Ten Metal Songs About Batman
Today we ask an important question: are there ten good metal songs about Batman? Thanks to The World’s Greatest Detective, we now know that the answer is “YES.”
Dark, broody, and full of daddy issues, these are the songs we deserve, if not the ones we need right now. Prepare yourselves, as there is no Alfred here to hold your hand or make you a sandwich.
10. Voivod – “Batman”
How could we not throw in this classic? It gives everyone that classic metal sound and the satisfaction of definitely knowing lyrics. It’s the song to choose when you’re hammered and you want to sing some karaoke. Voivod’s “Batman” is the epitome of the dad who loved the comics as a kid, screaming, “BATMAN!” at the top of his lungs while holding a Coors Light. Coming in at a little under two minutes, it’s great and solid Bat track.
9. Austrian Death Machine – “Trapped Under Ice”
Everyone knows the infamous Metallica track “Trapped Under Ice.” But have you heard it sung by Mr. Freeze himself? This classic, totally repurposed for humor’s sake, gives Mr. Freeze one of the most appropriate theme songs of all time. You’ll be crying out “I’M TRAPPED UNDER ICE!” in your best Austrian accent in no time.
8. We are Wolf – “Gotham Burns”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bnyqFfLCc8
Gotham City is a terrible place. We are Wolf really wanted to hammer that fact home (not that it needed any more hammering), so they wrote a basically telling everyone that they will die in the city’s burning shit storm. “Gotham Burns” is a solid death metal track that delivers everything we crave in a little over three minutes. It uses Shirley Walker’s melodic theme from the beloved ’90s animated series as the basis for the melody and has some great gang shouts. Excellent guitar riffs, double bass, and breakdowns are consistent throughout the song, allowing us let us punch and kick the air to our heart’s content.
7. Feinstein – “Poison Ivy”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxLxKFMg2Dk;
“Poison Ivy” from Feinstein is another perfect theme song. The classic hair metal feel that this track brings — you can practically smell the Aquanet — is wholly appropriate for Poison Ivy. Typically portrayed with long, flowing hair and a slinky outfit, Ivy totally would have been on the top of Whitesnake’s car.
6. Algol – “Ra’s Al Ghul”
The name of one of Batman’s most feared enemies, “Ra’s al Ghul” is Arabic for “The Demon’s Head.” So Algol did us proud when they wrote this anthem in the most fitting subgenre for one of Batman’s most feared enemies — death metal. This track flies at you like a batarang, full of speed, melodic picking, and the fury of planning to take over the world for seven-hundred years.
5. Kobra and the Lotus – “Gotham”
Kobra and the Lotus really hit that sweet spot where you think, “Am I watching a movie trailer, or am I IN THE MOVIE?” This killer, well-written, well-produced, and all around kick-ass track starts with the slow, ominous, my-parents-died-and-I’m-rich-and-angsty Batman feel you know and love, then heads straight into a ball-busting verse.
This song is a conversation between Batman and another of his most infamous adversaries, Bane, in which they talk about how shitty Gotham is. An epic track.
4. BSxBC – “Crimefighter”
You want some straight-up Batman Death Metal? We got you covered! BSxBC gives us a tune sung straight from the point of view of Batman himself as he fights crime on his way to the nearest metal venue. The first verse swoops in like a swift punch to the dome: “My fist is my sword, my mind is my weapon, death on the chord, all these you must reckon.” An incredibly solid jam, this could be played at any party disguised as a normal song and no one would have any idea of its true identity.
3. Gaiden – “Joker Business”
If you were ever wondering what the Joker from Batman: The Animated Series would have sounded like if he were in a band, here’s your answer! This French band has truly encapsulated that early power metal sound of the late ’80s and early ’90s. A slow, steady bass opens the song up, then goes right into one of the catchiest choruses I have ever heard in my life. No wonder that Harley Quinn fell in love with the Joker. I can only imagine if she saw him on stage singing this song, her panties would have hit the floor faster than a bat out of hell.
2. Powerglove – “Batman”
Another solid soundtrack piece by the one, the only, POWERGLOVE. How could a band this gloriously nerdy not cover Danny Elfman’s classic Batman theme music? Epic, dark, brooding… sign me up! This track really takes you through a story in sonic form.
1. Desecrator – “Killing Joke”
As its title suggests, Desecrator’s song is based on one of the most beloved Joker storylines of all time, The Killing Joke, and it excellently mirrors The Clown Prince of Crime’s erratic thought process. His mental disorder is the only thing that gives him hope. As famously stated, anyone can fall into madness because it is a lot like gravity: all it takes is a little push. The song is truly an agents of chaos, guaranteed to put a smile on that face.
