Nickelback Just Figured Out a Way to Unite All the 'Haters'

If you worried that Charlie Daniels would disappear from our thoughts soon after his death last month at the age of 83, Nickelback has swooped in to keep his memory alive. The Canadian rockers have done so by putting out a cover of Daniels' most famous song, "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," taking out the fiddle, changing up some lyrics, and giving the song an overall heavier feel—but it's not going over well. "Unfortunately, [the] devil doesn't win," laments Joseph Hudak for Rolling Stone, calling the song "as engaging as listening to—nay, watching—two dudes play Guitar Hero."

Hudak also describes Chad Kroeger and gang's efforts as "excessive noodling" and "bro-y chest-thumping," in addition to eye-rolling at the extra profanity Kroeger throws into the lyrics. Alicia Eler feels similarly about the song, though she goes to bat for the band in general, noting for NBC News that "Nickelback is everything we love and hate about ourselves." Still, that's not enough for her to give a thumbs-up to this song, though she does try to find a 2020-ish silver lining: At least, she writes, "it brought the haters together during a time when we need some sense of connection more than ever." Other reviews aren't quite so harsh. (More Nickelback stories.)