Covers Done Right

Covering a song, especially a popular one, is all about making it your own. Covers allow different artists to put their special spin on a song and bring out emotions in it that you didn't even know were there. Here's a comprehensive list of creative covers that pay homage to the original song while giving it a whole new feel.


I Want You Back (Jackson 5) - Discovery
From soul-pop to electro-pop.

Sexual Healing (Marvin Gaye) - Ben Harper
Motown to acoustic.

Hey Ya (OutKast) - Matt Weddle
Hip hop -> acoustic

Rock the Casbah (The Clash) - Solar Twins
English punk -> electronica

What You Waiting For (Gwen Stefani) - Franz Ferdinand
Pop -> rock

LoveStoned (Justin Timberlake) - Kaki King
Pop -> solo-artist rock

Mister Grieves (Pixies) - TV on the Radio
Punk -> a'capella

I'm Real (Jennifer Lopez and Ja Rule) - The Starting Line
Hip hop -> punk

Hurt (Nine Inch Nails) - Johnny Cash
Rock -> acoustic

Across The Universe (Beatles) - Fiona Apple
Classic rock -> solo-artist alternative

Frontin' (Pharell Williams) - Jamie Cullum
Hip hop -> jazz piano

Sweet Child O' Mine (Guns & Roses) - Vitamin String Quartet
Classic rock -> classical strings

Chop Suey! (System of a Down) - Richard Cheese
Metal -> comedic lounge

Toxic (Britney Spears) - A Static Lullaby
Pop -> hard rock

Higher Ground (Stevie Wonder) - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Motown -> funk-metal

Karma Police (Radiohead) - Easy Star All-Stars and Citizen Cope
Alt-rock -> reggae

Such Great Heights (Postal Service) - Iron & Wine
Electronic -> acoustic
.... Too soft for you? Try the screamo version


YouNique YouTubers!:



Paparrazi (Lady Gaga) - Greyson Chance
Pop -> piano

Pop (*NSYNC) - Cobus
Pop -> crazy drums

Baby Got Back (Sir Mix-a-Lot) - Jaw Knee
Hip hop -> acoustic hilarity

Anonymous (Bobby Valentino and Timbaland) - David Sides
Hip hop -> classical piano

Forever (Chris Brown) - Boyce Avenue
Pop -> acoustic

Hate That I Love You (Ne-Yo and Rihanna) - JussJef
Pop -> acoustic

Sweet Dreams (Beyonce) - Tiffyiffyiffy
Pop -> piano



Did I miss any??! Lemme know what your favorite covers are.

DAWES

I got to see an intimate performance by the very talented Dawes in a recording studio last Friday. I ended up taking them to lunch afterwards and they are really nice guys. Although they deny it, these LA hipsters' tunes have a bit of a country vibe. Their music is marked by vocal harmonies and chill beats.

One song that resonates with me is "Love is All I Am", with it's catchy bassline and poetic lyrics. Check out the video, which shows many faces of Love, against a sunny Cali backdrop:



Click here for their "Peak Performance" photos
and here for Myspace

Music Is My Drug

I got 2 wisdom teeth taken out today, and it went smoothly as a dream, thanks in part to this chilled-out playlist! Who needs laughing gas and valium when you can listen to your iPod?

Open Road - Slightly Stoopid
Rivers of Bablyon (Acoustic)- Brad Nowell of Sublime
Chicago - Sufjan Stevens
Queen Bee - Taj Mahal
Love Language - Talib Kweli & Hi Tek


We got some folky-reggae, classical-pop, blues, and smooth hip hop. What do you listen to to set your mind and body at ease?

OK GO

Wait! OK Go is actually kinda cool! Best known for their nerdy treadmill dance routine in the video for pop-rock single "Here It Goes Again", OK Go recently released a new, more mature-sounding album, Of the Blue Colour of the Sky. I heard this song through NEXT, a new radio show, hosted by The Peak's Chris Bro, that promises to find you your new favorite song. Well, it worked for me! Give "White Knuckles" a listen, below. It's super funky and has a sick guitar solo towards the middle.



Now check out the trippy video for the single WTF?, which also exhibits that heavily distorted bass, funky riff, and crazy solo, but with a steadier, more yearning overall feel. You can see the band has retained their love of creative videos as well as their goofy sense of humor.


OK GO GET THE NEW ALBUM! (pun unintended)

RAPPERS WHO DON'T SUCK: NYLE

This is Nyle. He may look like "a light-skinned Weezy", as he acknowledges in the rap below. And he could easily become as big as Lil' Wayne, considering he's ill and innovative, and has already made a name for himself throughout the NYC underground. Check out his MySpace to hear the NYU student's Frosh album and the new Capstone EP.

This video for "Let The Beat Build" was shot in one take.


For more Nyle, get up on his website.

I actually found Nyle through the best comedy group on the planet, DERRICK Comedy. If you don't know them, stop whatever you're doing and go laugh.

RAPPERS WHO DON'T SUCK: CHARLES HAMILTON

"Hip-hop aint dead; it just turned 20." - CH



Do you like Incubus? Modest Mouse? TV on the Radio? Then you have something in common with Charles Hamilton, an emerging rapper from Brooklyn. The artists mentioned are a few of the many who the rock fan has sampled in his tracks, featured all over the internet and on dozens of mixtapes.
What else defines CH? Video games. He's taken Sonic the Hedgehog as a logo and works sound effects from the game into his beats. He's got a sense of humor, sampling from TV shows like Family Guy in C Food and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood in The N Word. One last thing: this dude adores the color pink. And will kick your a** if you have a problem with that.
Look out for an official album this summer. For now, there's the digitally-released Pink Lavalamp.

"Brooklyn Girls" - The Single

"Starchasers" - My personal favorite, samples Lykke Li

Get to know Charles: CharlesHamilton.blogspot.com

"November 10th":

IT'S SUMMERTIME!

..... but I'm back on my game. More or less. Some quick summer loves of mine:

Summertime Clothes - Animal Collective
THE summer song. Love these guys; just saw them Saturday night.

Whatcha Say - Jason DeRulo
Guilty pleasure. Samples Imogen Heap's "Hide and Seek"! Pleasant surprise from some auto-tune singer.

Sweet Dreams - Beyonce
Beyonce. Owns. Always.

Infinity - Guru Josh Project
This master dance track is finally taking over the U.S.

She Wolf (Loba) - Shakira
New direction for Shakira. Liking it. Video's a little much though...

Throw it in the Bag Remix - Fabolous and Drake
Tight beat. Drake's blowin' up everything.

Pogo - Digitalism
Perfect blend of indie and dance styles. Summer anthem.