Conventional wisdom has it that heavy metal was born from the blues, and that’s undoubtedly true. Yet, even as far back as 1969 bands such as Deep Purple started flirting with classical music (such as on Concerto For Group And Orchestra) and subsequent years found the blues gradually filtered out and by the time thrash metal arrived in the ‘80s it had been completely purged. Taking things to their logical conclusion are Apocalyptica, a Finnish symphonic band who play a rousing brand of neoclassical metal without conventional guitars and bass. After coming to global prominence with their Metallica covers album in 1996, they come full-circle to deliver another tribute to the metal gods in the shape of Plays Metallica Vol. 2.
That Metallica’s sound lends itself well to classical renderings should really come as no surprise, but if you were in any doubt you only need check out Apocalyptica’s debut long player Plays Metallica By Four Cellos along with Metallica’s own S&M which arrived three years later. But we must remember that Metallica’s early work was written with the sole intention of being performed by four spotty ‘erberts looking to completely revolutionise modern music, and that can make classical interpretations somewhat problematic. Yet, Apocalyptica do a grand job, and if you were in any doubts, then just check out opener ‘Ride The Lightning’. Without Lars’ drumming it doesn’t pack the same kind of punch, yet it’s just as powerful (perhaps more so) but only in a different way. And therein lies the main point; any sort of cover version shouldn’t be a mere facsimile (we have the original for that), rather an artist should put their own indelible stamp on proceedings, and that’s precisely what Apocalyptica do. Subsequently, ‘Ride The Lightning’ appears like a leaden, angry cloud that’s about to unleash a torrent, and that’s exactly what it does as it lashes from speaker to speaker like a raging tempest.
The different instrumentation that Apocalyptica employ bring another angle to familiar songs and the cellos add an emotive edge to ‘Unforgiven II’ that was buried on the original, whist the invention on ‘Blackened’ is something of which Steve Reich would be proud. A rousing rendition of ‘The Four Horseman’ is given added gallop by Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo. You might expect such a big personality to overshadow the rest of the band, yet he becomes part of Apocalyptica and gives the track added texture. However, it’s final track ‘One’ where the band really come into their own, and they turn this most haunting of Metallica tracks into a cinematic affair that could soundtrack the very best war movie. In a break with tradition, ‘One’ features spoken vocals from a very special guest, and that makes for an unforgettable experience.
Personally, I can never tire of Metallica’s discography, but if you’d like to hear familiar songs acting in fresh and feisty ways then Plays Metallica Vol. 2 is just the ticket.
- Plays Metallica Vol. 2 is released via Throwdown Entertainment on 7th June 2024 (from here).
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Track List:
1. Ride the Lightning
2. St. Anger
3. The Unforgiven II
4. Blackened
5. The Call of Ktulu
6. The Four Horsemen (Ft. Robert Trujillo)
7. Holier Than Thou
8. To Live is to Die
9. One
10. One (Instrumental)
