To those who aren’t as obsessed with music, particularly rock/metal, as I am I realize my last few posts have all been about music, & today’s post follows the same theme.  Sorry but I’m not sorry.

Anyway, some time in the past week it occurred to me that it would be fun to create a compilation of my favorite rock/metal covers. This was probably inspired by hearing the awesome cover song on the brand new Black Stone Cherry album which debuted just ten days ago.  Without further ado, here are my picks for the best rock/metal covers.

1. The Sound of Silence by Disturbed: As much as I love the original Simon & Garfunkel version of this song, I was actually a little surprised to find how much I love this cover of the classic song.  But there is just no denying that David Draiman’s hauntingly beautiful voice combined with the unique instrumentation from his bandmates makes this song at least as good, & possibly better, than the original version of the song.  Perhaps part of the reason this song is so amazing is that it’s so unexpected from such a heavy band as Disturbed.  Whatever the reason, I’m thankful the band decided to record this on their latest album because it is truly a treat for the ears.
2. War by Black Stone Cherry: As I stated above, this is the song that inspired me to write this post.  As soon as I heard this cover of the classic Edwin Starr song I was blown away.  The song is fresher & more powerful than ever with Chris Robertson’s soulful vocals leading the way.  It’s a perfect addition to their latest album.
3. Sweet Dreams by Marilyn Manson: I’ve written about this song on the blog before.  It was the first song I ever truly liked by Manson.  I still remember driving to Blacksburg one night in college & hearing this song on the radio.  Instinctively I knew it had to be Manson & part of me didn’t want to like it because of that.  But I just couldn’t deny the fact that the song was both creepy & powerful.  In the ensuing years, as it turns out, I’ve actually become a big Manson fan, but it all started with this amazing cover.
4. Tainted Love by Marilyn Manson: Trust me, Manson has plenty of amazing original songs too, but I would feel remiss if I didn’t also include his cover of this classic song.  Manson’s gritty voice somehow fits the vibe of the song perfectly, & when I listen to it I almost find it hard to believe that this isn’t the original version of the song.
5. Bad Romance by Halestorm: I love the original Lady Gaga version of this song, but I must confess that I like the Halestorm cover of it even more.  The first time I heard it I was just amazed because I had never imagined that Halestorm would cover a pop song like this, but there is no question that they did a damn good job of it.  Just as a bonus, also check out Halestorm’s cover of Daft Punk’s Get Lucky.  
6. Careless Whisper by Seether: When I first heard this song I had no idea it was a cover, as I was never familiar with the original version of the song by George Michael.  In any case the cover of this song by the South African band Seether does great justice to the song.  
7. Bad Company by Five Finger Death Punch: Here’s another song that I didn’t originally realize was a cover because I wasn’t familiar with the original song.  Ivan Moody’s strong voice coupled with the hauntingly beautiful instrumentation from his bandmates makes this song both enchanting & powerful.  As a bonus, also check out FFDP’s cover of The House of the Rising Sun (the song starts at 1:45 into the video).
8. Blank Space by I Prevail: This song has a fun story behind it because it’s actually this amazing cover of a Taylor Swift song that propelled this brand new rock band from Michigan into stardom.  I distinctly remember a friend from work showing me this song on YouTube one night, & I quickly delved into the band’s original songs after realizing how amazing the band really was.  The video quickly attained over a million views on YouTube & now stands at over 21 million views.  Not bad for a band just working on their very first album!
9. Turn Down for What by Upon a Burning Body: I absolutely HATED the original version of this song, but when I found this amazing cover of it by the Texas heavy metal band Upon a Burning Body I was blown away.  As it turns out this song helped introduce me to more of UABB’s music of which I am now a big fan.  Warning: this song is NSFW (or children).
10. Losing My Religion by Lacuna Coil: This is yet another cover song that helped introduce me to a band’s original work, in this case the Italian band Lacuna Coil.  I’ve always loved the original version of this song by R.E.M. so I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about a cover of it, but as soon as I heard the interplay between singers Christina Scabbia & Andrea Ferro I was in love.Well, that’s all for today, folks.  Happy Monday, & I hope you all have a terrific week!