Fear Factory – Cars
Description
Fear Factory version
| “Cars” | ||||
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| Single by Fear Factory featuring Gary Numan | ||||
| from the album Obsolete (Expanded) | ||||
| Released | 31 August 1999 | |||
| Recorded | Early 1998 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada | |||
| Genre | Nu metal | |||
| Length | 3:37 | |||
| Label | Roadrunner | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Gary Numan | |||
| Producer(s) | Fear Factory, Rhys Fulber | |||
| Fear Factory singles chronology | ||||
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| Gary Numan singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| “Cars” on YouTube | ||||
Fear Factory, an American heavy metal band, recorded a version of “Cars” and released it as the second single from their album Obsolete. The song was only included as a bonus track on the limited edition digipak re-release of Obsolete and would be instrumental in breaking Fear Factory into the mainstream. In their rendition, Gary Numan performs a duet with frontman Burton C. Bell.
Background and recording
According to Bell, around 1996, the band started performing “Cars” as an encore at European concerts. Word spread that Fear Factory was performing the song, and as a result, Gary Numan’s manager contacted them. Upon request, Numan’s management flew him out to the Vancouver studio for a three-day span to record vocals on “Cars.” The band also asked Numan to record a spoken word piece for the introduction of the song Obsolete.
Numan had a long-standing dislike for being associated with what he perceived as dated music, and this initially made him apprehensive of working with Fear Factory until realizing “there was a chance that it could introduce me to a new generation of people who didn’t know my history. And that can be useful, because my music’s got a lot heavier and darker anyway.” The result would be satisfactory for both parties, and Numan praised the band as “brilliant, really easy to work with. They didn’t have a bad word to say about anyone.”
The uncharacteristically bouncy and bright rendition somewhat contrasts with Fear Factory’s reputation for intense, grinding metal, while the heavy use of synthesizer and other electronic elements corresponds with the band’s industrial style. Drummer Raymond Herrera described the cover as “basically like a blueprint of a futuristic car.” He added that, while other songs were considered, the band chose “Cars” because all the band members knew and appreciated it and because the keyboards suited Fear Factory’s sound. Herrera later noted that the group initially wanted to record U2’s “New Year’s Day” but chose “Cars” because they were fortunate enough to have Numan participate. Fear Factory later covered the U2 song “I Will Follow,” in 2005.
