Lulu is a collaborative album between Metallica and musician Lou Reed, released on October 31, 2011. The project originated when Metallica and Reed met at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2009 and decided to work together. The album is based on two plays by German playwright Frank Wedekind: 'Earth Spirit' and 'Pandora's Box', which tell the story of Lulu, a young dancer.
The recording took place at Metallica's HQ studios in San Rafael, California, during several sessions in 2011. The album features an experimental style combining Metallica's heavy metal with Lou Reed's spoken word poetry and avant-garde rock. The songs are lengthy, with a total runtime of 87 minutes, and contain dark and explicit lyrics.
Lulu received mostly negative reviews from critics and fans, being considered one of the worst albums by both artists. Commercially it was a failure, peaking at number 36 on the Billboard 200. Despite this, some critics have reassessed the album over time, highlighting its artistic audacity and experimental nature.