Enter Sandman

Most days I don’t need a Metallica cover. Today, on the other hand, nu-metal pop queen Rina Sawayama has dropped her take on “Enter Sandman”—and holy grain of sand, it’s spectacular. Her pristine pop vocals burst onto the song’s sinister landscape.
Sawayama, who released her debut album last year, is one of the 53 artists who are covering Metallica for the 30th anniversary celebration of their self-titled record. A wide range of artists from Chris Stapleton, Phoebe Bridgers, Japanese Breakfast, and St. Vincent to Diet Cig, Biffy Clyro, and IDLES have taken on their tracks for a project called The Metallica Blacklist. However, Sawayama’s rendition feels like an obvious early standout on that lengthy track list.