Music geek: hate on the music, not the song
Taken from MTV.com:
Britney Spears is one of the least "critically acclaimed" artists in pop culture — so what on earth is "Toxic" doing in so many critics' top-10 lists? The answer lies in two words: guilty pleasure. In other words, "I know it's not cool to like Britney, but it's such a cool song."
Well, I'm here to tell all you closet "Toxic" fans that you can have the pleasure without the guilt — in this case, thanks to the Chicago rock duo Local H.As a holiday gift to fans, the band posted (for free) on its Web site a cover of Brit's tune that simply smokes. Like any good remake, it's faithful to the original but still offers something new. Specifically, singer Scott Lucas perfectly imitates Spears down to the innuendos in lines like "Too high/ Can't come down," but it's the electronic-guitar makeover of the contagious synthesizer part that gives the cover its character.And best of all, it's not Britney, so it's acceptable for the guy in the Franz Ferdinand T-shirt to rock it in his iPod.What Local H have done, essentially, is show that "Toxic" really is a fantastic tune, whether it's got rock-star attitude or the sonic pop bling of the original. And while it was a clever career move on their part (it's proving to be somewhat of a radio hit for a band largely ignored in recent years), Local H are hardly the first rock band to remake Britney.A groups of Brits (as in dudes from the British Isles) known as Travis, and Fountains of Wayne both covered "... Baby One More Time" after that record introduced the world to Spears in 1999.In fact, during the latter part of the irony-loving '90s, the advent of Napster and its easy-posting ability made covers of cheesy pop songs something of an underground trend: You could type in "cover" and the title of any then-current Top-40 song, and at least one rendition would come up.They ranged from hatchet jobs to tongue-in-cheek "tributes" to truly reverent renditions. Limbeck and Dynamite Boy both successfully put punk spins on the Backstreet Boys' "I Want It That Way," while New Found Glory and Chronic Overboogie actually made fun, upbeat barnburners out of Celine Dion's sappy "My Heart Will Go On."
There was Stretch Arm Strong's bratty take on Pink's "Get This Party Started," Further Seems Forever making emo mush of 'NSYNC's "Bye Bye Bye" and the Starting Line reinventing Jennifer Lopez's "I'm Real" as a thrash anthem.Now, one could argue that when a punk or indie band covers a "TRL" favorite, it's meant to be ironic. While that might occasionally be the case, I think there's more to it. How else can you explain that so many of the covers are actually good?As students of songwriting, many musicians hear a pop hit and appreciate the elements that make it so infectious — a riff, a hook, a lyric. You have to remember, pop stars aren't writing most of the songs in the Top 40: seasoned, professional songwriters are. And even if an artist doesn't necessarily like a track, they're skilled enough to appreciate the genius of a well-turned pop song.The question then becomes: Are fans of these bands expected to like the songs too? A few years ago, I watched fans of New York hipsters Clem Snide as the band slipped a cover of Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" into their set. During the first verse, everyone just stood there, realizing what the song was and wondering how to react. By the chorus, however, there were so many fans singing along it nearly drowned out the band. (Ben Lee must've caught word, as he too recorded "Beautiful.")So what does that tell you? That Clem Snide's audience is filled with closet Aguilera fans? Possibly, but it's more likely that the song is simply good enough to transcend the package it originally came wrapped in. And a talented — or simply hotter — artist's endorsement is enough to give a song a second life. It's like when Mariah Carey fixed her corny image in the late '90s by hanging out with rappers, only it's a deserving song that gets the makeover, not an artist.
And when you do give the cover a chance, you'll notice it's not just a different singer that makes it cooler. The artist focuses on those infectious elements and tweaks them in imaginative ways. For instance, the way the Postal Service basically split Phil Collins' "Against All Odds" into two different tracks — a haunting ballad and a electro-pop singalong — brought new life to an otherwise bland tune. And while Kylie Minogue's version of "Can't Get You Out of My Head" might be supremely dancefloor-friendly, the Flaming Lips' melancholy take on the tune is downright beautiful. And speaking of "Beautiful," by golly if both of those covers of the Linda Perry-penned tune don't truly bring out the pain in the lyrics when sung by true outcasts like Ben Lee and Clem Snide's Eef Barzelay.Now if Coldplay would just cover Lindsay Lohan, we could all have a version of "Rumors" to be proud of.
— by Corey Moss
Britney Spears is one of the least "critically acclaimed" artists in pop culture — so what on earth is "Toxic" doing in so many critics' top-10 lists? The answer lies in two words: guilty pleasure. In other words, "I know it's not cool to like Britney, but it's such a cool song."
Well, I'm here to tell all you closet "Toxic" fans that you can have the pleasure without the guilt — in this case, thanks to the Chicago rock duo Local H.As a holiday gift to fans, the band posted (for free) on its Web site a cover of Brit's tune that simply smokes. Like any good remake, it's faithful to the original but still offers something new. Specifically, singer Scott Lucas perfectly imitates Spears down to the innuendos in lines like "Too high/ Can't come down," but it's the electronic-guitar makeover of the contagious synthesizer part that gives the cover its character.And best of all, it's not Britney, so it's acceptable for the guy in the Franz Ferdinand T-shirt to rock it in his iPod.What Local H have done, essentially, is show that "Toxic" really is a fantastic tune, whether it's got rock-star attitude or the sonic pop bling of the original. And while it was a clever career move on their part (it's proving to be somewhat of a radio hit for a band largely ignored in recent years), Local H are hardly the first rock band to remake Britney.A groups of Brits (as in dudes from the British Isles) known as Travis, and Fountains of Wayne both covered "... Baby One More Time" after that record introduced the world to Spears in 1999.In fact, during the latter part of the irony-loving '90s, the advent of Napster and its easy-posting ability made covers of cheesy pop songs something of an underground trend: You could type in "cover" and the title of any then-current Top-40 song, and at least one rendition would come up.They ranged from hatchet jobs to tongue-in-cheek "tributes" to truly reverent renditions. Limbeck and Dynamite Boy both successfully put punk spins on the Backstreet Boys' "I Want It That Way," while New Found Glory and Chronic Overboogie actually made fun, upbeat barnburners out of Celine Dion's sappy "My Heart Will Go On."
There was Stretch Arm Strong's bratty take on Pink's "Get This Party Started," Further Seems Forever making emo mush of 'NSYNC's "Bye Bye Bye" and the Starting Line reinventing Jennifer Lopez's "I'm Real" as a thrash anthem.Now, one could argue that when a punk or indie band covers a "TRL" favorite, it's meant to be ironic. While that might occasionally be the case, I think there's more to it. How else can you explain that so many of the covers are actually good?As students of songwriting, many musicians hear a pop hit and appreciate the elements that make it so infectious — a riff, a hook, a lyric. You have to remember, pop stars aren't writing most of the songs in the Top 40: seasoned, professional songwriters are. And even if an artist doesn't necessarily like a track, they're skilled enough to appreciate the genius of a well-turned pop song.The question then becomes: Are fans of these bands expected to like the songs too? A few years ago, I watched fans of New York hipsters Clem Snide as the band slipped a cover of Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" into their set. During the first verse, everyone just stood there, realizing what the song was and wondering how to react. By the chorus, however, there were so many fans singing along it nearly drowned out the band. (Ben Lee must've caught word, as he too recorded "Beautiful.")So what does that tell you? That Clem Snide's audience is filled with closet Aguilera fans? Possibly, but it's more likely that the song is simply good enough to transcend the package it originally came wrapped in. And a talented — or simply hotter — artist's endorsement is enough to give a song a second life. It's like when Mariah Carey fixed her corny image in the late '90s by hanging out with rappers, only it's a deserving song that gets the makeover, not an artist.
And when you do give the cover a chance, you'll notice it's not just a different singer that makes it cooler. The artist focuses on those infectious elements and tweaks them in imaginative ways. For instance, the way the Postal Service basically split Phil Collins' "Against All Odds" into two different tracks — a haunting ballad and a electro-pop singalong — brought new life to an otherwise bland tune. And while Kylie Minogue's version of "Can't Get You Out of My Head" might be supremely dancefloor-friendly, the Flaming Lips' melancholy take on the tune is downright beautiful. And speaking of "Beautiful," by golly if both of those covers of the Linda Perry-penned tune don't truly bring out the pain in the lyrics when sung by true outcasts like Ben Lee and Clem Snide's Eef Barzelay.Now if Coldplay would just cover Lindsay Lohan, we could all have a version of "Rumors" to be proud of.
— by Corey Moss
posted by Christopher at
10:52 AM
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