Perhaps no other band in the history of rock has displayed its influences as proudly as Metallica. Hetfield and company made sure fans knew which groups helped guide them early on, by taking matters into their hands and recording covers of their favorite bands. It has almost seemed to become an obsession with the group, as every single non-album B-side the quartet recorded, discounting live tracks and remixes, has been a cover song. Since most of these tracks are from obscure New Wave of British Heavy Metal bands, only a select few fans have been familiar with the original versions. With many of these songs impossible to track down in the late '90s, the Neat Metal label assembled a handful of the original recordings of tracks Metallica had covered, titling the collection The Metallic-Era. Listening to the songs as a whole, the listener can definitely trace the sound of early Metallica -- especially on such Diamond Head tracks as "Am I Evil," "The Prince," and "Helpless." Other tracks include Budgie's "Breadfan" (best described as sounding like Black Sabbath fronted by Rush's Geddy Lee), the Anti-Nowhere League's gross-out "So What," and Sweet Savage's "Killing Time," the latter of which was supposedly one of the first tracks Metallica ever recorded. The Metallic-Era is essential listening for serious Metallica fans; three years later came the release of a fine follow-up, The Metallic-Era, Vol. 2.