It would have been too easy to celebrate a Metallica birthday with a simple reissue. The band has really decided to make things special by inviting other artists to come in and have fun with their most famous album. This idea has really fired the passions of artists whose own musical upbringings were strongly influenced by this record. Rockers, DJs, folk, country, hip hop and other artists have all at one time or another gloried in some riff or chorus from this legendary beast of an album. They answered the call en masse. The result is an impressive compilation of 53 tracks. The 12 songs from the original album are each revisited several times by an amazingly diverse cast, all for a good cause (the proceeds from sales are donated to the charities supported by the artists involved in this project).
From Corey Taylor to Royal Blood, via Miley Cyrus, My Morning Jacket and the Frenchmen Sebastian and Izia, everyone has their own slant, taking liberties to a greater or lesser degree, some trying to respect the original songs while others have taken a fresh approach to the 12 tracks that built a rock legend. For sure, this compilation will take a while to digest fully. But its incredible diversity makes it an album to come back to again and again, enjoying a taste of a few different morsels each time. In the end, one is almost more thrilled by the “freer” versions, like the excellent Sad But True by Jason Isbell, Holier Than Thou by Biffy Clyro, Of Wolf And Man by Goodbye, Texas or The God That Failed by Idles, which offer a new point of view. Meanwhile interpretations by the likes of Volbeat or Weezer turn out to be closer to the original versions, and therefore less surprising. And then there are those, like Dave Gahan, whose voices will leave listeners spellbound, no matter how they decide to reinterpret these classics. We might be tempted to speak of Blacklist as a mish-mash: but really, it is a mine, because it is full of gems. This is a very fine way to celebrate a birthday. © Chief Brody/Qobuz