First off, I realize that I apparently can't tell time, given how in the past few months I've been inaccurate in stating when exactly I would be posting my next song. I apologize for that, but then again, that's why this blog has the word "idiot" in its title!
Anyway, I'll go in a different direction today, something that you probably wouldn't expect me to talk about on here. I'll be talking about a famous band in the genre sometimes known as thrash metal and other times known as speed metal. It's Slayer!
Yes, despite what you may guess from what I usually post on my music blogs, sometimes I don't mind listening to that genre. I mean, I like many of Metallica's songs from the 80's (and the way I acquired the songs would considered to be "ironic" given the band's famous feud with a certain site back during 2000…), although since then they're really hit and miss, and all of St. Anger was a pile-o-shit. Clearly, the most famous album from the band is Reign in Blood, a masterpiece and a classic in most people's eyes, a powerful 29 minute juggernaut that hits you like a jackhammer in its brutal intensity. I really don't know much about this genre or other similar genres in the large field of metal, although I can tell you that I don't like the bands that just play as fast as they can with no hint of melody or song structure, and the "grown incomprehensibly into the mic like you're Cookie Monster" thing also isn't a turn-on.
Anyway, enough about my musical tastes… however possible, listen to Reign in Blood, as it's a must-listen. Besides, the song Raining Blood is currently infamous due to how many people are having problems with it in Guitar Hero III! Hey, I'm just going by what people tell me here. That game is just not for me.
The point of all this is that today's upload is a song from Slayer that came out a year after Reign in Blood, but totally did not sound like something you'd expect from the band at the time. Yet, the song is still pretty awesome, in my opinion.
It's from the soundtrack to the film Less Than Zero, a late 80's film in which Robert Downey Jr. portrays-get this-a drug addict, which eerily echoed real life, although it looks as if he's been able to control it in recent years so that's why I think it's not so bad to make light of it. The album, produced by Rick Rubin-he also did Reign in Blood-featured a collection of cover songs, done by what has to be the strangest grouping of artists I've ever seen on a soundtrack. The song that Slayer did was something that just sounds bizarre and something destined for failure.
The song was originally done by Iron Butterfly, and really was their only hit, but wow what a hit. Yes, I'm talking about In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, a song that you either know for its distinctive riff or the fact that the full version is 17 minutes long! Now, a psychedelic song like that doesn't sound like something that'd work well as a thrash metal tune, and indeed all that I've heard suggests that Slayer themselves hated the song, and I can understand why, as it sounds more "commercial" than anything on their famed album from the year before, that's for sure.
BUT, it may be something that you did even if you're not otherwise a fan of the group. Me, not familiar with too many of their other songs, thinks that it's a kick-ass cover. As you'd expect they steamroll through the tune and riff it the entire way, with a nice guitar solo at around the 2 minute mark. Note that the cover is only 3 minutes and 20 seconds, much more manageable than 17 minutes. Who knows, you may like this more than the band does.
Slayer-In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (4.58 MB, 192Kbits/second)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/567547477b2a5f/After a post this long, I need a few days, so I'll be back by Thursday night, and this time I'm not fibbing.
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