Reload (stylized as ReLoad) is the seventh studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released on November 18, 1997, through Elektra Records in the United States and Vertigo Records internationally. The follow-up to Load (1996), the album was recorded during the same sessions as that album with producer Bob Rock. While a double album was considered, the band decided to split the material into two albums. Additional sessions for Reload took place in 1997 after Load's supporting tour. Reload was Metallica's first studio album to feature a guest singer (Marianne Faithfull on "The Memory Remains") and the last studio album to feature bassist Jason Newsted.

Like its predecessor, Reload features a hard rock sound that strayed away from Metallica's thrash metal roots. The band members' influences at the time led to experimentations in styles such as blues, country, alternative rock, and grunge, and the use of instruments such as hurdy-gurdy and violin on "Low Man's Lyric". The album also features "The Unforgiven II", a sequel to 1991's "The Unforgiven". Lead singer James Hetfield's lyrics were inspired by his tormented childhood, with themes of anger and aggression present on multiple tracks. The cover artwork, like Load, is a painting by Andres Serrano, created by mixing blood and urine.

Released 17 months after Load, Reload was a commercial success, topping the charts in seven countries and debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200. It was accompanied by three singles: "The Memory Remains", "The Unforgiven II", and "Fuel". The band supported the album on the Poor Re-Touring Me tour (1998). Reload received mixed reviews from music critics; some praised the band's performances while others criticized it for a lack of innovation. Retrospective reviewers generally describe Reload as overlong and believe it and Load could have been condensed into a single album. A super deluxe reissue was released in June 2026.

I know a lot of people think [Reload is] just the scraps – but it's not. We normally stop at 12 songs when we write albums, but we knew we wanted to develop all of them, that they were all good enough.

Reload was recorded during the same sessions as Metallica's previous album, Load, at The Plant Studios in Sausalito, California, between May 1995 and February 1996. The sessions were produced by Bob Rock, who also produced Load and Metallica (1991). The original idea was to release Load and Reload as a double album, but problems arose with recording almost 30 songs at one time, so Metallica decided to separate the material into two different albums. Lead singer and rhythm guitarist James Hetfield said at the time: "Reload has all of the crappy ones [laughs] ... But really, these aren't the rejects, they're just all the songs that weren't finished when we released Load." Lead guitarist Kirk Hammett also believed a double album "would have been a lot more material for people to digest, and some of it might have gotten lost in the shuffle".

By 1994, the band members' influences extended beyond heavy metal: Hetfield took inspiration from songwriters such as Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, and Nick Cave; Hammett grew interested in David Bowie's works with Robert Fripp and Adrian Belew, and the blues music of Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, and Howlin' Wolf; Newsted grew fond of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Faith No More, particularly the bass playing of the former's Flea; and Ulrich was enjoying Britpop groups such as Oasis. The initial recording sessions were productive, and the band's songwriting process became looser and more relaxed compared to previous albums. Encouraged by drummer Lars Ulrich, Hammett played rhythm guitar for the first time on a Metallica album, having previously only played lead parts while Hetfield played all rhythm parts. Hammett said this was done to achieve "a looser sound". He ultimately became more influential in the songwriting process, sharing co-writing credits with Hetfield and Ulrich on six of the final album's thirteen tracks. After being excluded from the songwriting process on Load, bassist Jason Newsted received a co-writing credit on "Where the Wild Things Are" for writing the music.

After Load's release in June 1996, Metallica embarked on the Poor Touring Me tour in support of the album from September 1996 to May 1997. At the end of the tour, the band announced its follow-up, Reload, to be released in November. Additional sessions for Reload occurred between July and October 1997, during which the band re-did guitar parts and added additional overdubs and vocals. Due to tight deadlines, work was split between three rooms at The Plant: guitars and vocals were recorded in one room, while Newsted overdubbed bass in another and Ulrich tweaked his drum parts in a third.

The band members felt a new sense of maturity during these sessions, particularly after Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich's marriages. They continued the experimentation they began on Load. Under the guidance of Faith No More's Jim Martin, Hetfield hired the musician David Miles to play hurdy-gurdy on "Low Man's Lyric", while assistant recording engineer Bernardo Bigalli added violin to the track. Ulrich explained: "It's in the same vein as [the Load track] 'Mama Said', which had kind of a country feel." Hammett added various guitar effects using different pedals, such as ones by Electro-Harmonix and Roland Corporation on "Prince Charming" and a DigiTech Whammy on "Devil's Dance". He also utilized wah-wah effects throughout Reload, particularly on "Where the Wild Things Are".