Acclaimed guitar virtuosos Rodrigo y Gabriela have unveiled a spectacular new version of the Metallica classic, “Battery,” which will be featured on the duo’s upcoming METTAL EP, due from ATO Records on Black Friday, November 29, as a one-sided 12” vinyl Record Store Day First release, limited to 2,500 and available only at independent record stores. Side 2 will have an art etching. This companion EP to their latest full-length, METTALVOLUTION, sees Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero paying tribute to the icons of thrash metal with three previously unreleased covers, shedding light on some of their favorite foundational songs. Along with “Battery,” METTAL EP includes stunning new versions of Megadeth’s “Holy War” and Slayer’s epic “Seasons In The Abyss.” All three tracks were produced and recorded by Sanchez in Oslo, Norway and finished at the duo’s own Lumbini Studio in Ixtapa, Zihuatenejo, Mexico. METTAL EP was mixed by Jim Monti (Slipknot, Metallica, KoRN) and then mastered by GRAMMY® Award-winner Ted Jensen (Bring Me The Horizon, Disturbed, Halestorm) at Sterling Sound, Nashville.
“It's no secret that we love Metallica,” says Sanchez. “Master Of Puppets changed everything for us when we first heard it all those years ago.”
“We've played parts of ‘Battery’ in our live set for many years,” says Quintero. “We’re so happy to release our studio version in full for our fans. Thank you to the fans for coming with us on this trip, and eternal gratitude to Metallica for the incredible music.”
Rodrigo y Gabriela have long proclaimed the powerful influence of metal on their own groundbreaking music, including a rendition of Metallica’s “Orion” found on their now-classic self-titled second album from 2006. The track was later named by Loudwire among the top 5 on its “10 Very Diverse Covers of Metallica Songs – Ranked,” writing, “Having long admitted the influence heavy metal has had on their music, it’s no surprise that Rodrigo y Gabriela decided to pay their respects to Metallica…Their stunning take on Cliff Burton’s bass-heavy track from MASTER OF PUPPETS will forever shine as their crowning nod to ‘Tallica.”
What’s more, Rodrigo y Gabriela’s triumphant 2014 headline concert at Morrison, CO’s famed Red Rocks Amphitheatre saw them joined on stage by none other than Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo for an unprecedented “Metallica Medley“ comprising “Orion,” “For Whom The Bell Tolls,” “The Frayed Ends of Sanity,” and “Battery.” The performance has since proven a viral favorite, earning more than 1 million individual views via the official Rodrigo y Gabriela YouTube channel.
2019 has already seen Rodrigo y Gabriela make a spectacular chart debut with their acclaimed new album, METTAVOLUTION, available now via ATO Records. The duo’s fifth studio LP and first album in five years, METTAVOLUTION entered Billboard’s “Americana/Folk Albums” chart at #1 with 1st week equivalents in excess of 11,000 – Rodrigo y Gabriela’s second best sales week ever. In addition, the new album arrived at #2 on Billboard’s “Rock Albums,” as well as #10 on “Top Album Sales” and #71 on the overall SoundScan/Billboard 200.
METTAVOLUTION also earned critical acclaim to match its popular success. “For Rodrigo y Gabriela, the meditation is actually in the swirl of notes and rhythmic strums that circle around their music,” wrote NPR’s First Listen. “And if we follow their lead, there is a meditative quality for the listener as well. METTAVOLUTION closes with a 19-minute version of ‘Echoes,’ Pink Floyd’s rock masterpiece famously performed live in an ancient Roman amphitheater in Pompeii, Italy. Like its masterful catalog, Rodrigo y Gabriela gives the music new life with just two guitars.” “METTAVOLUTION finds the duo locked back in,” wrote Glide, “and where their last record was dedicated to their influences, this time it is all about the visceral primal passion of playing and what originally connected them to music. The title track opener kicks a rock beat behind the guitar strums as the producer David Sardy loads up the bass, shaker and voice synths to propel the sound forward.” Pitchfork praised the album’s original material, writing, “The crunching ‘Terracentric’ and the blurrily agile lines on ‘Witness Tree’ move like hand-cranked cars on a slotted track, wound up by Rodrigo y Gabriela’s extremely athletic wrists and then turned loose. The dance break ‘Cumbé’ and its slower-breathing follower ‘Electric Soul’ simmer down a bit and lay out their chemistry more simply, to warmer and more pleasant effect, but the dominant energy in part one is fast, heavy, and relentlessly precise… METTAVOLUTION reassures that for as long as they’re around, Rodrigo y Gabriela will be echoing their influences as only they can.”
Rodrigo y Gabriela celebrated the album’s arrival with a spectacular performance of METTAVOLUTION’s title track and first official single, “Mettavolution,” on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, featuring exclusive choreography by Annie-B Parson (David Byrne, David Bowie, Laurie Anderson). “The duo are joined by a group of six dancers holding matching guitars who move in motion to the past-paced, lyric-free instrumentals,” wrote Rolling Stone. “As the musicians play faster and faster, the dancers leave their guitars behind and perform a choreographed dance behind the two. As the track comes to a climax, a several singer rise in the audience to intone alongside the quick-fire acoustic riffs.”
WATCH “METTAVOLUTION” ON JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!
Rodrigo y Gabriela are currently traveling the world on the epic METTAVOLUTION headline tour, with U.S. dates scheduled through mid-December. For complete details and ticket information, please visit www.rodgab.com/tour-dates.
RODRIGO Y GABRIELA NORTH AMERICAN TOUR 2019/20
NOVEMBER
19 – St. Louis, MO – The Pageant
20 – Kansas City, MO – Uptown Theater
22 – Madison, WI – The Sylvee
23 – Cedar Rapids, IA – Paramount Theatre
24 – Minneapolis, MN – State Theatre
26 – Joliet, IL – Rialto Square Theatre
27 – Louisville, KY – The Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts
29 – McKee’s Rocks, PA – Roxian Theatre
30 – Harrisburg, PA – The Forum Auditorium
DECEMBER
2 – Durham, NC – Durham Performing Arts Center
3 – Asheville, NC –Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
4 – Charleston, SC – Charleston Gaillard Center
6 – Miami Beach, FL – The Fillmore Miami Beach
MARCH 2020
12 – Sugar Land, TX – Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land
20-21 – Monterrey, Mexico – Tecate Pa’l Norte Festival *
* FESTIVAL APPEARANCE
