POP ETC Honor ELO’s Melodic Majesty on Stripped-Down “Strange Magic” Cover

 Posted by at 10:41 am  No Responses »
Aug 052019
 
pop etc strange magic,

If you are a longtime listener of Cover Me with a photographic memory, you may recall our feature on acclaimed band The Morning Benders and their outrageously sweet Bedroom Covers Collection from back in 2011. The band have since changed their name to POP ETC, but their rapturous love for classic pop remains intact.

Their latest release, the career-spanning Covers Collection 2007-2019 features a staggering 21 songs (including a few of the old Bedroom Covers) and covers tracks from a wide range of artists including The Ronettes, The Strokes and Fleetwood Mac. The band’s main man Chris Chu says: “Ever since I started making music, I’ve loved covering songs. Aside from the sheer joy of it, it was a way for for me to study songwriting and practice my home recording skills. Listening back to them now, I’m reminded of just how enjoyable it is to cover a great song, how much these songs mean to me, and how much I’ve learned from these amazing songwriters and bands.” Continue reading »

In The Spotlight: Matthew Sweet

 Posted by at 5:00 pm  2 Responses »
Jul 182014
 

In the Spotlight showcases a cross-section of an artist’s cover work. View past installments, then post suggestions for future picks in the comments!

Matthew Sweet’s career is a textbook example of what happens if you are exceedingly good at something that is not considered to be cool. In this case, that thing is the musical genre of “power pop.” Sweet is almost universally considered to be a master of the genre (usually defined as being a cross between hard rock and pop, with serious Beatles influences), and his best album, 1991’s Girlfriend, is generally considered to be a masterpiece, even by people who generally look down their noses at “power pop.”

As a result, Sweet is a cult hero to some critics and fans who appreciate the tight, hook-filled yet intelligent songwriting that typifies the genre, while remaining unknown to the masses who may – may – have heard one of the two or three Sweet songs that occasionally sneak into a radio or streaming playlist. Of course, the music geeks who write for Cover Me are Sweet fans; we’ve featured his cover work repeatedly, even giving him a birthday tribute featuring covers of his songs by other artists. But never before has he received the sort of career-affirming fawning adulation that can only be found in an “In the Spotlight” feature.
Continue reading »

Cover Me Q&A: What’s a song you didn’t know was a cover song?

 Posted by at 12:00 pm  10 Responses »
Jul 092014
 

Welcome to Cover Me Q&A, where we take your questions about cover songs and answer them to the best of our ability.

Here at Cover Me Q&A, we’ll be taking questions about cover songs and giving as many different answers as we can. This will give us a chance to hold forth on covers we might not otherwise get to talk about, to give Cover Me readers a chance to learn more about individual staffers’ tastes and writing styles, and to provide an opportunity for some back-and-forth, as we’ll be taking requests (learn how to do so at feature’s end).

Today’s question: What’s a song you didn’t know was a cover song?
Continue reading »

Live Collection: The Decemberists

 Posted by at 5:00 pm  4 Responses »
Apr 192011
 

Live Collection brings together every live cover we can find from an artist. And we find a lot.

Over the past decade, Portland quintet the Decemberists have gone from indie darlings to indie darlings with a number-one album. This year’s The King is Dead took the band to new levels of commercial success, shining some national attention on a band whose name was once known only to the chamber pop-obsessed and English majors. It may not be too unfounded to compare this band’s story to that of R.E.M.’s in the ‘80s; in fact, given the unabashed fandom they display on The King is Dead, that’s a comparison they’d probably happily invite.

The collection of covers crooned by the Decemberists mostly betrays their too-cool-for-school nature. They seem to have hit all the requisites that prove you listened to hip music in the ’80s – the Velvet Underground, the Smiths, Echo & the Bunnymen, etc. However, there’s a few genuine surprises here. Embarrassing reading of the Outfield‘s “Your Love” notwithstanding, there’s some real pleasure to be had in the band’s delight at ripping into Heart‘s “Crazy on You,” or in their surprisingly earnest rendition of Bad Company‘s “Feel Like Making Love.” Band leader Colin Meloy also turns in an intimate, slowed-down version of Cheap Trick‘s “Summer Girls” to great effect. Even the band’s usual bombast makes itself known in the 16-minute epic of Pink Floyd‘s “Echoes.” Continue reading »

Song of the Day: Brave Saint Saturn, “Here Is the News” (ELO cover)

 Posted by at 9:00 am  1 Response »
Oct 272010
 

Song of the Day posts one cool cover every morning. Catch up on past installments here.

They shall have stars at elbow and foot;
Though they go mad they shall be sane;
Though they sink through the sea they shall rise again;
Though lovers be lost love shall not;
And death shall have no dominion.

That snippet of Dylan Thomas’ “And Death Shall Have No Dominion” opens today’s tune. Spoken in a low James Earl Jones-meets-HAL 9000 baritone, it sounds like the opening credits to a film called, let’s say, Brave Saint Saturn. It isn’t. It is, however, the opening to an album by a band called Brave Saint Saturn. Close enough. Continue reading »

Consequence of Sound Presents…Best Fest Covers

 Posted by at 3:15 pm  1 Response »
Aug 202010
 

If you’ve ever attended a music festival, you need to know Consequence of Sound. If you ever plan on attending a music festival, you need to know Consequence of Sound. If you have no interest in music festivals whatsoever, you need to wise up…and then you need to know Consequence of Sound. In addition to the site’s regular music news and features, their Festival Outlook has established itself as the premiere source for festival info. From lineup info (which they always seem to know before anyone else) to reviews, their coverage spans ‘em all, from the big boys (Bonnaroo, Coachella) to the underdogs (Ghoulsfest?).

Suffice to say: These guys know their festivals. So as fest season winds down, we checked in with some CoS writers (of whom – full disclosure – I am one) to hear the best festival covers they’ve ever witnessed. Here’s what they offered. Each has a review and a video so you can vicariously experience the insanity.

After you finish here, hop over to CoS’ Friday Mixtape! The covers were chosen by yours truly. Continue reading »

 Older Entries