Metallica are hoping the expanded reissue of their third album, Master of Puppets, will be available to fans in the near future, said drummer Lars Ulrich.

The 1986 LP will follow the deluxe reissues of their 1983 debut, Kill ‘Em All, and 1984’s Ride the Lightning, which both arrived last year. Like those albums, it's expected that the Master of Puppets reissue will be available in a number of remastered formats, including a box set.

“We’ll try to see if we can get it out at the end of this year," Ulrich told Voir (via Blabbermouth). "It’s coming soon. We’re working on it. There’s a lot of stuff associated with Master of Puppets – it’s an immense project. We’ve spent to much time looking forward, with Hardwired … to Self Destruct. But Master of Puppets is obviously next. Hopefully, late this year. If not, soon thereafter.”

Ulrich also commented on the band following up the 1987 EP Garage Days Re-Revisited and the 1998 album Garage Inc., both of which consisted entirely of covers. “Where there’s life, there’s hope," he said. "Other groups’ material has always been a part of who we are. I’m sure we’re going to record material and get it out.”

Master of Puppets marked Metallica’s major-label debut and became a mainstay of thrash metal on its way to the genre’s first platinum-certified album. Often listed among the best metal albums of all time, it also was the first of its kind to be added to the U.S. Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry for being “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.” The landmark LP was the last to feature bassist Cliff Burton, who died in a tour bush crash during the album's tour.

Metallica formed their own independent label, Blackened Recordings, in 2012, and assumed full ownership of their back catalog, meaning that these new reissues are endorsed and overseen by the band.

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