Last month, it was announced that a tribute album dedicated to Metallica’s 1991 self-titled ‘Black Album’ was in the works to honor the record’s 30th anniversary. Now, the cover of Metallica‘s “Don’t Tread On Me” by Danish Elvis-metallers Volbeat has been dropped, and it’s an interesting take on a pretty straightforward classic.
What fans will immediately notice about Volbeat’s cover of “Don’t Treat On Me” is that they’ve put a spring in the track’s step, cutting the time between the track’s rapid-fire chugs and giving the chorus a little bit of vocal shimmer. But a slightly closer look shows a bigger shift: Volbeat have taken the America out of the track. “Don’t Tread On Me” typically opens with Metallica playing a snippet of the melody out of “America” from the musical West Side Story (hey, maybe Volbeat just don’t dig Sondheim), and goes hard with the American military references (it can’t be a coincidence that James Hetfield’s cries of “So be it!” sound a lot like “Soviet”). The result is a version of “Don’t Tread On Me” that’s more about one’s personal standards and attitude than old-school ‘Murican pride.
Listen to Volbeat’s take on “Don’t Tread On Me” below:
Metallica’s super-mega-deluxe edition of the Black Album, featuring the Blacklist tribute album, is available for preorder.
Meanwhile, Volbeat are hitting the road in the states with Municipal Waste, Twin Temple, and The Hu later this year, so catch them live at one of the following dates:
9/24 – Atlanta, GA at Tabernacle (w/ Twin Temple)
9/26 – Oklahoma City, OK at The Criterion (w/ Twin Temple)
9/28 – San Antonio, TX at Sunken Garden Amphitheater (w/ Twin Temple & The Hu)
9/29 – Lubbock, TX at Lonestar Amphitheater (w/ Twin Temple & The Hu)
10/2 – San Diego, CA at The Observatory North Park (w/ Twin Temple & Municipal Waste)
10/6 – Los Angeles, CA at Hollywood Palladium (w/ Municipal Waste)
10/9 – Paso Robles, CA at Vina Robles Amphitheatre (w/ Twin Temple)
10/10 – Oakland, CA at The Fox Theater (w/ Twin Temple)
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Words by Chris Krovatin
