Apr 012024
Oct 312023
Deer Tick – Dancing In The Dark (Bruce Springsteen cover)
“For me, ‘Dancing in the Dark’ isn’t a song about romance, but instead a desperate plea to break out of some degraded, stagnant situation. The narrator is filled with angst, self doubt, and the only way out is to the sheer force of unwavering will power,” says Deer Tick guitarist/vocalist Ian O’Neil. “Bruce really shows us who he is on this one and it looks an awful lot like the rest of us.”
Die Sauerkrauts Polka Band — Now That’s What I Call Polka! (Weird Al cover)
There are a lot of Weird Al covers out there (okay, maybe not a lot, but more than you might think). This is new though. This band didn’t cover one of Weird Al’s parodies. They didn’t even cover a Weird Al original, like “Dare to Be Stupid.” They covered one of his polka medleys (a subject I interviewed Al about in Cover Me the book—excerpt at The AV Club). Meaning, they covered polka versions of hits by Miley Cyrus, One Direction, Gotye, and many more, all in a brisk medley. A very silly music video brings it home. Continue reading »
Oct 312022
Avril Lavigne & All Time Low – All the Small Things (Blink 182 cover)
One way you can tell millennials are getting old: There are now nostalgia-bait festivals catering to the music of their (our) youth. Such was the case with When We Were Young, the emo and pop-punk fest in Vegas a couple weeks ago with Paramore, My Chemical Romance, Bright Eyes, and dozens more. A video high point is this extremely fun and infectious cover of “All the Small Things” by All Time Low and Avril Lavigne, performed right after Blink 182 announced they were getting back together. Best part: When the entire crowd hollers alone to “Work sucks / I know”! Continue reading »
May 272020
Under the Radar shines a light on lesser-known cover artists. If you’re not listening to these folks, you should. Catch up on past installments here.
Reneé Dominique grew up in Manila, the capital of the Philippines. She has become quite the YouTube sensation over the years. Since she started her channel in 2013 she has amassed over a million subscribers. Known for her guitar and ukulele covers, she also performs original work (including a single with Jason Mraz).
Domique brings an easy listening style to a variety of both classic and modern tunes. Like most YouTubers do, she records many of her songs indoors. However, in some of her videos she brings us a taste of the outdoors by accompanying her uplifting sound with some fun scenery. We’ll take a listen to a subset of her collection, a mix of oldies and more contemporary songs, and live vicariously through her past travels.