Evil Lucifer's Origins (ELO); or, Metal Takes On Other Genres

Today's post is from our friend HIM.

I have an odd brain. Take this example. I was walking home from work (who doesn’t?) and listening to Electric Light Orchestra (ELO); specifically, I was listening to “Secret Messages” off the self-same 1983 album:

I know. Not metal. I know. Not the best ELO song or album or video (what the hell is Muppet-head doing standing in a field of wheat?!?!). But I was struck by a thought: this would be an amazing metal song!!!

All Over The World: The Very Best Of ELO

Before you oil your sabers (or after a shower), hear me out. This quirky idea is not, obviously, without precedent. And far greater minds thought the same thing at some point. Judas Priest decided to update Joan Baez:

Admittedly, Sin After Sin (1977) isn’t the following year’s Stained Class (thanks Roger Glover!). But it was the album with “Dissident Aggressor” on it (later covered in 1988 by Slayer on South Of Heaven). And this was a perfect chance for Halford to pine away ambiguously. I rank it as a great Priest song and the perfect palate cleanser after “Let Us Prey.”

We can obviously also turn our ears towards Celtic Frost’s much loved(?) cover of Wall of Voodoo:

From the moment Mr. Warrior (nee Fischer) says “Hey!” you know you are in for a treat. And the backing vocalists in the chorus? They are either drugged, dead, or both. Who knew that Into the Pandemonium (1987) meant they were about to jump into Swan Lake the following year? Regardless, this marks one of those “what the huh” moments that turns into “that is pretty interesting.”

But back to ELO. I am sure others on this site have heard a song and thought, “Damn. Why won’t [insert metal band name here] rock/sleaze/glam the hell out of that puppy!?!?” So add your favorite song that demands the Celtic Priest treatment. Or throw in your favorite example of a metal band taking a song and making it their own. Who knows? I might listen to it as I stroll home one of these days