Great Metal covers of non-Metal songs (Part 1)

One of the things that I love in Metal music is how ANYTHING can be played. It houses so many sub-genres, it can blend any numbers of styles and inlude whatever instrument you may think of. Within its roof and as an extention to that, also reside a plethora of cover songs as many bands have desided to pay their tribute to their favorite non-Metal artists and to tracks that inspired them, or they simply liked very much. The results vary from fun and dump to masterful. Here I will try to provide some examples of great covers that I liked, from cases I believe the artists made a great job translating the source material to their style. I will limit the list to just 10 tracks and continue on additional parts as the options are really endless.

LACUNA COIL – “Enjoy the silence” (Depeche Mode Cover)

One of the best covers of all time, period. LACUNA COIL made an exquisite translation of the original song to their style resulting in a track that accompanies the band’s concert setlist frequently.

FIREWIND – “Talking in your sleep” (The Romantics cover)

I know, “Maniac” is super famous and perhaps should be here instead, but for some reason I tend to like this one more. Perhaps that is partly due to Herbie’s singing style of the pre-chorus.

THE AGONIST – “Take me to church” (Hozier cover)

All members of THE AGONIST are super talented, but here the powerful vocal performance of Vicky is the centerpiece. Pretty shame that they disbanded.

DOMINUM – “Bad guy” (Billie Eilish Cover)

I adore how “Bad guy” has been zombified by DOMINUM here. Contrary to the more reserved approach of the original, this cover is super upbeat and if you do not find yourself JUMPING and DANCING, something is wrong with you.

ADRIENNE COWAN – “Hoist the colors” (Pirates of the caribbean OST cover)

Adrienne is a swiss knife of a vocalist who also excels in orchestrations. Her version of “hoist the colors” is so much epic as much as it has passed under people’s radars.

NIGHTWISH – “The phantom of the opera” (Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “The phantom of the opera” cover)

Take one of the best songs of all time and one of the best Symphonic Metal bands of all time during its peak and you have magic. Only goosebumps.

GAMMA RAY – “It’s a sin” (Pet Shop Boys Cover)

Kai is the father of Power Metal, so is it to wonder why the Ray’s version of “It’s a sin” is an amazing PM song? One of my favirite songs of the album.

THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON – “The Wolven Storm (Priscilla´s Song)” (Witcher 3 OST cover)

Withcer 3 is a masterclass RPG gaming experience. During a side quest we get to witness a lovely song from the romantic poet Priscilla, that immediately captured fans’ hearts. This track is only one of many covers that THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON have covered in their debut album “Metamorposis”.

TURISAS  – “Rasputin” (Boney M cover)

It blends the feeling of the original with the folk dimension of TURISAS perfectly. The same way you can party with the original, you can do with this one as well.

DREAM EVIL – “My number one” (Elena Paparizou cover)

Paparizou won the Eurovision song contest with this composition and since she is half-Swedish, her half-compatriots DREAM EVIL paid tribute. For the record this victory took place one year before LORDI shook the stage with “Hard Rock Hallelujah”!

Pavlos Pavlakis