Covers, Part 3

[urgencytobleed]

Part three, woo-hoo! There isn't much variety here, I must admit, with three artists with more than one cover... but they're all so good so it doesn't matter.

• Gabriela Kulka - Killing Floor (Bruce Dickinson)

This was the very first song I heard by her and I remember thinking pretty equally that she was completely insane and completely genius, which pretty much still holds true as my opinion now. I didn't know this was a cover for awhile because Gaba totally makes it her own. This song is downright scary, especially her vocals, which alternate between ethereal and high and gutteral and demonic without any notice at all. It's quite an intense experience.

• Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins - Handle With Care (Traveling Wilburys)

Among all the personal and confessional lyrics on Jenny's solo debut, Rabbit Fur Coat, this cover is a fun change of pace. She shares the spotlight with some of the biggest names in indie music today - Conor Oberst, Ben Gibbard, and M. Ward - to make a sort of supergroup of her own. And pretty much anything Jenny touches is gold in my book, so it's no exception here.

• Kate Bush - The Man I Love (George Gershwin)

Kate's voice works surprisingly well in a jazzy old-fashioned song, which this definitely is. It's quite a sore thumb among her other material, but I think it's just as good as some of it. I especially like her voice on the last "I'm waiting for the man I love"; it's kind of grainy and tough, different than how she usually sings.

• Mandy Moore - Drop the Pilot (Joan Armatrading)

I've gained a lot of respect for Mandy since she decided to drop the "pop princess" act and do things her own way. This started in 2003 with her excellent album of all covers, appropriately titled Coverage. This song has a rock edge to it but is also completely catchy. I also really enjoy Mandy's voice - it's strong without being overpowering and sweet without being too treacly.

• Mandy Moore - Senses Working Overtime (XTC)

This one is also ridiculously catchy and the chorus just begs to be sung along to. It retains enough pop sensibilities but also has a harder edge which makes it more memorable. I think, for the most part, she did well in choosing covers that suit her voice and style.

• Martha Wainwright - Tower of Song (Leonard Cohen)

Even though I wasn't a huge fan of Martha at the time (and still am not, really, though more than before), I saw her perform this on Letterman and was really impressed with it. I adore the quirky, slightly raspy quality of her voice and this song fits quite well among her own - it has that same folk-y intensity.

• Mates of State - California (Phantom Planet)

By Mates of State standards, this cover is quite simple, with the base of it just being piano and voice while slightly more instrumentation/atmosphere is added throughout. Even if it's not as energetic as most of their material, it's still completely endearing and I always find it so interesting to listen to Jason and Kori harmonize because their voices work together so well.

• Mates of State - These Days (Nico)

Another pretty low-key cover, but with the signature keyboard/organ sounds that are one of their defining features. Jason also takes on lead vocal duty, which doesn't happen often so that's a nice change. They can do simplicity and complexity and pull each of them off perfectly which is pretty impressive.

• Neko Case - Alone and Forsaken (Hank Williams)

Neko's amazing vocals are a given but this song also has a really nice atmosphere. It's very echo-y and stark and sounds like it could've been recorded a few decades ago. There's also the sound of pouring rain in the background, which usually sounds cheesy, but works here. This just sounds like some spooky torch ballad performed in the 50s and it's quite chilling and memorable.

• Neko Case - Runnin' Out of Fools (Aretha Franklin)

The vocal performance alone makes this song because it's definitely one of her best so far. She just belts it out like nobody's business - "is that why you got in touch with meeeeeeeeeeeeee? IIIIIIIIIIIII guess you must be running out of foo-oo-oo-ls". The power of Neko's voice is completely mindblowing, even after hearing this song a million times.