May 102011
 

Quickies rounds up new can’t-miss covers. Download ‘em below.

• Later this week, Detroit soul revivalist Mayer Hawthorne will be dropping a free covers EP on Twitter. The first glimpse is an official recording – finally – of a song he’s been covering live for months. Recorded with his band The County, it’s ELO’s “Mr. Blue Sky.”
MP3: Mayer Hawthorne – Mr. Blue Sky (ELO cover)

• Raleigh quintet The Young Sinclairs just dropped their new collection Don’t Believe In Demos Vol. 1 today, and the first track off side two is a particular treat. It’s a jingle-jangly Byrds-esque cover of Merle Haggard’s outlaw country classic “Running Kind.” You can practically hear Roger McGuinn on 12-string.
MP3: The Young Sinclairs – Running Kind (Merle Haggard cover)

• Atlanta prog-metal band From Exile just dropped a free Nine Inch Nails covers EP on their website. It trades out the glitchy synths for guitars on songs like “Ruiner,” but the most dramatic reinvention is instrumental “A Warm Place,” which positively aches with a slow-melting guitar line.
MP3: From Exile – A Warm Place (Nine Inch Nails cover)

• Electro-rock duo The City Music Project recently dropped this free dance jam on Pink Floyd’s The Wall classic. Would have fit right in with our Full Album Wall doublefeature.
MP3: The City Music Project – The Thin Ice (Pink Floyd cover)

• Chicago shoegazer Vehicle Blues create a swirling soundscape on “Sleeping with Tallboy.” Originally East River Pipe, one of the more obscure artists on the Merge Records roster, “Sleeping with Tallboy” now sounds more like “Sleeping with Shrooms.”
MP3: Vehicle Blues – Sleeping with Tallboy (East River Pipe cover)

Check out more Quickies here.

Dec 232010
 

Over the past few weeks, artists have been unleashing a blizzard of Christmas covers. From live tapings to unexpected albums, these holiday presents came in all shapes and sizes. We kept up as best we could (see ‘em all here), but so many came in we couldn’t possibly post them all. So instead, we collected our favorite Christmas covers from this year in a special mixtape.

This 60-minute tape, which you can download or stream below, mixes the classics with the obscure. It includes refreshingly original covers of famous hymns and unexpected runs through buried nuggets. It finds indie up-and-comers mingling with longtime favorites. Continue reading »

Nov 082010
 

Last week we welcomed Lil Wayne back from jail. As soul revivalist Mayer Hawthorne tweeted, “Conan coming back > Weezy coming back.” Agree or not, as of 11pm tonight, we’ll have ‘em both. Conan O’Brien’s new show Conan hits TBS and, after the crazy promotion the station has been doing (you gotta watch this video), it better be good.

As the youngest, hippest late night show, Late Night with Conan O’Brien always featured better music than Leno/Letterman. With Jimmy Fallon recruiting the Roots, though, O’Brien finds himself with more music-cred competition. He starts his comeback strong by bringing back Jack White for the 876th time tonight. The two first met at a Detroit bowling alley when Jack White was still John Gillis and have been buddies ever since. Jack has appeared on various Conan-helmed shows ever since, even briefly reuniting the White Stripes for the Late Night sendoff in 2009. Continue reading »