AN ALARMING TREND
What is with all the tedious indie male covers of fun pop songs, please? Indignation is the only correct response, given the smug, sneering irony with which these covers are routinely performed.
We mean, ONLY RECENTLY:
Coldplay did Madonna (Hung Up)
Starsailor did Sugababes (Push the Button)
Arctic Monkeys did Girls Aloud (Love Machine)
Lost Prophets did Rachel Stevens (Sweet Dreams My LA Ex)
Will Young did Pussycat Dolls (Don't Cha)
Jose Gonzalez did Kylie Minogue (Hand On Your Heart)
Maximo Park did Natalie Umbrella (Shiver)
Basic procedure for doing one of these covers:
1. Emphasise how ironic you are being, lest any of your fans actually think it's OK to like shit pop music.
2. Suck all fun and joy out of the original song.
3. Slosh together some chords. It doesn't matter if they aren't quite the same as the ones in the original song. (Hello, Jose Gonzalez? That doesn't mean you've "reinterpreted" the song - means you've totally fucked up the original)
4. Sing the song in a really boring, turgid way.
5. Laugh it up, because pop music is just so stupid and funny!
Result: Original song wrecked but given "ironic cool, good-in-a-shit-way" status.
Further, all those indie acts and their tedious fucking fans would probably erupt in selfrighteous fury if their precious songs were done by a giddy pop act. Why aren't we pop people more precious about our music?Is Will Young actually an indie act
8 Comments:
Well, I can enjoy those kind of covers, but I hate all that bullshit about liking things in an ironic way. It's such pretentious crap. Besides, I would call all of those bands fairly mainstream, anyway. It's not as though they're underground or avant-garde type artists; they're just another branch of pop. So they have no claim on a wanky indier-than-thou attitude.
But you must admit, a well-natured "indie-goes-pop" cover is hard to dislike. I mean, have you heard Elbow's version of 'Independent Woman'? It's done with such charm, that it's impossible to have a problem with it, surely.
What about Tori Amos' version of CGYOOMH? That was lovely. Though of course it doesn't have the characteristics you mention, so it's OK. Yeah.
"Why aren't we pop people more precious about our music?"
Because pop is shit and we know it but you know what? That's why we love it :)
Will Young isn't indie!
maybe we could get bardot to reform and do a smells like teen spirit number.......i'd be up for that!
THANK YOU! Finally, someone who hasn't gone soft in the head. The Arctic Monkeys are a sin...
Will Young isn't indie, he's wank-jazz or, more politely, 'lounge'. He can go back and stew in the hell from whence he came, for all I care. 'Don't Cha' indeed! Cunt.
Cheerio, Michael. xxx
Excuse me? Will Young "did" the Pussycat Dolls?
OK, mind out of gutter now.
I have a cover of 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' by Scandal'us.
It's yours if you want it.
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