Watch: Members Of LAMB OF GOD, GWAR, DEATH ANGEL, Others Celebrate 40th Anniversary Of METALLICA's 'Master Of Puppets' Aboard 'Headbangers Boat 2026'

On November 2, various musicians aboard LAMB OF GOD's Headbangers Boat 2026 cruise — including members of LAMB OF GOD, GWAR, DEATH ANGEL and IN FLAMES — played an all-star cover set celebrating the 40th anniversary of METALLICA's "Master Of Puppets" album. The event featured live renditions of fan favorites from the album like "Battery", "Master Of Puppets", "The Thing That Should Not Be" and "Disposable Heroes". Fan-filmed video of some of the performances can be seen below.

"Master Of Puppets" was originally released on March 3, 1986, on Elektra Records and went on to become the first METALLICA album to be certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association Of America. The album has been certified eight times platinum in the United States.

In 2016, the album became the first metal album to be added to the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress, an honor granted to works deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

"Master Of Puppets" is the last record to feature bassist Cliff Burton, who was killed the year the album was released in a tour bus crash.

Several songs from the album are still staples of METALLICA's live set, including "Battery", "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" and the title track.

Many fans consider it METALLICA's finest album, a fact that the band acknowledged by playing it in its entirety on a European tour in 2006.

While METALLICA was hesitant for a long time to allow single songs from its catalog to be downloaded, frontman James Hetfield told The Pulse Of Radio a while back that the band eventually had to accept it. "Yeah, I think the song-per-song vs. album is kind of a long-lost battle, I think. You know, people in the fast-food world we live in want what they want, and want it now, and when they're done with it, they're done with it."