*****Keep in mind, that at this store you are buying sealed records/promo records/Unplayed promo records/lightly used personal records that came directly from A&M, Polygram/Vertigo record label. We are not thrift store cowboys/cowgirls that are buying other peoples junk to sell. We know the history of our items, everything has been properly stored/looked after with care, sanitized/cleaned/no fingerprints/smudges lol. Buying sealed records from thrift store/yard sale flippers is so risky. Where has the vinyl been? Has the vinyl been exposed to heat, cold, stored properly to prevent the record from warping.***** 

Metallica-Kill 'Em All 1984 Banzai Records 1st Press White Label CRAZY RARE LP. These are nearly impossible to find anymore, even in Canada. You know where to look, you can see for yourself. The major thing about this one is the condition. I have a few copies of this album. My partner and I both worked in the music industry for over 30 years combined. A&M Canada and Vertigo/Polygram Canada. So, these kinds of records came to us readily during these times. 

The Cover/Insert are near perfect/like new, as displayed in detailed pictures. The cover is fresh/crisp with "NO" corner dents/wrinkles. The Vinyl is EX+. It shows as new in regular light as shiny/glossy and clean. My records are always handled with extreme care. The vinyl has a few faint sleeve removal faint lines when put the vinyl is put directly under a really bright light, and this is to be expected for a record that's 39 years old. The audio is playback is clear as it should be for vinyl that's always been looked after, and cleaned. You can see in the detailed pictures that there are no finger marks/dust/, just the usual minimal signs of use from sleeve removal, this record was never taken to any parties lol.

******This pressing has the single etching/stamp of "STERLING" on both sides of the record hub where the matrix/runout is*******These are the 1st run of this release, and the 1st run white label shares the same master as the 1st run 1983 USA pressing as the test-pressing matrix/runout******

No disrespect to my American friends, as I have many life-long US friends :). However, Banzai Records pressings are just "as rare", and a even rarer than a USA 1st edition ++++with the test pressing matrix/runout+++++. After the 1st Megaforce 1983 run of 1500 copies, the next variant releases along with the 2nd 1983 Megaforce pressing were 17,000 units in total sold buy the end of 1984. At the beginning of 1984 when Banzai with Megaforce authorization/rights agreement released 1000 copies on this first run White label pressing which also shares USA the same master as the 1983 1st run test pressing matrix. Under 10,000 units of this white label were pressed, and the next pressing is of course the Banzai Black label. So, yes. it's a rare find like an 1983 1st run USA press. All the big boys of the Metal scene know that the Banzai Records label are sought after, and one of the coolest Metal record labels ever. 

Anyway, this is a must have record for a real Metallica "completist", and the guys in the band will tell you the same thing, I know, as I've met them many times ;). Don't wait on this one, Thanks, for looking and enjoy! Oh, the matrix/runout does have a line in it. This was deliberately made as so. Look at the label, there’s literally no spindle-wear at all!


Banzai Records was a Canadian record label that was founded in late 1983. They were mainly licensing heavy metal albums that weren't domestically available in Canada. So most of what was on Metal Blade / Megaforce Records, Neat Records, Noise Records, Roadrunner, etc, would be released in Canada thru Banzai Records, via Polygram distribution. Michel Meese, founder and president of Banzai Records, had an immense knowledge of the metal scene, and a great feel for the Canadian market. By seeing which imported albums were good sellers, the ones he chose to release on Banzai were always well received.
Artists represented by Banzai Records included Venom, Anthrax, Metallica, Voivod, Raven and Slayer, to name a few. First pressed at 1000 copies, re-prints were ordered depending on popularity. Very few ever made it past 10,000 copies. But many of them were sold as cassettes, since it was the medium of choice back then, in the golden age of the Walkman! 

Banzai's business address, 1238 Crescent Street, Montreal, was also the home of the biggest heavy metal record store in Montreal called Rock en Stock. Banzai stopped their activities at the end of the '80s, and Rock en Stock closed shop at the end of the '90s, after a raid on bootlegged CDs.

Artwork
The particularity of the Banzai releases was that the artwork of the albums was identical to the worldwide copies, but the labels on the vinyl were Banzai standardized! The typical Banzai "A" side's label had the whole album's track list written on it. And the sides were identified as being "This Side" for the A side, and "That Side" for the B side. The B side, or That Side's label was always the same Banzai Records samurai fight over a sunrise image. That logo was designed by Paul Bellemare of Les Frères à Ch'val and '70s punk band Danger. He was a friend of Mr. Meese and an avid fan of Japanese culture. The A side, or This Side's label was either white or black, with red lettering. The first pressings of lps up to at least BRC 1912 had the white label. The rest had the black label, including later pressings of the first releases. It is believed that some second pressings (black labels) are more rare than the first pressings (white labels). Some ep releases have a red label with black lettering. The only other distinction was the addition of a speed metal swirl logo on the front sleeve of the more aggressive releases, like albums by Hellhammer, Celtic Frost, and Possessed. It was a marketing idea to target a specific audience. It still has an impact today since those versions are sought after by many collectors. The design was from Polygram's in-house graphic designer Gunther Woschank. He also had the task of modifying album artwork for the Canadian market, by adding Banzai's address and Polygram info, sometimes using an alternate front cover, and in a few occasions, censoring offensive covers!