Pitchfork

Over the years, Metallica have had several bands interpret their music in various different ways. A few years back, there was an obscure European Metallica tribute album that was about as terrible as it sounds. Worse still was Die Krupps' German industrial take on some classic Metallica musik. Now, Apocalyptica Plays Metallica by Four Cellos. Amazing. We never knew their fans were so dedicated.

The shocking thing is that it's really quite impressive. The band showcases their unbelievable cello work in sort of a metal fashion that proves you can really rock out on any instrument if you're good enough.

Something else about this release is that it also displays Metallica's talent for writing incredible, theatrical pieces of music. While the classic metal band may be unstylish and... well... kind of bad, in general, they've produced some of the best heavy metal in existence by writing what is essentially classical music played loudly. Of course, that was before the Load hit. Now they're just five years late for a money train headed for Seattle.

The only true negative about this record is that it hasn't got much staying power. It's not something you'll play to death. In fact, you may only listen to it once. Regardless of the undeniably powerful musicianship, it still remains more of a novelty record. Hopefully, Apocalyptica's next record will show more emphasis on creativity than kitsch.