You’ve got to hand it to Nickelback. They truly do not care what other people think of them. Frontman Chad Kroeger’s recent proclamation that “anybody that thinks that we take this band seriously is hilarious” pretty much sums up their attitude towards the haters.
Now guitarist Ryan Peake has prodded the hornet’s nest that is metal’s gatekeeping community by suggest the multi-platinum Canadian rockers might one day have a crack at covering Slayer, Testament or Meshuggah.
In an interview with Rock Sverige, Peake was asked about the possibility of the band recording a Slayer covers album - something bassist Mike Kroeger once half-jokingly said he‘d love do.
“I don't know if it would be something we all could agree on because we are all have our different likes and dislikes when it comes to music,” said Peake. “Mike's is really heavy and I like Slayer so I get that. I think we could probably agree on doing a heavy covers album or something like that.”
After explaining that he and his bandmates love everything from metal to country and pop, Peake then pulled the names of three metal bands out of the hat that the Canadians could conceivably cover: “Maybe do a Testament, Slayer, Meshuggah album? I don't know.”
Nickelback have been displaying their metal cred in other ways recently. Chad Kroeger recently declared that James Hetfield was his ‘rock god’.
"There's something about James live that just makes me wanna grit my teeth and scream along,” Kroeger told the BBC’s Rock Show With Johnnie Walker. “And he's not only talented — amazing singer, songwriter, guitar player — but he's also one of the sweetest people you could ever meet.”
Nickelback’s new album, Get Rollin’, is out now. Sadly, it does not feature any Meshuggah covers.