Garage Inc.

The following is Steve Wiig's report of Garage Inc. Special thanks to Steve Wiig and Chapter of the Mad!!!

Discharge - "Free Speech For The Dumb" & "The More I See"

These sound a lot "cleaner" than the originals. Discharge was very agressive, but a little sloppy compared to Metallica. The riff to "More I See" and the lyrics to "Free Speech" are very, very powerful. When I was picturing the album, I thought these two songs would have been cool as the last two songs cut together like "Last Caress/Green Hell" on "Garage Days Re-Revisitied". In my opinion, I thought it would have been cool to end it with "Free Speech", but apparently they thought it would be cooler to start it that way.

Diamond Head - "It's Electric"

A little "greasier" than Diamond Head covers of the past. At first, James didn't really know the lyrics to this one and had a lot of fun with 'em during rehearsals - especially the "I stop on red, but leave on amber" line. When he finally saw the lyrics, he was like "I ain't singin' these!". But in the end, I think he did a good job with 'em.

Black Sabbath - "Sabra Cadabra"

A bit "sharper" than Sabbath's version. They actually decided to include part of "A National Acrobat" in the middle of this song, which I recommended to them. I'm not trying to claim any credit here, I just knew that they could make that particular song sound EXTRA cool - and they did! It's one of my favorite moments on the album.

Bob Seger - "Turn The Page"

Slightly "heavier" than Bob's version, but very cool. Rather than "lonely guy on the road", it sounds like "angry guy on the road". They actually tried an acoustic version of this song during rehearsals, but I think Lars wanted to "heavy it up" a bit. In fact, I think I remember them doing a really fast/heavy version of the song once, too.

Misfits - "Die Die My Darling"

Much "tighter" than The Misfits version. I believe this was the first one that they nailed at both rehearsals and in the studio. It was one of the easier ones for them to pull off. Both Jason and Kirk sing back-up vocals on the record for this one. Kirk even sang lead vocals at rehearsals!

Nick Cave - "Loverman"

Somewhat "Danzigier" than Nick's version. Nick's version is also a little "bassier", but this was definately one that caught people's ears (at rehearsals & in the studio) right away. It has a very "Bleeding Me" feel to it (in my opinion) and I think people will be very moved by it.

Mercyful Fate (medley)

This one was truly Lars' "baby". I think if it was up to Bob Rock, he would have dropped this one at rehearsals just because it was so long and complex (James was saying it felt like the "Justice" days again). But Lars was adamant and, in the end, they NAILED it - all twelve minutes of it! Very heavy, very powerful and very EVIL. James did a great job with the vocals. I wouldn't be suprised if they catch some flack for the lyrics.

Blue Oyster Cult - "Astronomy"

This is one of the last ones that they did. The "HEY!" part in this song is monsterous. I love the original and I think they really did this song justice.

Thin Lizzy - "Whiskey In The Jar"

Thin Lizzy's version is acoustic, but this one's not. It's got a great melody and kind of tells a story. I think this one has potential to be the next single/video, if there is one.

Lynyrd Skynrd - "Tuesday's Gone"

This is the same version taken from the KSJO radio show from last Christmas.

The Cover/Insert

It's an Anton Corbijn photo of them in "gas station" suits. The packaging is pretty cool - lots of stuff inside (outtake photos from the past, etc.). One of the funniest things in there is the list of titles for the album that they DIDN'T use: Garage 'Em All, Garage Up Your Ass, Garage Bloody Garage, In Through The Garage Door, The Garage Remains The Same, In Garage We Trust, Use Your Garage I & II, etc.