RockLists.com
Cover of Kill ’Em All by Metallica
Cover: Kill ’Em All

Song · Metallica

“Seek and Destroy” by Metallica

From the album Kill ’Em All (1983)

“Seek and Destroy” by Metallica appears on 29 radio countdowns from 7 stations between 1983 and 2026. It was first released in 1983 on the album Kill ’Em All. Its best result is #12 on the KISW Top 25 Rock Songs from 1983. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #1,240 classic rock song of all time.

29countdowns
7stations
#12best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
1983–2026years charted

Watch

Seek & Destroy (Remastered)

Video from YouTube (Metallica - Topic). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Seek and Destroy" sits ninth on Metallica's 1983 debut, Kill 'Em All, and it was already an old friend by then: it appeared on the No Life 'Til Leather demo and was the first song the band ever tracked in a real studio. James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich wrote it, and it's a mid-tempo thrash battering ram, Hetfield barking over a riff built for fists in the air, Kirk Hammett slicing through the middle and Cliff Burton's bass churning underneath. Paul Curcio produced, with Jon Zazula as executive producer.

It has been a live fixture since its 1982 debut, closed the band's shows for years, and as of October 2024 had been played 1,610 times, third only to "Creeping Death" and "Master of Puppets".

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Classic Rock

Hard Rock & Metal

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1983 12 KISW Seattle-Tacoma, WA KISW Top 25 Rock Songs from 1983 25

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1990 139 Z-Rock Z-Rock Top 1001 Songs of All-Time (1990) 1000
1994 529 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1994) 1000
1995 458 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1995) 1000
1996 846 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1996) 1000
1998 660 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1998) 1000
1999 712 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1999) 998
2002 925 KISW KISW Top 999 of All Time (2002) 999
2009 19 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2009) 70
2010 327 97.9 The Loop The Loop USO Rock 'N' Roll 500 (2010) 500
2010 21 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2010) 70
2011 15 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2011) 70
2012 42 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2012) 70
2013 29 KBPI KBPI Top 200 Songs of All Time 200
2013 390 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR CT 500 (2013) 500
2013 33 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2013) 66
2014 53 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2014) 66
2015 54 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2015) 66
2016 49 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2016) 66
2017 34 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Zwaarste Lijst (2017) 66
2020 300 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ 500 (2020) 500
2021 113 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ 500 (2021) 500
2022 283 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2022) 500
2022 489 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2022) 500
2023 330 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2023) 500
2024 305 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Top 400 of the Last 40 Years (2024) 400
2024 328 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2024) 500
2025 331 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2025) 500
2026 322 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2026) 500

Also listed as: Seek & Destroy; Seek And Destroy.

Charting alongside it in 1983

Best songs of 1983 →
  1. 1New Year's DayU2
  2. 2Let's DanceDavid Bowie
  3. 3The LovecatsThe Cure
  4. 4Every Breath You TakeThe Police
  5. 5Rebel YellBilly Idol
  6. 6In a Big CountryBig Country

Comments

Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Seek and Destroy" by Metallica.

Be kind and stay on topic. Guidelines

No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.