James Hetfield’s Laugh Used to Record Cover of Metallica’s “Atlas, Rise!"
And now for our first Metallica story of 2017.
YouTube user Lars Von Retreiver (clever) has created a cover of Metallica’s new song “Atlas, Rise!” using clips of frontman James Hetfield’s laugh.
You can compare his effort with the original, below.
Von Retreiver’s previous Metallica-themed efforts include covers of “Master of Puppets” and “St. Anger,” also recorded using Hetfield’s laugh and shown below.
Get The Pick Newsletter
All the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox!
Christopher Scapelliti is editor-in-chief of Guitar Player magazine, the world’s longest-running guitar magazine, founded in 1967. In his extensive career, he has authored in-depth interviews with such guitarists as Pete Townshend, Slash, Billy Corgan, Jack White, Elvis Costello and Todd Rundgren, and audio professionals including Beatles engineers Geoff Emerick and Ken Scott. He is the co-author of Guitar Aficionado: The Collections: The Most Famous, Rare, and Valuable Guitars in the World, a founding editor of Guitar Aficionado magazine, and a former editor with Guitar World, Guitar for the Practicing Musician and Maximum Guitar. Apart from guitars, he maintains a collection of more than 30 vintage analog synthesizers.

“The experience of our work with Jimmy in a vibrant, electric, mystical, and powerful perspective”: Unreleased Jimmy Page/Rich Robinson composition set to feature in upcoming deluxe version of Jimmy Page & the Black Crowes: Live at the Greek

“The king of modern blues getting down and dirty (musically) with a former Van Halen singer”: January 2025 Guitar World Editors’ Picks