Beyond the fast tempos of its debut Kill 'Em All, Metallica broadened its approach by employing acoustic guitars, extended instrumentals, and more complex harmonies.

It was certified 6× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 2012 for shipping six million copies in the United States.

Because the band had little money, its members often ate one meal a day and stayed at fans' homes while playing at clubs across the United States.

[8] Rasmussen, with the support of drum roadie Flemming Larsen, taught the basics of timing and beat duration to Ulrich, who had a tendency to increase speed and had little knowledge of rhythm theory.

[6] Metallica's European label Music for Nations paid the studio costs because Megaforce owner Jon Zazula could not afford them.

The performance at Roseland Ballroom, with Anthrax and Metallica opening for Raven, pleased the Elektra staff, and the band was offered a contract the following morning.

[13] Ride the Lightning is the last Metallica album to feature co-writing contributions from former lead guitarist Dave Mustaine, who received credit on the title track and "The Call of Ktulu".

He showed Hetfield how to augment core notes with complementary counter-melodies and how basic guitar harmony works, which reflected on the song compositions.

[17] Ulrich explained that Metallica opted not to rely strictly on fast tempos as on the previous album, but to explore other musical approaches that sounded powerful and heavy.

[18] Grinder magazine's Kevin Fisher summarized the album as "ultimate thrash, destruction and total blur" that reminded him of the speed and power of Kill 'Em All.

[19] Music journalist Martin Popoff observed that Ride the Lightning offered "sophistication and brutality in equal measure" and was seen as something new at the time of its release.

[20] Discussing the album's lyrical content, philosopher William Irwin wrote: "After Kill 'Em All, the rebellion and aggression became much more focused as the enemy became more clearly defined.

The fastest Metallica song in terms of picking speed, it is driven by nimbly tremolo-picked riffs in the verses and chorus.

[20] According to Hetfield, the song is not a criticism of capital punishment, but a tale of a man sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit, as in the opening lyrics: "Guilty as charged/But damn it/It ain't right".

[26] The ballad's arpeggiated chords and reserved singing was incongruous for thrash metal bands at the time and disappointed some of Metallica's fans.

[29] "Escape" was originally titled "The Hammer" and was intended to be released as a single due to its lighter riffs and conventional song structure.

", was originally written by Hammett for the song "Die by His Hand" while he was playing in Exodus, who recorded it as a demo but did not feature it on a studio album.

Journalist Joel McIver called the song a "moshpit anthem" due to its epic lyrical themes and dramatic atmosphere.

[7] "Creeping Death" was released as a single with a B-side titled Garage Days Revisited made up of covers of Diamond Head's "Am I Evil?"

[32] "The Call of Ktulu", tentatively titled "When Hell Freezes Over", was inspired by H. P. Lovecraft's book The Shadow over Innsmouth, which was introduced to the rest of the band by Burton.

[33] Conductor Michael Kamen rearranged the piece for Metallica's 1999 S&M project and won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance in 2001.

[7] Reviewing the 2016 reissue, Jason Anderson of Uncut considers Ride the Lightning the second best Metallica album which set the pace for metal in the years to come.

[48] After signing Metallica, Elektra released the single "Creeping Death" in a sleeve depicting a bridge and a skull painted grey and green.

[7] Ride the Lightning went gold by November 1987 and in 2012 was certified 6× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for six million copies shipped in the US.

[29] Corey Deiterman of the Houston Press considers Ride the Lightning the most influential Metallica album, saying it had a lasting impact on genres such as crossover thrash and hardcore punk.

[55] After recording was completed, Music for Nations founder Martin Hooker wanted to arrange a triple-bill UK tour in March / April 1984 with Exciter, Metallica, and the Rods.

The American leg ended in March 1985, and the band spent the following months working on the next studio album, Master of Puppets, whose recording sessions were scheduled to begin in September.

Metallica performed at the Monsters of Rock festival held at Castle Donington in England on August 17 in front of 70,000 fans.

The last show Metallica played before recording began was the Loreley Metal Hammer Festival in Germany, headlined by Venom.

In 2016, the album was remastered and reissued in a limited-edition deluxe box set with an expanded track listing and bonus content.