Making A List: Something Old, Something New

With the upcoming release of the much maligned Punk Goes Pop 3 next month, we are often left to wonder what really makes a good cover song. If (somehow) you aren’t acquainted with the Punk Goes... series, this next installment will feature bands such as We Came As Romans, Of Mice & Men and Breathe Carolina covering pop/hip-hop/whatever hits by artists such as Justin Timberlake, Jamie Foxx and Jay Sean respectively. Now, it only takes one look at this tracklisting to know there are going to be some horribly done songs, but every once in awhile a band will find the perfect song to impose their style upon and turn it into a great cover song, regardless if it makes it to the Punk Goes... series or not.

That being said, here are a few of the bands able to pull off what I feel are great renditions of classic and/or popular tunes and why they are able to pull it off.

A Day To Remember - Since U Been Gone (Originally performed by Kelly Clarkston)

American Idol is one of the most peculiar entities in the entertainment business. Aside from the concept and what the winner receives, it only proves the nature of today’s mainstream music business in that record companies only seem to care about singles and it causes anyone with a closed mind in music to consistently move from one artist to the next without truly embracing the artist’s work as a whole. That being said, most of the American Idol winners end up being flash in the pan success stories before heading back to just being a winner of the semi-prestigious talent show. But I digress.

A Day To Remember took Clarkston’s pop hit and amped up the crunching guitars and kick drums for a very straightforward, yet undoubtedly fitting take on the song. What makes this work for the Florida pop-mosh group is the fact that they could have almost written this song themselves considering their pop-prowess and knack for the thundering double bass and barking vocals. It is a prime example of selecting a song that fits your sound without having to make a huge stretch artistically, all while making both songs appreciative by fans of both artists.

Scary Kids Scaring Kids - Notorious Thugs (Originally performed by Notorious B.I.G. and Bone Thugz n’ Harmony)

Say what you want about the now defunct Arizona post-hardcore outfit. I wasn’t a fan of them myself. But to take on a classic, and I mean classic, rap track without the intent of killing it would be an unintelligent move. Instead of trying to keep up with the dizzying flow of the rap greats in the original, SK-squared turned down the tempo to almost ballad level before they laid down the vocals for this piano-driven cover.

What results is a track that keeps the rap vibe in check while turning the chill dial to the max. It makes for almost an entirely different experience than the original, as the quicker tempo in the original accentuates the biting nature of the lyrics going against the flowing melodies while the cover strips it all down to give the vocals a different feel against the drums and keys. To top it all off, this is a great bridge to one of Biggie’s greatest tracks.

The Number #12 Looks Like You - My Sharona (Originally performed by The Knack)

Still early in their career, #12 released an EP of material entitled An Inch Of Gold For An Inch Of Time, with the ending track being a spiced of cover of My Sharona. In reality, this track would on the surface only have one element appealing to this band - a ripping guitar solo. However, the group plugged their dual-screaming vocal attack into the classic track and turned an innocent pop-rock song into a throat searing, double bass ripping clinic.

The song became part of the live set here and there until later in their career, but the track is an interesting experiment in seeing just how far bands are willing to push the sound of a song to fit their style.

Between The Buried And Me - Colorblind (Originally performed by Counting Crows)

BTBAM, as I like to call them, has always claimed to have a wide array of influences in their songwriting. I’ve never doubted it, but when they released their covers album The Anatomy Of, it truly showed a diverse roster of bands from Queen to Pink Floyd to Pantera. Nestled at the last spot of the tracklisting is a cover of Counting Crows’ “Colorblind”, a somber, yet moving track concentrated with acoustic guitar and vocalist Tommy Rogers’ surprisingly versatile croon.

Though having mellower sections or tracks on a BTBAM record isn’t completely out of the norm, as (Shevanel, Take 2) and Foam Born, Pt. A: The Backtrack show, it still seems weird hearing Rogers do any sort of clean vocals after listening to his pummeling screams on just about any other track the band has put out. With the surprise element aside, Rogers and company do this simply put together track justice while showcasing a side of them not often seen. It would be interesting to seem them write more of this type of material into their future albums, as they could put a progressive twist on mellower passages of their songs.

Ben Folds - Bitches Ain’t Shit (Originally performed by Dr. Dre)

In what could be called the strangest crossover cover to actually be enjoyed by more people than the original, Ben Folds took Dre’s classic track and slapped it against a moving piano line. The result? A daring, yet successful mixing of Dre’s biting lyricism and Folds’ brilliant melodic songwriting. If anything it only proves the ability of one to take something completely out of musical context and drop it into a completely different environment and make it work - one thing most bands forget when making their precious cover songs of Lady Gaga and Katy Perry.

Seriously though, how could you not enjoy spouting lines like ‘Bitches ain’t shit but hoes and tricks’ in a musical environment as innocent as a piano-ballad? Sure, rap and hip-hop can make for some very interesting sing-alongs, but doing it over this track increases the enjoyment even more. Plus, you don’t have to feel guilty about all of that profanity!