Jem Cassar-Daley is an indie-pop artist who recently recording an alluring and calming version of Gwen Stefani’s 2006 solo hit “Sweet Escape” for the Triple J radio show Like a Version. Her cover began with a surprise: a whisper-sung phrase “Sweet escape, sweet escape.” Whereas the original was boppy and pointed, this version is rounded, tranquil, and at moments, almost mournful. Continue reading »
Kita Alexander (aka Nikkita Kalea) is an Australian singer-songwriter with a knack for making stirring tunes. She has often been compared to Taylor Swift, lyrically. Her latest release is a cover of Fountains of Wayne’s “Stacy’s Mom,” recorded for Triple J’s Like a Version series. Continue reading »
Nothing But Thieves are a 5-piece rock band that has recently covered “Flowers” live for Like a Version, the series of covers that are featured on the Australian radio station called Triple J. The tune “Flowers” had loads of covers before the chart-topper had even been around for a month. We’re now at three months in, and this song has a lot of versions to sift through. But this one is more unique than some of the other dime-a-dozen covers that have been floating around the internet.
To me, the bass line in “Flowers” always sounded straight out of the ’80s. But Nothing by Thieves added in lush synths and bright drums in their edition, and it really sealed the deal in making it sounds like it was from four decades ago. Conor Mason’s (intentionally) lackadaisical vocal diction in this one is purely charming, and the addition of the vocoder was a pleasant surprise.
Nothing But Thieves kept the basic outline of Cyrus’s hit while adding layers and layers of new textural material. Check it out below.
For more great Miley Cyrus covers, be sure to check out: https://www.covermesongs.com/?s=miley+cyrus&searchsubmit=
“Dance Monkey” hitmaker Tones and I covered fellow Australians Gang of Youths’ song “Achilles Come Down” for her recent appearance on Triple J’s Like a Version. Her version began with the pared-down combination of vocals and a grand piano. Next, orchestral strings come in with a soft pizzicato in the second verse. So many creative liberties were taken in this version, and the classical flutist/arranger in me is absolutely loving it. Continue reading »
A year ago, I did a Covering the Hits feature where the song randomizer sent me to Post Malone and Swae Lee’s “Sunflower.” I found some killer covers of the Spider-Man soundtrack smash, by Vampire Weekend and AJR alongside lesser-known artists, and now there’s another to add to the pile, by Australian rock band Holy Holy. The duo of Timothy Carroll and Oscar Dawson performed it on radio show Like a Version, augmented by their live band and Tasmanian-based singer Medhanit. Continue reading »
Billie Eilish’s “bad guy” has been covered thousands of times, but rarely in a style as madcap as the new one from musical comedian Tim Minchin. Minchin takes an absurdist magnifying glass to “bad guy,” blowing up the skittish humor already embedded in the song to a cartoonish scale. Synth basses become accordion wheezes; whispery pre-choruses are, apparently, now sea chanties. Minchin and his band, grinning and seemingly on the verge of laughter for the whole performance, throw in a klezmer finale for good measure. The cover is a chockablock one minute and forty-five seconds — a quick, bizarre and wholly welcomed shock. Continue reading »