Multi-instrumentalist and YouTube sensation Rob Scallon has made a name for himself covering thrash metal band Slayer with acoustic tools like the ukulele. For his newest video, Scallon busts out his banjo to take on the break-neck speed of 1986's "Angel of Death."
The musician absolutely destroys the cover in the video below, giving Slayer's guitar wizards Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, who died in 2013, a run for their money. The best part about the video, though, might be Scallon's buddy's feeble attempts to keep his straw hat on while headbanging to the song.
Scallon, who also covered Slayer's "War Ensemble" on the ukulele, spoke to Billboard recently about how advertisements coupled with his video tributes have allowed him to turn the hobby into a career. "I'm partnered with Google so that revenue is split between YouTube and I," he explained. "And in the case of the covers, — this is actually pretty new, you weren't able to do this prior — there's a three way rev-split that makes monetizing covers possible. So with these Slayer covers, for example, the revenue from those ads is split between Google, Slayer's management, and myself. So everyone's happy. The last 'Raining Blood' cover had Slayer trending on Facebook, which I was really happy about. They make money, I make money, YouTube makes money. And there's also the song sales, which are kind of a new thing. I don't really know how that's gonna turn out yet because it's really delayed, but for that I go through a company ... they handle all the legal stuff so Slayer gets their proper royalties and then I can also sell the cover on iTunes."
Watch his awesome cover below:
