Master Distiller & Blender Rob Dietrich wanted to release a rye that demonstrates his evolution on his path as a whiskey maker. One that has depth, but still sessionable, approachable and most importantly, enjoyable to drink. Designed for rye whiskey enthusiasts while establishing this particular rye recipe to uniquely stand apart from the rye whiskey mainstream. The name for this release is aptly dubbed RYE THE LIGHTNING™ because the playlist used in the BLACK NOISE sonic-enhancement process is Ride the Lightning. But Rob Dietrich and Metallica didn’t want to just use the original version — they wanted to amp it up a notch. They chose a playlist consisting solely of the Ride The Lightning portion of Metallica’s June 2012 Orion Music + More festival setlist — the one and only time the band has ever played the album live in its entirety, albeit in reverse track order from the original album.

“Orion Music + More was an awesome experiment and experience. The vibe from the crowd was electrifying, and it’s really cool that we get to capture that energy in this release. We’ve used a few live songs in our playlists before, but never a full live playlist. So to be able to incorporate our fans in the BLACKENED journey and have them be a part of the whiskey-making process is really unique”
Robert Trujillo – Metallica