For Metallica diehards, Revolver has vinyl, T-shirts, baby onesies and much more — including "The Black Album" remastered box set — over at our store. Shop for those and much more!
In case you've been living under a rock, Metallica are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the "Black Album" this year, and that means giving fans of the record everything they could possibly desire. In addition to a Blacklist covers compilation that boasts 53 artists, they're also dropping a gargantuan box set that's full of demos, outtakes, live recordings and more.
Last week, Metallica shared a demo of "Sad But True" alongside St. Vincent's funky cover of it, and today (June 7th) they're spotlighting "Holier Than Thou" with a rehearsal take and a couple guest renditions by OFF! and Biffy Clyro. The demo, initially recorded on October 4th, 1990, has been dubbed a "pre-production rehearsal" take, and it's basically a slightly rougher-sounding instrumental version of the thrash classic. Hear it above via YouTube.
The covers from the Blacklist comp are definitely more compelling for Metallica heads who aren't obsessed with alternate versions and studio archives. OFF!'s version of the track is a hardcore punk stomper that features a blaring saxophone solo comes paired with an elaborate music video that's basically a short film about a corrupted priest.
For Biffy Clyro's take, the Scottish rockers give "Holier Than Thou" a sleek, proggy, almost angelic-sounding makeover replete with glowing falsetto harmonies and Queen-like guitar stylings. Take a listen to both versions below.
Metallica will release the "The Black Album" Remastered Deluxe Box Set on September 10th, and we have copies of the whole package — which also includes six LP's, six DVD's, a 120-page book and a ton of extra goodies — available in our shop. The Metallica Blacklist Album is due out the same day.
