"It sounds like a Nickelback song": This AI James Hetfield cover of Seal's Kiss From A Rose is both ridiculous and impressive

James Hetfield and Seal
(Image credit: YouTube, Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images for P+ and MTV)

Someone has created an AI James Hetfield cover of Seal's Kiss From A Rose. No, really.

Posted by YouTube channel AI Playgrounds, the 1994 R&B classic sounds like a whole new song, and it has us both enthralled and horrified over the strange powers of AI.

Within the cover, instead of the honey-soft smoothness of Seal's croon, we're left with something which sounds as scratchy as someone having swallowed down chunks of sandpaper. When you get past the forcefulness of "Hetfield's" voice, however, it turns into something actually quite beautiful. It's also really rather amusing, especially when he unexpectedly dips into falsetto. 

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It makes us wonder how accurate it would be to a real Seal cover by the Metallica frontman, although we imagine the chances of that happening are somewhat slim.

One viewer underneath the video writes: "The answer to the question no one's ever asked: what does Papa Het sing in the shower?". While another jokes: "You’ve turned this into a Nickelback song".

Featured on Seal's self-titled second album, Kiss From A Rose found its place in our hearts after its appearance on the Batman Forever film soundtrack in 1995, and we've not looked back since - especially when we find ourselves doing karaoke after one too many pints.

Previously, we've seen an AI cover of The Beatles' Yesterday, sung from beyond the grave by "Freddie Mercury", and a rendition of Nine Inch Nails' Hurt in the style of Johnny Cash sung by an AI Lana Del Rey. 

Check out the AI cover below:

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.

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