The Tubs have established themselves as one of the most compelling bands in the current indie landscape, and they have now secured a home with one of the genre’s most storied labels. After releasing two acclaimed albums for the influential Chicago-based institution Trouble In Mind, the London-based group has officially signed with Merge Records.
To commemorate the announcement, the Band To Watch alums have unveiled a distinctively “Tubs-ified” cover of Metallica‘s iconic heavy metal power ballad, “Fade To Black.” The track undergoes a remarkable transformation, successfully bridging the gap between the band’s British-folk-inflected sensibilities and their college-rock roots. Owen Williams delivers a vocal performance that channels the raw intensity of Eddie Vedder, while the instrumentation evokes the shimmering, high-energy aesthetic of R.E.M. in their prime.
Reflecting on the new partnership, Williams shared his enthusiasm:
Signing to Merge is a dream come true for The Tubs…we’ve been huge fans since we were teens. They’ve put out some of our fave records of all time and we could tell you them all here but we don’t have the space. Call Taylor on +** **** ****** if you’d like the full list.
I’ve always been a big fan of a Metallica ballad. Obviously I like the riffs too but I think there’s a weirdly beautiful and singular quality to their ballads, even though the lyrics are basically always trash. We thought it’d be fun to jangle up Fade To Black and give it a sort of folk rock reinvented outro to announce the signing.
Listen to the track below.
