Cover songs or full albums are usually a pretty nice treat for the fans of the band that releases them. For Six Feet Under, it has actually become a bit of a tradition to do so. For the uninitiated, apart from their regular work of death metal, Six Feet Under has a series of cover albums known as the Graveyard Classics. Sometimes they follow a specific theme, or sometimes it is just a selection of songs from the godfathers of heavy metal. It’s been six years since the last Graveyard Classics, but Graveyard Classics IV: The Number of the Priest that they’re nowhere near finished with the covers game.
Just as the name of the album suggests, this particular album consists of nothing but Judas Priest and Iron Maiden songs. These songs were chosen by Metal Blade CEO, Brian Slagel, to pay homage to two of the most important bands to the name of heavy metal. These songs are done up in true Six Feet Under fashion. They’re all played with distorted and downtuned guitars, heavy drums and Chris Barnes’ iconic death metal gutturals on vocals. The songs themselves are done very faithfully and definitely feel heavier than the originals, given the guitars.
However, my only little qualm simply had to do with Barnes’ vocals. Given that Rob Halford and Bruce Dickinson has two of the best voices in heavy metal, and that their vocal melodies are incredibly memorable and impacting, hearing them replaced with Barnes’ growls is a little jarring but not in a good way. I feel that diehard Priest and Maiden fans might have similar issues, but when you’re able to look past it and pay attention to the riffage, these are still some awesome treatments of classic metal songs.
I’d say this is still a solid installment in Six Feet Under’s Graveyard Classics series. If you’ve ever wondered what Iron Maiden or Judas Priest might sound with downtuned guitars and death metal growls, this album of covers is absolutely going to scratch your itch. Again, diehard Maiden and Priest fans might not enjoy these treatments as much, but there’s going to be something for everyone here. Whether it’s just to experience classic songs with a death metal twist, or to hear some awesome riffs, you’ll find something to like. It’s a solid release, especially as far as cover albums go.
Score: 8/10
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