Load, originally released in 1996, broke with the thrash idiom: bluesy hard rock, longer and looser songs, and a completely different image, with short hair and Andres Serrano's Blood and Semen III on the sleeve. James Hetfield sang lower and more restrained, Kirk Hammett reached often for slide guitar, and producer Bob Rock went for a warm, roomy mix. Until It Sleeps was the first single, with King Nothing, Hero of the Day and the near eleven-minute closer The Outlaw Torn as the other cornerstones. At fourteen tracks and just over 78 minutes, Load is the band's longest studio album.

This edition is a 2-LP.