We live in an era where people such as Justin Bieber, SoMo and Greyson Chance have become famous in no small part due to their Youtube covers.
Cover songs have been around for decades and sometimes the remake trumps the original track. This is where this blog comes in. It is here that we will stack these covers against their predecessors to determine which rendition of the song is truly better.
These covers will be judged according to the following: how well or badly the cover deviates from the original song, replay value and the cover’s ability to connect with the listener.
If we’re being honest, Paramore consumed a decent size portion of my iPod during my pre-teen and early teen years. The band was a little more in your face than Fall Out Boy was and had a pretty attractive lead singer, Hayley Williams.
Then the Farro brothers left the band in late 2010 and many feared Paramore would fall apart, including myself. Surprisingly the band stayed together, and the current trio doesn’t sound too different from before. The fourth single from its most recent album, “Ain’t It Fun,” turned into radio gold and proved that the band plans to remain relevant for quite some time.
Earlier this month, lead singer of metalcore band Issues, Tyler Carter, and drummer of The Word Alive, Luke Holland, came together to cover “Ain’t It Fun” for the sixth volume of “Punk Goes Pop.” Despite the category, the duo’s cover is still pretty punk when it’s all said and done.
But does one punk, outdo the other? Let’s see.
Round 1: Deviation? Good or Bad?
Carter and Holland haven’t done anything too different with their cover except change the singer and add a few drum patterns. These artists and Paramore are in the same wheelhouse of music, so it makes sense that the song sounds similar. It seems like the cover only exists to have another person sing the lyrics.
It’s not that the cover is good or bad, it’s just meh.
Point to the cover. Score 1-0.
Round 2: Replay Value
Considering the original is a radio success, the replay value has already been partially determined for us. We can’t escape Paramore. Most of us grew up with them and with that comes a slight bias.
When two songs sound almost the same, why not go for the original?
Point to the original. Score 2-0.
Round 3: Ability to connect with the listener
We all know what this song is about. The reality check that comes with growing up and the fact that it’s usually pretty awful. Those messages are masked by the use of some upbeat instrumentals, so making a connection with the song right away is pretty hard this week.
After a few listens to the original, you can sort of pick up on the experience that harshness leaves on a person. This isn’t to say that Carter and Holland haven’t been through some things in their lives, but it feels as if they focused more on the fun of the song instead of the message.
Point to the original. Score 3-0. Winner: Paramore’s original. There’s not a whole lot of differences between this week’s covers, but something about Hayley Williams’ voice makes the original a winner.
Agree? Disagree? Tell me below and suggest some other covers to listen to. Send me a tweet @Joshua_Jackson_. I’ll be back next week with another original pitted against its cover.
