The New Jersey rockers give a classic rock gem the metal treatment
Heavy rock outfit Who on Earth have unleashed an ultra-heavy cover of Toto’s classic hit, “Hold the Line.” The track is the latest single from the New Jersey band, who released their acclaimed debut album Blame last year. Originally released in the late 70s, you could feel the heaviness of “Hold the Line,” and it was never hard to imagine a more metal version of the song. Now, Who on Earth have made that a reality. Stream the official music video for the track below, directed by Rob Shotwell.
The cover was produced by Adrenaline Mob and Noturnall guitarist Mike Orlando at his Sonic Stomp Studios in New York City.
“A killer cover version of the Toto classic,” Orlando said. “I think everyone will really dig it!”
“This is our first time recording with Bruce [Gatewood, guitar] and Johnny [James Barone, guitar], and they did an amazing job,” bassist Pete Rizzi said in a statement. “We really wanted to get this right given how classic this song is, and we are thrilled with the result. It was a true collaboration.”
Frontman Coosh adds, “We couldn’t find a single person that didn’t LOVE this song, so we felt a bit of pressure to do it justice. I mean, this was written 45 years ago by some of the best studio musicians of the time!”
Toto’s “Hold the Line” introduced the band to the world back in 1978. It was the lead single from their self-titled debut LP (Columbia), propelling the record to double-platinum status. The album peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard 200, while “Hold the line” hit No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 14 on the UK Singles chart.
Toto’s last LP was 2018’s Old Is New. Recently, their multi-platinum single “Africa” garnered 1 billion streams on Spotify. It was famously covered by alt-rock juggernauts Weezer back in 2018. In turn, Toto took a shot at Weezer’s “Hash Pipe.”
Throughout their career, Toto have sold over 40 million records worldwide. The multiple GRAMMY® Award winners have released several rock anthems, including “Hold the Line,” “Rosanna,” and the Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping single, “Africa.” Their masterful fourth album, Toto IV, featured the latter two tracks. It peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and won the GRAMMY® for Album of the Year, while the single “Rosanna” won Record of the Year. In 2009, Toto were inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum.
Toto’s last LP was 2018’s Old Is New. Recently, their multi-platinum single “Africa” garnered 1 billion streams on Spotify. It was famously covered by alt-rock juggernauts Weezer back in 2018. In turn, Toto took a shot at Weezer’s “Hash Pipe.”
Next year, Toto have some extensive tour plans on the books. They are hitting the road with Journey again, and they have a string of their own headlining shows planned around the world as well. Revisit our review and live photos from Journey and Toto’s Freedom Tour in 2022 now HERE.