🎸 Artist: BAT
🎵 Song: Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)
🔥 Original Artist: Venom
💀 Tribute To: Conrad “Cronos” Lant
⚡ Genre: Speed Metal / Thrash Metal / Heavy Metal
🇺🇸 Country: United States
American speed metal maniacs BAT are paying tribute to one of extreme metal’s most influential figures, VENOM frontman CRONOS, with the release of their previously unreleased cover of the legendary track “Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)”!
And if there’s one band whose music deserves to be played at absolutely ridiculous volume, it’s Venom.
Originally appearing on the British metal pioneers’ groundbreaking 1981 debut album Welcome to Hell, “Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)” remains a blistering example of the raw aggression, punk-inspired speed and rebellious attitude that helped shape the future of extreme metal.
Now BAT are revisiting that explosive piece of heavy-metal history, celebrating the unmistakable influence of Conrad “Cronos” Lant, the legendary vocalist and bassist whose work with Venom helped inspire generations of thrash, speed, black and extreme metal musicians.
Old-school metal. Maximum aggression. Absolutely no apologies.
This one’s for the headbangers! 🤘💀
⚡ BAT Unleash A Previously Unreleased Venom Cover
For fans of raw, uncompromising speed metal, BAT covering Venom is a particularly fitting combination.
The American band have built their reputation around a stripped-down, aggressive approach to heavy music, drawing inspiration from the early days of speed metal, thrash and punk.
Their sound celebrates an era when heavy metal was loud, dangerous and gloriously rough around the edges.
And few bands represent that spirit better than Venom.
By revisiting “Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)”, BAT are paying homage to one of the songs that helped establish the foundations of extreme metal.
The recording had previously remained unreleased, making its appearance a welcome discovery for fans of both bands.
Rather than selecting one of Venom’s most frequently discussed anthems, BAT have chosen a track that perfectly captures the chaotic energy of the band’s earliest recordings.
And it’s difficult to imagine a more appropriate tribute.
💀 CRONOS – One Of Extreme Metal’s Most Influential Figures
When discussing the origins of extreme metal, the name Cronos is impossible to ignore.
Born Conrad Thomas Lant, the British musician became internationally recognised as the vocalist and bassist of Newcastle metal pioneers Venom.
His aggressive vocal delivery, distorted bass sound and confrontational stage presence helped create an entirely new musical identity during the early 1980s.
At a time when the New Wave of British Heavy Metal was producing bands such as Iron Maiden, Saxon and Diamond Head, Venom were taking things in a considerably more chaotic direction.
Their music was faster.
Their production was rawer.
Their imagery was darker.
And their attitude made even some established heavy-metal bands seem positively well-behaved.
Cronos became one of the defining personalities behind that sound.
Alongside guitarist Mantas and drummer Abaddon, he helped establish Venom as one of the most influential groups in the development of extreme metal.
🔥 ‘Welcome To Hell’ – The Album That Changed Heavy Metal
Released in 1981, Venom’s debut album Welcome to Hell arrived like a musical wrecking ball.
The record combined the speed and aggression of punk with the distorted guitars and theatrical darkness of heavy metal.
It was raw, confrontational and deliberately abrasive.
And it helped change the direction of heavy music.
Tracks including “Welcome to Hell,” “Witching Hour,” “In League with Satan” and “Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)” demonstrated a band determined to push beyond the boundaries of conventional heavy metal.
While the production lacked the polish associated with many major-label releases, that roughness became part of its identity.
The album’s influence would extend far beyond the British metal scene.
Musicians involved in the emerging thrash and black metal movements would later cite Venom as an important inspiration.
And the band’s uncompromising approach helped establish a musical blueprint that countless artists would develop further.
⚔️ ‘Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)’ – A Speed Metal Classic
Among the songs featured on Welcome to Hell, “Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)” stands as a particularly ferocious example of early Venom.
Driven by frantic rhythms, aggressive guitar work and Cronos’ unmistakable vocal delivery, the track captures the rebellious spirit that defined the band’s formative years.
It’s fast.
It’s abrasive.
And it sounds like it was designed specifically to annoy anyone who thought heavy metal was already too loud.
In other words, absolutely magnificent.
The song’s combination of punk energy and metallic aggression helped establish the musical territory that would later become associated with speed and thrash metal.
For BAT, whose own sound draws heavily from those traditions, covering the track is a natural way to acknowledge their musical influences.
🎸 Meet BAT – Keeping Speed Metal Dangerous
BAT are an American speed metal band associated with the underground heavy-metal scene in Richmond, Virginia.
The group were formed by musicians with strong connections to thrash and crossover metal, including Ryan Waste, known for his work with Municipal Waste.
BAT’s music embraces the raw energy of early heavy metal while incorporating the aggression of punk and thrash.
Their approach is deliberately direct.
Fast riffs.
Relentless rhythms.
Rough-edged vocals.
And absolutely no interest in slowing things down unnecessarily.
The band have developed a reputation for celebrating the musical traditions established by artists such as Venom, Motörhead and other pioneers of aggressive heavy metal.
Their releases include:
- Primitive Age (2013) – EP
- Wings of Chains (2016) – Studio Album
- Axestasy (2019) – EP
- Under the Crooked Claw (2024) – Studio Album
Throughout their career, BAT have remained committed to the spirit of underground metal.
Their music isn’t about chasing mainstream trends.
It’s about preserving the energy, attitude and aggression that made early speed metal so exciting.
🤘 The Influence Of Venom On Thrash And Black Metal
Venom’s importance extends far beyond their own recordings.
During the early 1980s, the band’s combination of speed, distortion and dark imagery helped influence musicians across the developing extreme-metal underground.
Their second album, Black Metal, released in 1982, would become particularly significant.
The album’s title eventually became the name of an entire musical genre.
Although the black metal movement would later develop its own distinctive sound, Venom’s early recordings provided an important foundation.
Their influence also extended into thrash metal.
Bands including Metallica, Slayer and Exodus emerged during a period when musicians were combining the aggression of punk with increasingly fast and technical heavy-metal arrangements.
Venom were among the groups helping push that musical evolution forward.
And more than four decades later, their influence remains audible across the international metal scene.
🔥 Why BAT Covering Venom Makes Perfect Sense
Some cover versions involve artists taking a song completely outside their usual musical territory.
Others involve bands paying tribute to the musicians who helped establish their sound.
BAT’s interpretation of “Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)” belongs firmly in the second category.
Their own music shares many characteristics with early Venom.
Raw production.
Aggressive riffing.
Punk-inspired speed.
And a commitment to keeping heavy metal loud, dangerous and unapologetically rebellious.
The tribute also provides an opportunity to introduce younger listeners to an important part of heavy-metal history.
For anyone discovering BAT before exploring Venom’s early catalogue, the cover could serve as a gateway into the music that helped shape an entire generation of extreme metal.
And that’s one of the great things about cover versions.
At their best, they don’t simply recreate an existing song.
They help keep its legacy alive.
💀 The Lasting Legacy Of CRONOS
More than four decades after Welcome to Hell, Cronos remains one of the most recognisable figures in extreme-metal history.
His contributions to Venom helped establish a musical identity that influenced generations of musicians.
From the early days of speed metal to the development of thrash, black and death metal, the impact of Venom’s pioneering recordings continues to be felt.
And while heavy metal has evolved enormously since the early 1980s, there’s still something special about the raw aggression of those original records.
They weren’t polished.
They weren’t designed for mainstream radio.
And they certainly weren’t concerned about upsetting the neighbours.
They were loud, fast and completely uncompromising.
For BAT, those qualities remain central to the music they create today.
🎸 The Riff Report Says…
Some bands deserve a tribute.
And then there’s Venom.
A band that helped lay the foundations for entire genres of extreme metal while making enough noise to frighten half the British music establishment.
And right at the centre of that glorious chaos?
Cronos.
One of the most influential frontmen in heavy-metal history.
So when BAT decide to pay tribute with a previously unreleased cover of “Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)”, it feels like a match made in heavy-metal hell.
The original song is a perfect example of everything that made early Venom so important.
It’s raw.
It’s aggressive.
It’s fast.
And it doesn’t waste time trying to sound respectable.
BAT have built their own identity around those same musical principles, making this tribute particularly appropriate.
And there’s something brilliant about seeing musicians from a newer generation celebrating the artists who helped make their music possible.
Because without bands like Venom, the history of thrash, speed and extreme metal might have looked very different.
This isn’t just another cover song.
It’s a salute to one of heavy metal’s most important pioneers.
A celebration of the music that helped change the genre.
And a reminder that the spirit of early extreme metal is still alive and kicking.
BAT salute Cronos. Venom’s legacy lives on. And the underground remains as loud as ever.
Live like an angel. Die like a devil. Play it bloody loud! 🤘🔥💀
💿 Release Details
Artist: BAT
Song: Live Like An Angel (Die Like A Devil)
Release Type: Previously Unreleased Cover
Original Artist: Venom
Original Album: Welcome to Hell
Original Album Release: 1981
Tribute To: Conrad “Cronos” Lant
Genre: Speed Metal / Thrash Metal / Heavy Metal
Country: United States
BAT’s Most Recent Studio Album: Under the Crooked Claw (2024)
🎸 The Riff Report – Supporting rock, metal and the glorious racket in between.
