Published on Oct 19, 1999
There are several reasons why a band might choose to take a
break from recording new material and put out an album of cover
songs, as is the case with Overkill and their latest release
Coverkill. Maybe the disc is meant to help introduce a new
member to the band, a la Metallica and
Garage Days Re-Revisited. Maybe it’s because the band needed
to clean out the pipes and just do something fun. Maybe it’s
because they want to put out something special as a “thank you” to
the fans.
In Overkill’s case, I think it’s a combination of all these
reasons. After all, the band has been going nonstop now for over 10
years, and a break to have some fun with old songs they like is
long-earned. Besides,
Coverkill is a great album – and that’s really all that’s
important in the long run.
Since the release of the band’s last studio effort
Necroshine, guitarist Sebastian Marino left the band, and in
stepped Dave Linsk. While Overkill has always been able to “roll
with the punches” when it came to adding new members, it’s not a
bad idea to just jam out on songs like these – especially seeing
Necroshine came out only eight months ago.
Coverkill is an album that stretches over almost Overkill’s
entire history, going as far back as the sessions for
Under The Influence for material. The best thing one could
say about this is that there is almost no noticeable difference
between the different versions of the band – and that is meant as a
high compliment.
Think about it – doesn’t it make perfect sense to open up this
set with a cover of Motorhead’s “Overkill”? Wouldn’t it also make
sense that the band would do a version that almost matched the
original note-for-note? Damn straight.
Whether it’s Black Sabbath (“Changes,” “Never Say Die”), Kiss
(“Deuce”), The Sex Pistols (“No Feelings”) or the Ramones (“I’m
Against It”) that is on the menu, Overkill know how to not only
keep the flavor of the original, but to add enough of their own
signature to make the song unique. Granted, I would have preferred
that “Changes” had been kept in the same vein as Ozzy Osbourne and
crew did it – namely, without the drums – but I did like the effect
of D.D. Verni playing the piano line on an 8-string bass. It just
felt – and sounded – right.
Even a group like Jethro Tull fits in, as Overkill take their
song “Hymn 43” and put it through the metal shredder. I’ll admit
the classic rock fans might not like it, but I grew up on this
song, and I kinda liked the spin that Overkill put on it.
You don’t even need to be totally familiar with all the source
material – I never was that big into The Dead Boys – to appreciate
what Overkill is doing on
Coverkill. Even the impromptu jam on “Tequila” at the end of
“I’m Against It” feels like it belongs – and the band freely admits
that “I’m Against It”, coming off an old cassette, isn’t of the
same audio quality as the rest of the album. My thought: it’s not
as bad as the band makes it out to be, though there is a drop in
the treble.
Some people might get a little spooked by
Coverkill – to them I say, lighten up. Overkill has been
cranking out enough original music since the ’80s, that it’s time
they got a chance to show their roots (having started their musical
lives as a cover band) as well as to kick up their heels a bit.
This is the kind of album that, once you give it a chance, will be
hard to pull out of your CD player for a long time.