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Beatallica Sgt. Hetfield's Motorbreath Pub Band Review by Gary Hill What would happen if Metallica were a Beatles cover band? The result would be Beatallica and this album is proof of that. Those familiar with the band Dread Zeppelin should be familiar with the concept, but the bands have been changed. Instead of mixing Elvis and Zeppelin with reggae these guys mix The Beatles with Metallica and the result is always entertaining and often brilliant. So, is this gimmicky and a bit over the top? You bet, but it’s also a lot of fun and a great head banging experience. Some tracks seem to work better than others, but even the weakest still rock out quite well. All in all, this album should definitely please fans of Metallica. Some Beatles fans will probably be turned away, but those who have an open mind (and healthy sense of humor) will certainly get in on the fun. They may have made the charts as a comedy album, but Beatallica is quite listenable music that really rocks, too. One note, though – those with kids might want to listen to the disc before playing it with their children around because some of the language is explicit. This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2008 Volume 6 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review

Sgt. Hetfield's Motorbreath Pub Band Starting with some pub sounds that feel like they could have come from a Beatles disc they launch into the old familiar melody, but delivered with a thrashing metal musical theme. The lyrics are changed out, but the melody (and even the little crowd noise segment) remain essentially the same – just ramped up. It’s a great way to lead things out in fine fashion. I love, “it’s wonderful to drink beer

Revol-Ooh-Tion This was always one of The Beatles’ harder rocking pieces, so it’s fairly simple to imagine what these guys will do with it. This one is cool, but perhaps not as strong as some of the other material here.

Blackened the U.S.S.R. Here we have a fairly successful mash up. The opening section is pure thrash, but then it drops into the familiar Beatles riff. It’s an effective conglomeration.

Sandman This track differs from a lot of the stuff in that it is tied more closely to a Metallica song (I’m guessing you can figure out which one) than it is to a Beatles track. There is a tie-over to “Taxman,” though. This has a hard rock guitar solo that’s quite tasty and just a bit psychedelic.

Helvester of Skelter Here’s another where the Beatles original track was harder rocking than some of their other stuff. The changes here seem more organic, but this is really turned into some killer heavy metal. It’s one of my favorite tracks on show here. The noisy jam later is a great touch as is the false ending followed by backwards tracked weirdness.

A Garage Dayz Nite This seems pretty obvious. It’s catchy, quick and cool. I like it a lot.

Anesthesia (I'm Only Sleeping) You have to love the thematic combination of taking Cliff Burton’s bass solo (entitled “Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth)” and merging it with The Beatles’ “I’m Only Sleeping.” That’s sheer brilliance. I haven’t heard the original Metallica bass solo in a while, but this sounds pretty straightforward and true to that. In many ways the Beatles have of the track is also fairly faithful, but with a bit more crunch. That is until the latter portion where the bass purely fires out in some seriously scorching instrumental work.

Leper Madonna The title pretty much explains this one. It’s one of the catchier pieces on show here. No huge surprises are present, but rather it’s a successful amalgamation of the two sounds.

Ktulu (He's So Heavy) The Beatles song that is associated with this is one of my favorites from the group. It’s heavy and extremely powerful. Beatallica mainly borrow the title from the Metallica tune (an instrumental as originally done) for the chorus here. This is a powerhouse and probably my favorite number of the set. We do get some of the Metallica number showing through here and there and it does make an appearance musically in the outro.

For Horsemen If there’s a misstep here, this is it. It’s not that this s a bad track – far from it. It’s just sort of pedestrian compared to a lot of the other stuff on the CD.

Hey Dude “Remember, metal is in your heart / And you can start to be a shredder.” I guess you get the idea of this song from the lyrics, eh? Well, this is one of the most successful numbers here and without question one of my favorites. They play it pretty true to form, feeling like Metallica covering the Beatles.

Sgt. Hetfield's (Reprise) As one might gather from the title, this is a reprise of the CD’s opening number. It’s perhaps a bit more pure metal than the earlier incarnation.

...And Justice for All My Loving It’s pretty easy from the title to gather what this song is all about. The only recognizable commodity it takes from the Metallica track is the driving beat. This is another that’s quite effective and serves as a great way to close things out in style.

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