Review of Six Feet Under - Graveyard Classics 2

Six Feet Under return to hallowed ground, repeating themselves and the good work of others by releasing a second album composed entirely of covers. The follow up to 2000’s Graveyard Classics is cleverly titled Graveyard Classics II. If you thought that the band’s first effort, which covered tracks by the likes of Exodus, AC/DC, and Jimi Hendrix seemed like a bit of a cash-in gimmick, you’ll surely roll your eyes at Barnes and Co.’s decision to cover the AC/DC classic Back in Black. Not the song, the entire album. Aside from their seemingly genuine regard for the band’s work, it is a mystery why Six Feet Under would choose to release a cover album of an album. Whatever the reason, they’ve offered this up, and it’s now up to metal fans to decide not only if they can get behind this concept in cover albums, but also whether they believe the covers actually work. I don’t have any strong feelings on the first question, but there is no question, many listeners will lose interest in this project simply because of the concept. I’m familiar with bands covering entire albums, but usually in a live setting. Regardless, if you give the band the benefit of the doubt and check this out, the question remains whether or not Six Feet Under pulls this off. They don’t. Not even fucking close.

A few years ago Gus Van Sant remade the classic 1960 Hitchcock classic Psycho. Not just remade, the 1998 version was nearly a carbon copy. That was the gimmick--the dialogue, camera angles, and nearly all other aspects of the film were exactly like the original film. It just starred different actors. I didn’t see that movie. Want to know why? BECAUSE IT’S THE SAME FUCKING MOVIE! If I want to watch Psycho, I’m gonna watch the original. The remake seemed far more like garden variety imitation than homage. Unfortunately, Graveyard Classics II makes the same mistake. This classic material is covered almost exactly note for note, and the only substantial difference from the original is Barnes’ vocals. I don’t understand why the band didn’t rework the material a bit just to make it interesting. Some bands do good things with covers by injecting some rearrangements and updated sound. Six Feet Under do neither, and because of that this review contains no songwriting score.

Along with the stunning lack of creativity, there are more reasons this album fails. For one thing, I can’t figure out how cover music by a death metal band can end up sounding so restrained. The band plays the notes, but the performance lacks the energy and charisma of the original. It honestly sounds like a karaoke track. Which means that the dread locked dude standing on the hastily constructed platform stage in the Chinese restaurant is none other than Chris Barnes. His performance is perhaps the most fundamental reason why this project falls flat. His growling vocals in no way fit with the grimy, blues based AC/DC sound. He just can’t maneuver with the tracks. Brian Johnson’s performance is no more his natural voice than Barnes’, yet Johnson achieves range and emotion. Listening to this vocal performance brings back memories of the scene in Young Frankenstein when Frankenstein performs a duet of “Putting on the Ritz” with the doctor. It’s laughable.

Clearly the band is having some fun and paying tribute to some heroes. But every musician has a favorite band and a favorite album. Only the die hard Six Feet Under fans need apply, and it helps if you’ve never heard Back in Black the right way.

Release Details

Six Feet Under

Graveyard Classics 2

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