Violent Femmes Archives

Review: The Dandy Warhols’ ‘Pin Ups’

Posted by Seuras Og at 12:00 pm No Responses »

Mar 242026

You sort of know where you are with Portland’s Dandy Warhols. Their grungy fug of elemental electronica and gritty guitars rarely disappoints, nor does it stray far from their narrowly defined template. Applying a sheen of intelligent and informed dumb to everything they touch, cover versions have always proven sure ground for the quartet, making Pin Ups, their second set devoted thereto, something to relish. Given, too, the influences in their original songs are never that hard to spot, they nail more personality into the songs of others than you might reasonably expect, making this so much more than swoozy re-runs.

It is easy to imagine the discussions leading to this set of 17 songs were as much fun as the making of it. Some songs and some bands were just screaming out for inclusion–witness the Cramps and the Runaways–but I can’t say Dylan and the Beatles were expected to be featured, let alone the particular songs chosen. Of course, this isn’t the first airing for all of these songs, some collated and curated from previous forays into tribute discs and similar. Overall, there is also a stronger UK goth presence than might have been expected, with a song from the Cure and two by the Cult. Any obtusely perceived debt to UK punk is likewise mined through assaults on the songbooks of both the Clash and the Damned. Intrigued? I am.
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Dandy Warhols Offer Damned Cover from New Covers Album

Posted by Luke Poling at 9:00 am No Responses »

Mar 052026

The Dandy Warhols have released another track from their upcoming all covers album. (You may recall last month the group releasing their cover of the Violent Femmes’ “Kiss Off.”) Now, they’re releasing their take on The Damned‘s “Love Song.”

This take on the 1979 classic is much more of an interpretation than a straight-ahead cover. (I can’t imagine Captain Sensible, et al. wanting to use synths and drum machines in 1979.) However, with the new take on it, the quality of the songwriting stands out, showing how well-constructed a song it really is. Continue reading »

The Best Cover Songs of January 2026

Posted by Ray Padgett at 12:00 pm No Responses »

Jan 302026

The Beaches — I Ran (So Far Away) (A Flock Of Seagulls cover)

The Beaches released one of the best albums of last year with No Hard Feelings. Now they’ve followed up with a Flock of Seagulls cover. Why? Why not! They don’t veer too far away from the original arrangement, but add an extra dose of indie-rock crunch. Halfway through it gets a little more shoegazy and expansive, with a huge build.

The Damned — Making Time (The Creation cover)

This deeper cut is a high point of the Damned’s new covers record, which, per our review, “takes the song into near heavy metal territory, if leavened by the catchy choral chorus, which, especially with the bass and drums, comes over like the Who in their prime.” Continue reading »

Dandy Warhols Announce Covers Album with Violent Femmes’ “Kiss Off”

Posted by Luke Poling at 9:00 am No Responses »

Jan 132026

The Portland-based Dandy Warhols have just announced a compilation record, pulling together some of the covers that in the past have ended up as b-sides, tribute albums and soundtracks. To accompany the announcement, the band released a newly-recorded cover of the Violent Femmes‘ classic “Kiss Off.” Continue reading »

Winona Fighter Releases Violent Femmes-Approved “Blister in the Sun” Cover

Posted by Aleah Fitzwater at 12:00 pm No Responses »

Aug 202025

Winona Fighter is a Nashville-based, woman-fronted group that burst into the music scene in 2022 with their debut album My Apologies to the Chef. Led by multi-instrumentalist Coco Kinnon (Dan Fusion- guitar, Austin Luther-bass&production), the band now offers an acoustic take on the Violent Femmes classic “Blister in the Sun.” It is stripped-down instrumentally, and the performance matches the original tune’s infectious, raw energy.

The general vibe of the song keeps its happy-go-lucky yet gritty folk-pop spirit alive and light on its feet. Kinnon adds a delicious up-the-octave section to the chorus, while her touches of vocal distortion and vocal fry at the ends of phrases give it a personalized edge that truly makes the track feel like a perfect fit for the band.

“The inspiration for doing a cover of ‘Blister in the Sun’ came when we were talking about doing an acoustic variant of our record,” Kinnon continued “We love to honor those who have paved the way in everything we do, so it was only natural for us to pay homage to the folk-punk legends themselves, Violent Femmes. We are really stoked about this cover, and getting a nod of approval from the band themselves made us all the more proud and excited.”

Said approval came directly from Violent Femmes bassist Brian Ritchie, who shared this: “I am thrilled to hear Winona Fighter’s reinterpretation of our eternal standard, ‘Blister in the Sun.’ We are always proud when our music seeps into subsequent generations of musicians and listeners. Winona’s pithy approach keeps much of the original energy, while adding several novel details. Coco’s lead vocal seems true to Gordon’s blueprint until she substitutes attention-getting high harmonies for the melody. The song was always androgynous and non-gendered. This is amplified in Winona Fighter’s take. I also love it when, after a relaxed pace for the bulk of the song, the band sends the song into the stratosphere like a rocket ship at the very end by kicking ass and turning up the volume. Nice touch.”

On September 5, Winona Fighter will release their deluxe edition of My Apologies to the Chef, featuring this cover along with their rendition of “Sabotage.”

The 50 Best Tom Waits Covers Ever

Posted by Staff at 9:06 am 17 Responses »

Mar 312023

‘The Best Covers Ever’ series counts down our favorite covers of great artists.

“Downtown Train.” “Ol ’55.” “Jersey Girl.” These are just three of the Tom Waits songs better known for their covers (respectively: Rod, Eagles, Bruce) than for Waits’ own performances.

It probably doesn’t need saying that Tom’s recordings are, in the best way possible, idiosyncratic. So it makes sense that, like Dylan, like Cohen, his songs often become more popular when more “traditional” voices sing them. Many of the best covers, though, keep some of that strangeness. No, they don’t do “the Tom Waits voice” – most people wouldn’t be able to talk for a week after attempting that. But they don’t sand off the strangeness.

Tom’s debut album Closing Time came out 50 years ago this month; he’s doing a reissue to celebrate. It, and its successor The Heart of Saturday Night, are in some ways his least representative albums, though. The songwriting is already strong on these, but it comes in – if you can believe it – a fairly conventional package. His voice hasn’t revealed its true character (to pick one among many memorable descriptions: “a voice like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car”), and he hadn’t discovered that hitting a dumpster with a two-by-four makes great percussion.

Some of those very early songs get covered in our list below. But his later, weirder, songs abound, too. Tom’s wife Kathleen Brennan, his musical co-conspirator for decades now, said her husband has two types of songs: “Grim Reapers” and “Grand Weepers”. On his Orphans box set, Tom divided them up another way: Brawlers, Ballers, and Bastards. You’ll find some of all flavors below. (And, if you want more new writing on Tom Waits music, subscribe to a newsletter called Every Tom Waits Song that – full disclosure – I also run).

– Ray Padgett

PS. Find Spotify and Apple Music playlists of this list, and all our other monthly Best Covers Ever lists, at Patreon.