if you're going to do it, do it well.
if you're not doing to do it well, don't do it.
I just recently finished reading a book called the "Rock Bible" which had humorous tidbits from guys in bands/guys in the music industry explaining what to and not to do as a part of a band (e.g. "The Gospel According To The Guitarist/Fan/Drummer"). while very funny, it was also pretty good. On the concept of covering songs, they said not to cover a song that no one knows. not to cover a song that EVERYONE has done once before. and a cover =/= re-doing the song note for note. take the song, make it different, but still keep the basic integrity.
as I'm sure many of you know, there are many "Punk Goes _______" albums out there where punk/alternative/posthardcore/pop-punk bands do covers of ________ genre hits. My favorites are Punk Goes Pop (1 and 2), Punk Goes Crunk, and Punk Goes 80s (I'm an eighties girl at heart, it's true). The newest installment of this series is "Punk Goes Classic Rock" which sounds okay in theory, but new-wave bands trying to re-create arena rock hits just doesn't work. for the most part, the song either sounds exactly the same - other than a singer who isn't the original, an experience I liken to listening to Kidzbop, and we all hate those.... - or it sounds worse (Nevershoutnever's rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody *cough*).
the whole album is on THIS MYSPACE (http://www.myspace.com/punkgoesclassicrock)
if you're so inclined.
if you want proof that NO ONE does Queen well other than Queen, I suggest listening to Bohemian Rhapsody by Nevershoutnever, though your ears may bleed and you may lose your faith in humanity. The best song on there, in my opinion, is Paint It Black by VersaEmerge. It's fresh, it's new, but still maintains the integrity of the original.
lemme know what you think, please. I'm dying to know.
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So I know how you feel about the beetles being covered by the Jonas Brothers
ReplyDeletebut what is your opinion when, lets say 80's songs are being covered by pop artists? I mean even if you deem some of these artists annoying, do you refuse to listen to their version of the song based on who they are?
well, a lot of it depends on how much I like the original and how much I respect the current pop singer as a singer...
ReplyDeletegive me a few examples and I can tell you more precisely if you wish.
mostly though, I think that unless you're switching genres with a song, there is no need for it to be covered in the first place.