Kelly Clarkson Thunders Through Metallica's 'Sad But True' on Kellyoke: Watch

Kelly Clarkson has the uncanny ability to find pockets of soul in almost any song. Take, for example, her belting out Metallica's “Sad But True” during the Kellyoke segment on Monday's (May 6) episode of her daytime talk show of the same name.

Certainly, the 1991 original from the band's crushing self-titled album is a dark meditation on the “shadow self” and the battle against a dark force trying to take control of your soul. But, somehow, Clarkson found the faint sliver of light in that otherwise dim forest of turbulent inner turmoil.

“Hey, I'm you life/ I'm the one who takes you there/ Hey, I'm your life, I'm one who cares,” Clarkson sang over sparse, ominous piano to open the show . When things got serious with the lines about “the only true friend” who actually cares about warning you of betrayal, Clarkson's voice reached a higher pitch as she sang, “I'm your dream, make it real/ I'm the eyes your when you have to steal/ I'm your pain when you can't feel.”

And then, when she hit the title line, Clarkson launched into her signature stratospheric line, mouthing the word “true” like her life depended on it, while her house band went into metal beast mode and the cover took a more sinister rock. way. “You, you're my mask/ You're my cover, my refuge,” Clarkson growled over the tea arrangement as the stage lit up in red and white.

“Sad But True” was the fifth and final single from 1991 Metallicapeaking at No. 98 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Watch Clarkson's cover of “Sad But True” below.