We're sorry to inform you that someone has replaced the drums in classic Metallica songs with the St. Anger snare

YouTube drummer next to Metallica's Lars Ulrich
(Image credit: PolarWhale, Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images)

Let's face it, us metalheads are an argumentative bunch, and there's very few things we can all agree on. Ask a group of us to name, say, the best band or album of a certain time period, and you can count on there being some blood (or, more realistically, some rude language being spouted out online).

One opinion that is pretty much gospel within the metal community however is that the snare sound on Metallica's highly-divisive 2003 record St. Anger sounds er, pretty questionable. Many of us more uncouth individuals would even say that it sounds like a beer cask being thumped with a wooden spoon, or like some other less pleasant comparison. 

In spite of its unpopularity, however, the infamous sound has given way to decades of hilarious content, such as the time a metal comedian pretended the St. Anger snare was his sleep paralysis demon.

One video we somehow missed, was this creation from 2019, which sees a talented musician, known as PolarWhale, replace the drums in legendary Metallica songs - Master Of Puppets, Creeping Death, One and Enter Sandman among them with the now infamous St. Anger clank.

It makes for an extraordinary listen.

Torture yourself with the video below:

Viewers in the comments are similarly amused, with one user writing: "don't give lars ideas, imagine if they re-release all the albums with the drums like this and stop production of the normal versions", while another says: "this is simply the purest, most dedicated form of protest in the history of music".

Recently, Metallica announced that they will be hosting their third Helping Hands concert in aid of their charity All Within My Hands, named after the song of the same name from St. Anger.

All Within My Hands are a non-profit organisation that is "dedicated to creating sustainable communities” through supporting "workforce education, the fight against hunger, and other critical local services."

The band will perform alongside a number of "special guests" at the Microsoft Theater on December 16. 

Liz Scarlett

Liz works on keeping the Louder sites up to date with the latest news from the world of rock and metal. Prior to joining Louder as a full time staff writer, she completed a Diploma with the National Council for the Training of Journalists and received a First Class Honours Degree in Popular Music Journalism. She enjoys writing about anything from neo-glam rock to stoner, doom and progressive metal, and loves celebrating women in music.