metallica
30 Artists Reflect on Metallica’s Black Album Turning 30
These days, Metallica’s self-titled fifth LP (aka the Black Album) is hailed as a bona fide classic. Quite admirable, considering how upon its 1991 release date, diehard fans spread buyer’s remorse faster than COVID. In this writer’s tenure as a surly clerk for a mall-based record-store chain, he remembers the true believers complaining about everything from the shortened song lengths to James Hetfield’s lyrics to uber-producer Bob Rock’s framing of their heavy metal hellions. Back then, insufferable customers got their cash refunds while others continued to bitch like mad with the subtext that “maybe it would grow on me.” Now 30 years and approximately 35 million sales later, the Black Album is downright canonical. Sure, the Bay Area thrash-metal mavericks were indeed architects (alongsid...
30 Artists Reflect on Metallica’s Black Album Turning 30
These days, Metallica’s self-titled fifth LP (aka the Black Album) is hailed as a bona fide classic. Quite admirable, considering how upon its 1991 release date, diehard fans spread buyer’s remorse faster than COVID. In this writer’s tenure as a surly clerk for a mall-based record-store chain, he remembers the true believers complaining about everything from the shortened song lengths to James Hetfield’s lyrics to uber-producer Bob Rock’s framing of their heavy metal hellions. Back then, insufferable customers got their cash refunds while others continued to bitch like mad with the subtext that “maybe it would grow on me.” Now 30 years and approximately 35 million sales later, the Black Album is downright canonical. Sure, the Bay Area thrash-metal mavericks were indeed architects (alongsid...
30 Artists Reflect on Metallica’s Black Album Turning 30
These days, Metallica’s self-titled fifth LP (aka the Black Album) is hailed as a bona fide classic. Quite admirable, considering how upon its 1991 release date, diehard fans spread buyer’s remorse faster than COVID. In this writer’s tenure as a surly clerk for a mall-based record-store chain, he remembers the true believers complaining about everything from the shortened song lengths to James Hetfield’s lyrics to uber-producer Bob Rock’s framing of their heavy metal hellions. Back then, insufferable customers got their cash refunds while others continued to bitch like mad with the subtext that “maybe it would grow on me.” Now 30 years and approximately 35 million sales later, the Black Album is downright canonical. Sure, the Bay Area thrash-metal mavericks were indeed architects (alongsid...
Rina Sawayama Gives ‘Enter Sandman’ an Electro-Pop Makeover
Rina Sawayama is one of the latest singers to unveil her contribution in honor of Metallica’s The Blacklist Album compilation. The pop-R&B singer infused the metal band’s “Enter Sandman” with her signature Nineties-pop flair. Earlier this month, Weezer tackled the song as well. The British rock band IDLES also released a new Metallica cover for the project: a passionate, alt-rock rendition of “The God That Failed,” with trippy visuals in the accompanying video. The band transmits a similar kind of raw intensity as Metallica, just with some more punk and grunge vibes added to the pot. The massive cover collection of The Black Album, celebrating the album’s 30th anniversary, arrives on September 10. The artist roster is vast and eclectic, with more than 50 artists including We...
Listen to Phoebe Bridgers Cover Metallica’s ‘Nothing Else Matters’
To the small central portion of the Venn diagram showing Phoebe Bridgers fans and Metallica fans: Welcome to the day you’ve been waiting for. Bridgers is the most recent artist to release her version of one of the rock legends’ classic tunes as part of the upcoming Metallica Blacklist compilation of cover songs, and “Nothing Else Matters” is every bit as haunting as you would expect from the artist who just ripped out Jackson Browne’s heart a few months ago and murdered David Crosby earlier this year. The track follows previous Metallica covers released by St. Vincent and Jason Isbell (“Sad But True“), Weezer (“Enter Sandman“), J Balvin (“Wherever I May Roam”) and a host of other unexpected names, all of whom will appear on the Metallica Blacklist compilation that releases on Sep...
Hear Weezer Cover Metallica’s ‘Enter Sandman’
Counting down to the 30th anniversary of Metallica’s 1991 self-titled album commonly known as The Black Album, the heavy metal legends released a cover of “Enter Sandman” — the band’s most famous song — by the indie-rock band, Weezer. On Sept. 10, Metallica will release The Metallica Blacklist, a 53-track collection of “unique interpretations” of songs from The Black Album, by a range of artists including St. Vincent, Jason Isbell, Miley Cyrus, Biffy Clyro, Phoebe Bridgers, IDLES, Mac DeMarco, Rina Sawayama, and Slipknot’s Corey Taylor. So far, we’ve heard OFF! cover “Holier Than Thou,” Isbell and St. Vincent take on “Sad But True,” Cyrus’ version of “Nothing Else Matters” and Juanes’ take on “Enter Sandman.” Weezer is not a band to pass up a cover opportunity. In 2018, a fan-driven intern...
Bands and a New Trend Brewing
Todd Ahsmann isn’t sure if he’s ever seen live music without a beer in his hand. The Goose Island president and former music industry vet says beer and music go hand in hand. “We should be collaborating,” Ahsmann says. “The half-joke used to be that rock radio was funded by beer because beer companies were mostly buying advertising. Concert venues and festivals make just as much off beer sales as they do ticket sales. They’re dependent on each other.” Since 2013, Ahsmann’s Chicago craft brewery has partnered with musical groups like Japandroids, Sharon Van Etten, and Parquet Courts for exclusive beer releases during the Pitchfork Music Festival. The first collaboration was a Belgian wheat ale with Run the Jewels. When Ahsmann first pitched the idea, festival founding director M...
OFF! Covers Metallica’s ‘Holier Than Thou,’ Their First New Song in Seven Years
Following seven years of relative silence, punk supergroup OFF! are back with a new lineup, label, and tune. The group, formed in 2010 by Keith Morris of ex-Black Flag/Circle Jerks, and Dimitri Coats of ex-Burning Bridges have released a music video, a ramped-up cover of Metallica’s 1991 record “Holier Than Thou,” which will be on The Metallica Blacklist that is due out on Sept. 10. The duo also unveiled two new members: bassist Autry Fulbright II, and drummer Justin Brown. The video for their take on “Holier Than Thou,” which is filmed like a sitcom and filled with humor, depicts a dirty pastor attempting to fulfill his not so pastor-esque desires while vulgarly antagonizing his altar boys about “lost profits” in the church. Following the first three minutes, OFF!, now standing...
St. Vincent and Jason Isbell Cover ‘Sad But True’ for Upcoming Metallica Blacklist Album
Remember when Metallica announced the coming of The Metallica Blacklist album – that enormous collection of covers by over 50 other artists from all the songs off their seminal Black Album? Well, if you preordered it, “three new instant gratification tracks” are now available. And those three songs are a doozy. St. Vincent, Sam Fender, and Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit all share their take on “Sad But True.” As you can imagine, all three are quite different. You can check all three killer versions of the song below. [embedded content] [embedded content] Previously, Miley Cyrus and Juanes released their versions of “Nothing Else Matters” and “Enter Sandman,” respectively Also featuring on the collection are Phoebe Bridgers, Weezer, Chris Stapleton and many, many more. Don’t forget that...
Chase & Status to Appear on Massive Metallica Cover Album
Legendary electronic music tandem Chase & Status have revealed a new remix for Metallica, who recently announced a special compilation covering songs from their seminal 1991 self-titled album. Chase & Status revealed that the metal icons reached out to them and gave them a choice of which track to rework from the LP, better known as The Black Album, to celebrate its 30th anniversary. They chose the raucous “Wherever I May Roam” and tapped drill-grime rapper Backroad Gee to contribute vocals. The duo’s remix will drop on September 10th as part of The Metallica Blacklist, which will also be accompanied by a special reissue of The Black Album. All proceeds from the initiative will be directed to Metallica’s All Within My Hands Foundation, wh...
Metallica’s Black Album Getting Massive Reissue, Covers Album Featuring Miley Cyrus, Weezer, Phoebe Bridgers, St. Vincent, My Morning Jacket
Metallica lives on…through 50-plus artists. The band has announced a massive reissue of their The Black Album for its 30th anniversary and another LP, The Metallica Blacklist, that doesn’t even feature them but their music – 12 songs covered by 53 artists – both of which are slated to drop Sept. 10. The album of classic Metallica covers isn’t just covered by metalheads. Its tracklist instead offers a diverse company of contributors “spanning an unbelievably vast range of genres, generations, cultures, continents and more, each contributing their own unique interpretation of their favorite Black Album cut,” according to Metallica’s site. They aren’t kidding. Mac DeMarco and Weezer each record their own version of “Enter Sandman,” Flatbush Zombies ft. DJ Scratch tackle “The Unforgiven” ...
Metallica Sues Insurer Lloyd’s of London Over Postponed Shows
Metallica is suing insurer Lloyd’s of London for allegedly not paying out the quartet for financial losses suffered when the band postponed a half-dozen shows in South America in April 2020 because of the coronavirus, CBS-LA reports. The band filed the paperwork in Los Angeles Superior Court earlier this week, alleging breach of contract and seeking unspecified compensatory damages. The group had a standard “cancellation, abandonment and non-appearance insurance” policy in case of cancellation, the suit claims. Metallica played two shows in its hometown of San Francisco in September 2019, with six more concerts slated in South America beginning in April 2020, in Santiago, Chile, the suit says. By April 2020, nearly the entire world was shut down due to COVID-19-related travel restrictions,...
