One fan has written lyrics to and sang over Metallica's legendary instrumental song "The Call of Ktulu."
The Ride the Lightning album closer is regarded as one of metal's all-time great instrumentals and showcased Metallica's progression toward more the more complex and nuanced songwriting that would later be expressed on Master of Puppets and even more so in its successor, ...And Justice for All.
It's an imposing song for any seasoned band to even cover, much less write original lyrics for the track inspired by horror fantasy/science fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft's famous short story, Call of Cthulu, which was published in early 1928.
YouTuber Less, who alerted Loudwire of his daring undertaking, really put in a ton of effort, and wrote a bit of a short story of his own for the lyrics (nearly 350 words), which stretch across the nearly 10-minute song, including spoken words parts that enhance its epic scale. Vocally, there's shades of James Hetfield obviously in play, but Less doesn't try to be a clone singer and instead walks the line between clean singing and a gruff, more thrash-typical approach which works well.
Listen to this slice of musical fan-fiction, so to speak, at the bottom of the page and read the lyrics below. To subscribe to Less' YouTube channel, head here.
Fan-Written "Call of Ktulu" Lyrics
There are remnants of Monster
stuck in a world of human race
It brought us destruction
from the eons long gone in the time
And I saw, I made the shape
Believe me, that Thing is going to wake
We live in ignorance on the seas of infinity
We cannot run away
from this dark age deadly light
You should know that’s the force
was before humanity
That Gods, they freeze my blood
and I’m mad, when I dream of them
I saw the manuscript
and I couldn’t fall asleep again
And I tried every night
But sickly was imagination mine
I read a story strange
of societies and secret cults
Dark voices from the past
and titanic walls of slimy stones
And that sound, mysterious
like a flap of monstrous wings
One man was crying at night
to be saved from a hellish Being
And then another one
jumped out of the window’s heights
There was fear, there was a scream
haunted groans of tormented lives
Go throughout the waves
where Cthulhu slipped
under the water rough, so go
There was a bang just like the stench
of thousands open graves, then go
Time never waits, the Force is awake
Only to lead us for a war
Ready to crush, destroy the land
with only a single punch
Its trace erases memories with the death
Blackness was spilled, mankind is gone
pushing in killing darkness
No, we’ll not survive, all stuck in fear
in face of dripping Babylon
But what if that Thing is only a lie?
The hideous stone city of R'lyeh, the monolithic fortress, hides the great Cthulhu and his horde in muddy tombs. People's words cannot describe that Thing and an abyss of screams and insanity. Soon the Monster will grope its way through the black gates. And when I think about the size of all down there - I want to cease to exist.
We live in a temporary place
There’s no courage till that Thing’s still here
Our empty fates shall be left
Forever undone
"The Call of Ktulu" With Fan Vocals (Metallica Cover)
