"Creeping Death" is a song by the American thrash metal band Metallica, released as the lead and only commercial single from their second studio album Ride the Lightning (1984) ("Fade to Black" and "For Whom the Bell Tolls", from the same album, were issued as promotional singles). Written from the perspective of the Angel of Death, it describes the Plague of the Death of the Firstborn (Exodus 12:29). One of Metallica's most frequently performed songs, it has been played live 1,413 times (second only to "Master of Puppets", at 1,467), and it has occasionally been used on various tours as the opening song of the band's set. It stands as a classic example of the band's thrash style, albeit slower than the material on their first album, Kill 'Em All. The song's middle section, with its ominou