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Metallica land first UK number one album in 15 years

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US heavy metal band Metallica have landed their fourth UK number one album and first in 15 years, with 72 seasons.

Their new, 11th LP outsold the rest of the top five combined on Friday.

"Number one in the UK? Spectacular! We're grateful," frontman James Hetfield told the Official Charts. "Thank you UK, can't wait to see you."

This year's Download headliners previously topped the chart with their eponymous 1991 album Metallica, 1996's Load and Death Magnetic from 2008.

Their latest offering, which contains typically dark, powerful tracks like Screaming Suicide, proved to be the most popular vinyl release of the past seven days too, ahead of Saturday's Record Store Day.

It was described by the BBC's music correspondent Mark Savage as one of the California band's "hardest, most pulverising records to date - a continuous onslaught of riffs that falls on you like a landslide".

Official Charts Robert Trujillo, Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield of MetallicaOfficial Charts
Robert Trujillo, Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield of Metallica

Speaking of the album-making process, founding member, drummer Lars Ulrich, 59, explained: "It's one of the only things that hasn't changed in 40 years.

"There'll be a whole slew of riffs and jams and sound checks, then it falls into my lap to go through them and identify, 'That one's great, that one's good, maybe there's a song over here'."

Metallica easily fended off competition from the year's biggest album overall - the Weeknd's greatest hits collection, The Highlights; as well as Taylor Swift's ever-popular 2022 release Midnights.

In this week's singles chart, Lewis Capaldi's latest emotional ballad, Wish You The Best - taken from his forthcoming second album Broken by Desire to Be Heavenly Sent - debuted at number one.

Official Charts Lewis Capaldi comically posed with five WWE belts to mark his five number onesOfficial Charts
Lewis Capaldi comically posed with five WWE belts to represent his five number ones, the last three of which have come in less than a year

With five number one singles under his belt in total, the Scotsman is now officially on a par with the likes of David Bowie, Beyoncé and the Bee Gees.

"Thank you to all of those who bought the song, streamed the song, wish you the best," said Capaldi, who recently mentioned on stage that he had Tourette's. "To all my enemies, I hope you perish in the flames..."

In this month's Netflix documentary, Lewis Capaldi: How I Feel Now, the star opened up about how the incredible success of his best-selling 2019 debut album had affected his mental health.

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"Making the first album was as close to dreams coming true as you could possibly get," he said. "But as soon as the first album does well, it's like can he do it again though?"

Last year, his aching ballad Someone You Loved became the UK's most-streamed song of all time, overtaking Ed Sheeran's Shape Of You.

His latest chart-topping track has pushed last week's number one, Miracle, by compatriot Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding, into second spot, while US TikTok sensation David Kushner also made his top 10 bow with Daylight at number three.