Disney goes Hardcore | Review (2017)

Over the years, we have had all sorts of covers appear that continuously reign in popularity. From things like Pop Goes Punk, to anything by Our Last Night, and of course, the cover of Blank Space by I Prevail which is still considered one of the biggest covers to come out in a while. Now, from Ghost Killer Entertainment, we have covers of our favorite tunes from one of the most iconic cartoon creators that have a place in the hearts of everyone, young and old. This is Disney Goes Hardcore. This is a review of that album. Enjoy!

So, like with all cover albums within this industry/scene of music, there’s a plethora of bands that are each tasked a song to perform and make their own but still have that spark that made them iconic and memorable. Luckily, this album does just that. So, since every song is done by a different band, I wanted to go ahead and list you all the tracks and bands in order, so you can get a track by track review. So, lets get started.

1. When You Wish Upon A Star (From Pinocchio) by Lions Among Wolves – This is the very first track we get to hear on the album and is a very good choice to start out a Disney based cover album. Done by Lions Among Wolves, this is simply an instrumental, but, it is an instrumental chalk full of nostalgia, and very well played out. Nothing is too over the top, it just keeps to the roots of the short intro track that has paved open the pathway for many Disney movies.
2. He’s A Pirate (From Pirates Of The Caribbean) by Lions Among Wolves – I’m not going to lie. When I first read the title track, I thought this was gonna be a instrumental, but, behold my surprise when I start to hear actually vocals. It’s an interesting take on a Hans Zimmer Classic. Nothing bad, but, something that is actually enjoyable. Do I wish the instrumental would have been a thing, absolutely, however, I’m definitely okay with this. Kudos also to Lions Among Wolves for not only starting in track one of this album, but also continuing onto track two.
3. Arabian Nights (From Aladdin) by Lost Childhood – Finally we move to a band that is different from the one that performed the first two tracks, Lost Childhood. For this track, it seems it was added a much more hefty tone and in some instances of the song, super heavy and groovy. This was done really well in a sense that anyone on both sides of music, in regards to heavy to not heavy music, could thoroughly enjoy this song. Basically, the I Prevail effect. Not a bad track whatsoever.
4. Under The Sea (From The Little Mermaid) by The Ocean Cure – The first thing I already liked about this track was that the band name meshed well with the name of the song. Now, actually moving onto the track itself, it’s pretty catchy. There’s nice switch of tone that takes place in the song going from this super nice sounding cover, to making it have this very nice and meaty break down that just gets you going, and then eases its way into its super catchy tone, which, is accompanied by the heart of the original song. This track definitely is one of my favorites.
5. I’ll Make A Man Out Of You (From Mulan) by Broken City Sky – This track is actually pretty fun. It plays o the basic sound of the old sound with some nice guitar mixed with some some drumming patterns to really carry the beat along with the guitars and vocals. Not to mention one of the greatest parts: the gang vocals with the clapping. That part gives the listener the chance to get immersive to the song, as if you weren’t getting into it already, I mean, its Mulan, what’s not to get into.
6. Colors Of The Wind (From Pocahontas) by Live Like Grass Feat. Alexa Lylth – Now, for this track, I actually hate to say this, but, it starts out kind of all over the place with the synth and the vocals and it makes it somewhat difficult to make out what’s going on, at first. The good news, it gets better as the song goes on. I think this wasn’t a bad cover by any means though, as it becomes a lot more clear as the song continues, I am kind sad that the female parts with this track weren’t as strongly placed or sang as the male parts of the song. Seems kind of like this track needed power from both ends. Still, its still a nice track to jam to.
7. Love Is An Open Door (From Frozen) by Brookfield Feat. Steph Tornatore of Fit Couple Cooks – This one is also one that, while staying a lot more true vocally to both sides of the voice spectrum, it’s not as fun to listen to just because the guitar work and drum work sound like they are lacking. This doesn’t seem to make anything unique of the original song.
8. How Far I’ll Go (From Moana) By Boy Hero – This song is already a favorite of mine, and, Boy Hero does a nice job of making bouncy and just all around enjoyable. They make it their own and they don’t really stray to far off on the original sound at the same time. The vocals also play well with the background of the song/what was going on in the movie. Makes the track seem so full of adventure and life!
9. Part Of Your World (From The Little Mermaid) by Dreamhouse – Very pleasing to the ear, both instrumentally and vocally. Dreamhouse does a fine job of making this a cover of their own. The intro leading into the heat of the song and that same heart continuing on throughout the rest of the track was such a pleasure factor for me. I’d definitely would go ham to this live at a show.
10. Circle Of Life (From The Lion King) by The StoryTeller – This track is not so much as all over the place as it is just too strong in the opposite places. I think the guitar work definitely overpowered the vocals, and also that the vocals were just a bit soft at points were their could have been a bit more volume put in. This a good track to listen to, but their are things that could have been done a bit more thorough.
11. You’ve Got A Friend In Me (From Toy Story) by Lonely Avenue – This is such a fun track that systematically runs together so well and just makes you want to grab a buddy and just have a hood time at a show. This one for sure definitely made my favorites, no question. It dives into various moods of sound but stays ultimately true the idea of the song, just making it more modern, to a extent.
12. This is Halloween (From The Nightmare Before Christmas) by Jack The Envious – Now, for this cover, it’s difficult to review just because not only did it have to be matched up and compared to the original, which is beautiful, but, to probably the most iconic cover of this song, Marilyn Manson’s. That all being said the verdict of this track is that it’s actually good. Like, Jack the Envious did a excellent job of making it their own fun little work of art. Now, will I say it’s better than Manson’s no, but, would I crank this up on a Halloween playlist, yes!
13. Hellfire (The Hunchback Of Notre Dame) by Enemy In I – So heavy. Good lord do the tons of this song and the original really mesh together. To further note, this is the heaviest song I have heard so far and it does not disappoint. If you thought this album was just not gonna go this hard, well, surprise! This just kicked it’s way onto my favorites. I’d probably break someone’s face to this in a pit. Who knew Disney could make pits violent? Instrumentals and vocals totally sync so well on this track.
14. Savages (From Pocahontas) by A Burden To Bear – Apparently, the closer to the end of the album we get, the heavier it gets, and I like it. This is straight up crowd kill music. It sounds so malevolent and brutal, just as would depicted if one were to see what would be going on in the movie, at least in this point of the film. The vocals start out with a classic speaking voice leading into some harsh guitar, drum, and vocal work. This track is the same thing as its title. Savage.
15. Be Prepared (From The Lion King) by Puzzle To Pieces – So, of course, if you read the previous statement about Savages, then you guessed right. This track is heavy as well. Honestly, none of the heavy tracks have been bad. They have been two things: Heavy and Brutal. This does the original justice because it sounds so evil and full of malice. The drums and guitar make quick handy work of this song, and the vocals give it just
16. Go The Distance (From Hercules) by The Poet – This track is such a nice way to end an album such as this, as it’s like the farewell a long and wonderful adventure. The rendition for this isn’t the best one on this album, but it’s not a bad one either, it’s just a nice little tune to keep that last bit of energy in Disney Goes Hardcore going.

Disney goes Hardcore was a fun listen for sure. I hope to see more kinds of albums like these in the future as they give bands the chance to explore other sounds they could go for. Not to mention, you get to work with nostalgia, and that’s always an interesting experience. With this, it was a great experience. I feel like some of the bands could have expanded on their covers a bit more, some of them nailed it, some of them went beyond what was expected. With all these tracks analyzed and reviewed, I would definitely recommend this album for anyone who is a fan of hearing covers, Disney songs, or the bands featured in this album.

Album Score: 7/10

Favorite Tracks: Hellfire, I’ll Make a Man Out Of You, Part Of Your World, How Far I’ll Go