For rock and metal listeners, the most recognizable cover of “Rollin'” that’s widely available has to be the version from Japanese metalcore mainstays Crystal Lake. The amped-up reading arrived in August 2014 with a simple but effective music video, and it appeared on the band’s Cubes EP that same month. What’s great about this cover is just how purely energetic it comes across. And making it so powerful couldn’t have been an easy feat — Limp Bizkit’s original “Rollin'” isn’t exactly what one would consider a subdued number.
Covers of Limp Bizkit’s ‘Rollin’,’ Ranked From Phat to Hot Dog Flavored
Limp Bizkit’s “Rollin’ (Air Raid Vehicle)” made quite a splash when it first emerged in the fall of 2000. So it makes sense that, 20-odd years on, there’d be several “Rollin'” cover versions rolling around the internet. But who knew there were renditions of the song performed in so many different styles?
Classical, lounge, country, parody, metalcore — these are just a few of the disparate genres through which a range of performers have put their stamp on the single from the Fred Durst-led rap-rockers’ third studio album, Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water.
The best ones many Limp Bizkit fans have likely heard before: There’s the country-western version from Robyn Adele Anderson that went viral last year, a piano and vocal take by The Lounge Kittens. Then, of course, there are covers in the rock vein that still manage to add some oomph to the original, such as a blistering version by the Japanese metal act Crystal Lake.
But what about the not-so-good ones? Why did rapper The Raskal release a “Rollin'” cover that sounds like him simply performing to a substandard karaoke track of the song? Why is there a grindcore version of the tune that rewrites the lyrics to turn “Rollin'” into “Grindin'”?
Listeners may never truly know, but here at Loudwire, we decided to rank the various Limp Bizkit “Rollin” covers available online. While many we’ve included are decidedly the most polished, professionally released covers, a couple were produced by individuals as mere YouTube larks or attempts at a viral moment. And we’re sure there plenty more out there like that.
Either way, you know what time it is. Below, check out the diverse selection of Limp Bizkit “Rollin'” covers, graded from best (“phat”) to worst (“hot dog flavored”).
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Crystal Lake
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Robyn Adele Anderson feat. Sarah Krauss + Julianne Daly
Ah, yes — the country cover of “Rollin’.” It first popped up on many listeners’ radar in 2020 thanks to a vibrant performance from singer Robyn Adele Anderson, supporting vocalists Sarah Krauss and Julianne Daly, and a white-hot bluegrass band. At the time, Loudwire remarked that the version gives listeners the chance to “hear Limp Bizkit as if they were down on the farm in a John Deere tractor instead of cruising the highway in an ‘Air Raid Vehicle.'” That estimation holds up.
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Sunset Bus
Here’s where we start getting into some lesser-known covers of Limp Bizkit’s “Rollin’,” including a few that took some digging to uncover. One that undoubtedly hasn’t gotten the attention it merits is a ska version by a Japanese outfit called Sunset Bus. On the band’s (seemingly abandoned) Facebook page, they describe their sound as one that “mixes rock, ska and reggae.” Whatever the case, this has to be one of the most fun Limp Bizkit covers out there. It emerged in 2007 on a compilation in Japan called Punk Rock Show 3 – Best Hits of the ’90s (Punk Rock Show 3 ベストヒット’90s).
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Fa Caudwell (“Corona”)
YouTuber Fa Caudwell gets points for creativity. Shortly after the coronavirus pandemic hit American shores in earnest in March 2020, the musician released his version of “Rollin'” redone as “Corona” — its spoof lyrics cover fundamental COVID advice about washing hands and avoiding crowds. “Hey friends, I thought it would be a giggle to make a corona-themed parody of Limp Bizkit’s ‘Rollin’,” Caudwell told his Facebook followers last year. “Enjoy, and please remember to stay indoors.”
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Vitamin String Quartet
Anytime there’s a list of the best outside-the-box rock covers, the Vitamin String Quartet has got to be included. (Heck, Loudwire just recently talked up VSQ’s rendition of Disturbed’s “Down With the Sickness.”) As is their wont, the loose Los Angeles orchestral collective released an entire album of string-based takes on Limp Bizkit songs with 2006’s Break Stuff: The String Quartet Tribute to Limp Bizkit, which contains their version of “Rollin’.” They’ve given the same album-length tribute treatment to Radiohead, R.E.M., Pearl Jam, The Strokes, et al. — the list goes on and on.
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The Lounge Kittens
The Lounge Kittens have since split up, but the English comedy lounge trio’s cover of “Rollin'” lives on. The Kittens — vocalists Jenny Deacon (who was also the act’s pianist), Timia Gwendoline and Zan Lawther — first released their “Rollin'” cover on YouTube in 2014. And the subsequent response to the piano-and-vocal version clearly made an impact on the outfit. Once it started amassing views, they covered other rock tracks such as Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” and Slipknot’s “Duality” before calling it quits last year.
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John Asis + Friend
Hear us out — this cover practically has as much punch and originality as any of the others listed here. Yet, it comes off as just two friends having a good time with the tune without any other expectations. And, really, that’s all it is. But other amateur YouTube versions of the song just don’t have the same gusto as this “acoustic rap metal” take from guitarist John Asis and a vocalist friend. Asis applies his percussive acoustic style to other rock and metal tunes on his YouTube channel, including Paramore’s “Misery Business” and Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name.”
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Shaggy-licious
It’s true, there’s an indie artist who calls himself Shaggy-licious that performs cover songs solely in the style of reggae-pop singer Shaggy, the performer best known to listeners for hits such as “It Wasn’t Me” and “Boombastic.” In 2012, Shaggy-licious dropped a Shaggy-style take on “Rollin.'” This all might seem like it’s a joke, but it’s not — Shaggy-licious seems to take his craft pretty seriously. He’s made his cover of “Rollin'” (plus many others) available on major music streaming services such as Amazon Music and Apple Music.
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Excrementory Grindfuckers (“Grindin'”)
Now we start hitting the bottom of the barrel — although, to be clear, there’s nothing inferior about the genre of grindcore itself. But the cover of “Rollin'” from the German “fun metal” band Excrementory Grindfuckers is probably only entertaining as a pure novelty. The group’s trademark is taking popular songs and redoing them, grindcore-style; here, “Rollin'” becomes “Grindin’,” complete with a change of lyrics. Meanwhile, the guitars change some of the riffs’ rhythms to perplexing effect, and the telltale grindcore blast beat doesn’t even hit until the song’s almost over.
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The Raskal
Coming in last is a cover of “Rollin'” by Arizona-based hip-hop artist The Raskal. This one emerged in 2018, both on the rapper’s studio album Beautiful Disaster and a mixtape called The Unforgiven, Vol. 1, each released by The Raskal’s longtime label, RuffLife Recordz. While the almost straight take on the Bizkit jam is perfectly serviceable, it also adds nothing to the original. Perhaps it pushes the song in a more gangsta rap direction, but even highlighting that faint aspect is probably giving this cover more credit than it deserves.
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BONUS: A Baby Durst Rocks Out to Limp Bizkit’s “Rollin'”
This isn’t our least favorite cover, or even a cover of “Rollin'” at all — but we had to include it because it’s just too cute. Rock fan and drummer Marcel Desobeau runs the social media account @officialheavymetalbaby, where he shares videos of him and his drum stick-wielding baby daughter rocking out to music. Last month, the pair donned red caps and tats (fake sleeves for the kid) in a video for “Rollin’.” Aww.