Probably one of the most covered bands on the planet are the Beatles. Considering the influence the Liverpool quartet have had on the development of pop and rock music, it's not that strange. The thing is that Beatles covers almost always seem to fit into one of two categories. Either the songs are clearly intentionally deformed into something that bears most resemblence with a parody or they're done in such a devoted way that it's hardly distinguishable from the original. Only very rarely does an artist actually make a Beatles song their own.

There's two Beatles covers from my collection that I'd like to mention here. First the version of Eleanor Rigby by Pain. Pain is one of the inventions of workaholic Peter Tagtgren. Tagtgren's other bands include Bloodbath, Hypocrisy, Lock Up and The Abyss. Apart from that he has his own recording studio where he produces other bands. In short, this man has found a gap in the space-time continuum and actually manages to work 40 hours a day. But I digress. With Pain he makes an interesting type of industrial metal and on their 2002 album Nothing Remains the Same the band took on Eleanor Rigby. It's become an intriguing deconstruction. While you cannot possibly see it as a faithful representation of the original, it's industrialised with enough respect to stay well away from the parody level.

The second cover is my favourite Beatles cover of all time. Swiss thrash metal trio Coroner have made a very unusual choice by covering I Want You (She's So Heavy). Released on Abbey Road, this was the last song the Beatles recorded as a band. Coroner have never thread on the beaten path and they continue that with this cover. The cover is incredibly heavy and someone fits right into the rest of the Mental Vortex album, unlike their almost reggae version of Purple Haze two albums earlier. From the slow and heavy chorus into the fast mid part and back again, ending the same way the Beatles did : abruptly after a hypnotisingly repeated instrumental section : brilliant. Too bad this band was too unusual to appeal a large enough fanbase for record companies to support them.