Hot Covers 2: Guilty Pleasure Edition

A whole lot of music news has gone down in the past week, most notably the Coachella line-up, which panned out pretty much like everyone thought it would (including headlining slots from The Killers and Sir Paul), minus an unnecessary reunion or two, and plus the inexplicable addition of Amy Winehouse, which at the very least is a major gamble on the part of the promoters. Overall, it's a great opportunity for me to see a bunch of major bands that I've missed seeing live so far: like TV On the Radio, Fleet Foxes, White Lies and Hercules & Love Affair Between now and April, expect to see lots of the lesser known acts featured here, but for now........I'm in the mood for some covers. And some slightly guilty ones at that.

Corin Joel - "I Kissed A Girl"




First up is a spectacular, soulful re-working of one of 2008's most souless corporate creations. Virtually nothing is known about Delaware's Corin Joel. He has no website, no wiki, and a grand total of about 370 friends on Myspace. But after churning out a magic trick like this, it's doubtful this is the last we'll hear from him, especially if that magic carries over into songwriting.

John Mayer - "Kid A"





On the flip side, we have the case of a generally mediocre talent spinning a classic song.....and (blasphemy!) actually improving it. I know, I know: let the hate mail pour in, but if John Mayer's done one good thing with his spotty, fame-whorish career, it's this cover right here. How does he improve it? Well, you can finally make out Thom Yorke's lyrics, for one. And somehow, by stripping away the reverb and fancy sound effects, and leaving a voice and guitar, the song sounds even bleaker. Most shocking of all is the fact that once it's over, you realize Mayer does in fact have a spark of talent inside him. If it ever gets re-ignited, I promise I'll post notice right here. **NOTE: Apparently you'll have to put even more faith into this than I first thought. For some (coughbloggercodesucksafatcockcough) reason, you can't preview this one on the player, so you'll have to click the link & download it to hear for yourself.

Jukebox the Ghost - "Beautiful Life"





Friday night, Jukebox the Ghost plays a very special show at the Natural History Museum with The Bird and the Bee. If you weren't at their very first LA show a few months ago, make sure to catch them, as they're one hell of a live act. And if you were there, then I probably don't have to convince you very hard. If nothing else, go there just to tell your friends and family you spent your Friday night at a museum, lest they think you're growing uncultured. Of course, if you enjoy drinking alcohol while watching live music, you might prefer to see them tomorrow night at Three of Clubs. The Hollywood lounge should serve as a pretty small venue for a band that just got done headlining an East Coast tour, so check 'em out then if creepy intimacy is your thing. (shoot me an email before tomorrow to get pointed towards the guestlist). Of course, in fitting with the theme today, the band's been known to bust out a great cover or two.

Hot Chip - "Transmission"




Hot Chip is awesome, and so is this cover, especially on repeat listens. Where does the whole "guilty pleasure" thing play into this, you ask? Well I suppose it doesn't really, except that in my book, Joy Division is sacred ground, and anyone who tries to cover them is generally doomed from the start. But add this to Tiger Baby's far guiltier cover of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" (they turn it into a dance track, after all) as one of the few to succeed. It's slower, muted, and even more isolating than the original, and while it certainly can't top Ian Curtis' classic, it's a fine new take, and another notch in Hot Chip's already impressive belt.

Andrew WK - "Never Let Down"





Finally, here's one that's not a cover, but certainly anks up with my favorite "guilty pleasure" tracks of all time. In honor of his new television show, here's my good friend and yours, Mr. Andrew WK. Oh, and I put "guilty pleasure" in quotes, because when a song's this fucking awesome, how much guilt can you really feel about liking it? Also, Mr. WK once wrote me a very special letter to guide me on my journey through NYU. True story. This guy is awesome.