries/lunacy has found me" for their song "Raise A Family" found on their 2000 release "[[Let's Talk About Leftovers]]."

*[[Deftones]] covered the song on the second night of the band's 'One Love For Chi' concerts in 2009 with accompaniment from [[Dave Lombardo]] of Slayer on drums, [[Alexi Laiho]] of [[Children of Bodom]] on guitar, [[Rob Trujillo]] of Metallica on bass, [[Daron Malakian]] and [[Shavo Odadjian]] of [[System of a Down]] on guitar and bass respectively, and [[Greg Puciato]] of [[The Dillinger Escape Plan]] on vocals.{{Citation needed|date=June 2010}}

*Sum 41 cover this song on their tour but they normally played the intro of this song

==In pop culture==

*"Battery" was featured as a playable track in the video games ''[[Rock Band 2]]'' where the song among one of the hardest to perform for all instruments and ''[[Guitar Hero: Metallica]]'' as one of the Expert Plus songs for the drums.

*The song appears in the 2011 indie film ''[[Hesher (film)|Hesher]]''.

==Controversy==

The song gained controversy in 2018 when Chris Watts Googled the lyrics after killing his family.<ref>https://people.com/crime/chris-watts-googled-metallica-lyrics-after-murders/</ref>

==Personnel==

*[[James Hetfield]] - [[rhythm guitar]], [[acoustic guitar]], [[lead vocals]]

*[[Kirk Hammett]] - [[lead guitar]]

*[[Cliff Burton]] - [[Bass Guitar|bass]], [[backup vocals]]

*[[Lars Ulrich]] - [[Drum Kit|drums]]

==References==

{{reflist}}

{{Metallica}}

[[Category:Metallica songs]]

[[Category:1986 songs]]

[[Category:Thrash metal songs]]

[[Category:1986 singles]]