Covering a song is easy as it is only copying something that has been laid on tape. Any musician who has the patience to learn a song can replicate pre-existing music and play it the way it was done before.
The real challenge, however, is turning the song into something new - something fresh to the ears of people who have heard the original version countless times before. Or to surprise those who get familiar with the cover first when they someday discover the original.
Here are five that rise above:
JEFF BUCKLEY - HALLELUJAH
Originally written & performed by Leonard Cohen
The 90s shooting-star owned this song by making it somber, more soulful and yearning.
JOHNNY CASH - HURT
Originally written & performed by Nine Inch Nails
The Man In Black, with his age & wisdom, took this heart-wrenching piece and sang it as if all the words were his.
RYAN ADAMS - WONDERWALL
Originally written & performed by Oasis
Heart-on-sleeve alt-country rocker brings out an ambient and sadder version of this Britpop tune.
CIBO MATTO - ABOUT A GIRL
Originally written & performed by Nirvana
Two awesome Japanese girls pay tribute to a late grunger named Kurt by re-shaping his most-pop song into a bossa nova magnificence.
THE WHITE STRIPES - ONE MORE CUP OF COFFEE
Originally written & performed by Bob Dylan
A sweeping epic by Mr. Zimmerman, Jack & Meg give a muscular rendition that blows you away.
Thursday, November 08, 2012
Thursday, July 19, 2012
About 'The Dark Knight Rises'
One thing that dwindled in the last decade was the focus of Hollywood on elaborate & realistic action films. Being in the decade of the nerd, the genre was traded for simple-plotted toy & comic book stories which were mostly filled with explosions & CGI to compensate for the lack of complexity.
The shallowness of the Hollywood action genre in the beginning of the millennium still continues. There are a few highlights, of course, thanks to Scorsese, The Bourne series, and the more rugged Bond.
But when Nolan introduced the concept of the grounded superhero film with 'Batman Begins' in 2005, it stood out among the handful of movies at the time. Such was the beginning of another trilogy masterpiece. He followed it up with 'The Dark Knight' in 2008, painting an even darker picture that's actually a true reflection of many parts of the society. In fact, his Bat tales are not merely made-up stories to excite the viewer. They were always social commentaries on what's going on with the world; how not everything is black & white; and that things are fucked up but you can always do something about it.
The challenge is raised even more in the last installment, 'The Dark Knight Rises'. Eradicating evil with another evil - doing what's necessary. The question of whether freedom is more important than order or vice versa. Anarchy. How old wounds remain unhealed and affect what kind of persons we become. These are old themes that seem fresh in the film and, as always has been, gripping. While Ra's al Ghul was a justice freak and Joker was a madman just for the sake of being one, Bane has different intentions. With a stellar cast, 'Rises' presents a maze full of effective performances that sets deep into your bones. The fights are muscular - both figuratively & literally. And the twists, while they may not come as surprises to Batman fans, make the storytelling more interesting.
In spite of being based on a comic-book, the Nolan brothers have molded the stories of our favorite detective into a relatable form. And that's exactly why it works so well - because in all of us there is both a child who is a fan of fantasy and an adult who requires facing reality. It's a talent that no other writer/director can do today.
One can argue that Christopher Nolan hasn't been original since 2000's 'Memento' and he's just delivering rehash of old ideas. But everyone must realize that in our time right now, everything has already been thought of in the past. All you can do is gather different elements and concoct your own formula. And in that sense, Nolan is a genius.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
If Films Were Music
INDIE ROCK:
1. Delicatessen (1991)
2. Waking Life (2001)
3. The Man Who Wasn't There (2001)
ROCK N ROLL:
1. Trainspotting (1996)
2. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)
3. American Psycho (2000)
GRUNGE:
1. Donnie Darko (2001)
2. Children of Men (2006)
3. Hesher (2010)
GARAGE/ PUNK / LO-FI
1. Bande à Part (1964)
2. Fight Club (1994)
3. Dancer In The Dark (2000)
AVANTE-GARDE/SHOE-GAZE
1. Un Chien Andalou (1929)
2. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
3. Eraserhead (1977)
POP:
1. Life is Beautiful (1997)
2. What Dreams May Come (1998)
3. Amélie (2001)
CLASSIC ROCK
1. Citizen Kane (1941)
2. The Man With No Name Trilogy
_ a. A Fistful of Dollars (1964)
_ b. For A Few Dollars More (1965)
_ c. The Good, The Bad & The Ugly (1966)
3. Taxi Driver (1976)
ORCHESTRAL:
1. Cinema Paradiso (1988)
2. The Virgin Suicides (1999)
3. The Assassination of Jessie James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
METAL/INDUSTRIAL:
1. Apocalypse Now (1979)
2. Ghost in the Shell (1995)
3. District 9 (2009)
BALLADS:
1. Casablanca (1942)
2. The Graduate (1967)
3. Before Sunrise (1995) + Before Sunset (2004)
OPM:
1. Insiang (1976)
2. Perfumed Nightmare (1977)
3. Pisay (2007)
_____________________________
Thursday, May 03, 2012
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Friday, March 02, 2012
Sunday, January 01, 2012
Notable Phrases & Sentences I posted on Facebook in 2011
01-06 Buksan ang posibilidad na maaaring mali tayo.
01-10 Fear is not respect. Only fools would think otherwise.
01-12 There are those who are sad they evoke your sympathy. And there are those who are whiny you want to put a sock in their mouths.
01-14 Three questions future kids will ask: 1) Where is Pluto? 2) What is a Triceratops? 3) Why don't I know at least one Ophiuchus among old people?
01-18 If you haven't heard, two wrongs don't make a right.
01-19 Art should be a reflection of who we are, how we feel & what our soul yearns at the time we make it.
01-23 Shadows have no faces. Echoes are not voices.
02-05 I'm still a firm believer of proper spelling & grammar. That, these days, is being against the flow.
02-09 Hindi porke banyaga ang kanta o pelikula, hindi na jologs. Hindi porke Tagalog, baduy na.
02-13 Before we tell kids how they should act, we must consider how we acted when we were at their age.
02-16 Hey there's nothing wrong with using other people's ideas to express yours. Just as long as you give them the credit for it.
02-19 Bite the hands that feed you when you realize it's been giving you poison.
03-05 Take a song you like that has a video for it. Think about the music without the suggested visuals. Do you honestly suppose you would've liked it even if you weren't aware the video?
03-06 When we were kids, it wasn't hard to tell the difference between what's real & what's bullsh*t. But we got brainwashed into believing that the king has clothes even if our eyes tell us that he's totally naked parading down the streets. So to the children of today: doubt the so-called adults.
03-19 Hedonism often stifles creativity.
04-11 Boredom should NEVER be an excuse. There's always something exciting to do every minute you're alive!
04-20 Don't be afraid to show your wounds. But don't dwell on it either.
05-11 Being stupid is so mainstream.
05-31 Shells of what we once were; boxes almost empty. Blueprints on the mantel; shapes of what we can be.
06-14 If you're someone who actively pays attention to music as a holistic experience & considers listening to a full album as a ceremony, then I am absolutely certain that you will enjoy it even more on vinyls.
06-15 The paranoid go-getter always tries to pull down those who he thinks are threats; blindly competes against everyone &; digs his own grave.
06-20 Ang buhay ni Rizal ay patunay na handang gumamit ng paraang baluktot ang makapangyarihan upang alisin ang banta ng makatotohanang pag-iisip. Ngunit sa huli, tama ang mananaig pagkat 'di man sadyain, ilalantad nito ang kanilang kasamaan at syang pupukaw sa kamalayan ng marami.
07-14 It is my belief that the soul directly speaks to other souls. It's the reason why our instinct & gut feeling can tell us if what one offers or does is indeed the genuine primal voice of his/her inner being.
07-15 As the giant golden moon greeted me tonight, everything else around turned to black & white.
07-19 Overprotection is either a conscious or an unconscious act to preserve power over others
08-17 Even though you can save money from buying something on sale, you can actually save more if you don't buy it.
09-13 Just because everyone is saying it, doesn't mean it's true. And 'everybody doing it' doesn't make it right.
09-15 Real love is beyond religion, beyond beliefs, and even deeper than romance.
09-22 Brain farts are shallow thoughts quickly announced. We should carefully choose what to say specially in writing. Not everything in our minds should go public.
09-29 Bihira na ang booksmart sa panahong ito. Karamihan ay Google-smart na. Gayunpaman, mas mainam pa ring samahan ito ng pagiging street smart.
10-07 In music, two of the leading genres have fitting names. One is like an instant beautiful floating thing that everyone sees but suddenly POPs and goes away too quickly. The other is a taken-for-granted rugged piece of creation that stands the test of time just like a ROCK - having much more weight and possesses a different kind of beauty.
10-28 We shouldn’t be contented reading/watching other people's stories, marvelling at their paintings or photographs and singing their songs. If we have the ability, we should weave new tales, compose original images and create our own music. Creativity thrives when we share the ideas inside our heads.
10-31 A woman lets go of what she carries inside. Just so she can hold & be with her child.
11-14 Time and again, I have shed old skins - of which I am not ashamed of. For each helped me grow; and gave me chance - to change and adapt, to evolve and not be trapped.
11-21 Loyalty is oftentimes blindness.
11-23 Knowledge is power but all kinds of power can be intoxicating that you may fail to notice the harm it does to others and to yourself. Now pair it with humility and you can do wonders!
12-07 I rarely watch music videos because music is intended for & is best experienced by the ears, not the eyes.
12-12 Watching a noon-time show laughing at people acting stupid just for the money. Then I realize, 'Hey sometimes we look stupid in the office too! And we're there for the money as well. So we might not be different from those TV contestants after all.'
12-20 Take only what you need. But the rich is driven by greed. So as the earth does what is just, the poor turns victim in the rush.
12-25 Merry Christmas one and all! Gather your friends around, open a bottle of wine & believe in miracles!
12-27 Give credit where credit is due. Stop owning other people's works & ideas just for the sake of your false reputation.
01-10 Fear is not respect. Only fools would think otherwise.
01-12 There are those who are sad they evoke your sympathy. And there are those who are whiny you want to put a sock in their mouths.
01-14 Three questions future kids will ask: 1) Where is Pluto? 2) What is a Triceratops? 3) Why don't I know at least one Ophiuchus among old people?
01-18 If you haven't heard, two wrongs don't make a right.
01-19 Art should be a reflection of who we are, how we feel & what our soul yearns at the time we make it.
01-23 Shadows have no faces. Echoes are not voices.
02-05 I'm still a firm believer of proper spelling & grammar. That, these days, is being against the flow.
02-09 Hindi porke banyaga ang kanta o pelikula, hindi na jologs. Hindi porke Tagalog, baduy na.
02-13 Before we tell kids how they should act, we must consider how we acted when we were at their age.
02-16 Hey there's nothing wrong with using other people's ideas to express yours. Just as long as you give them the credit for it.
02-19 Bite the hands that feed you when you realize it's been giving you poison.
03-05 Take a song you like that has a video for it. Think about the music without the suggested visuals. Do you honestly suppose you would've liked it even if you weren't aware the video?
03-06 When we were kids, it wasn't hard to tell the difference between what's real & what's bullsh*t. But we got brainwashed into believing that the king has clothes even if our eyes tell us that he's totally naked parading down the streets. So to the children of today: doubt the so-called adults.
03-19 Hedonism often stifles creativity.
04-11 Boredom should NEVER be an excuse. There's always something exciting to do every minute you're alive!
04-20 Don't be afraid to show your wounds. But don't dwell on it either.
05-11 Being stupid is so mainstream.
05-31 Shells of what we once were; boxes almost empty. Blueprints on the mantel; shapes of what we can be.
06-14 If you're someone who actively pays attention to music as a holistic experience & considers listening to a full album as a ceremony, then I am absolutely certain that you will enjoy it even more on vinyls.
06-15 The paranoid go-getter always tries to pull down those who he thinks are threats; blindly competes against everyone &; digs his own grave.
06-20 Ang buhay ni Rizal ay patunay na handang gumamit ng paraang baluktot ang makapangyarihan upang alisin ang banta ng makatotohanang pag-iisip. Ngunit sa huli, tama ang mananaig pagkat 'di man sadyain, ilalantad nito ang kanilang kasamaan at syang pupukaw sa kamalayan ng marami.
07-14 It is my belief that the soul directly speaks to other souls. It's the reason why our instinct & gut feeling can tell us if what one offers or does is indeed the genuine primal voice of his/her inner being.
07-15 As the giant golden moon greeted me tonight, everything else around turned to black & white.
07-19 Overprotection is either a conscious or an unconscious act to preserve power over others
08-17 Even though you can save money from buying something on sale, you can actually save more if you don't buy it.
09-13 Just because everyone is saying it, doesn't mean it's true. And 'everybody doing it' doesn't make it right.
09-15 Real love is beyond religion, beyond beliefs, and even deeper than romance.
09-22 Brain farts are shallow thoughts quickly announced. We should carefully choose what to say specially in writing. Not everything in our minds should go public.
09-29 Bihira na ang booksmart sa panahong ito. Karamihan ay Google-smart na. Gayunpaman, mas mainam pa ring samahan ito ng pagiging street smart.
10-07 In music, two of the leading genres have fitting names. One is like an instant beautiful floating thing that everyone sees but suddenly POPs and goes away too quickly. The other is a taken-for-granted rugged piece of creation that stands the test of time just like a ROCK - having much more weight and possesses a different kind of beauty.
10-28 We shouldn’t be contented reading/watching other people's stories, marvelling at their paintings or photographs and singing their songs. If we have the ability, we should weave new tales, compose original images and create our own music. Creativity thrives when we share the ideas inside our heads.
10-31 A woman lets go of what she carries inside. Just so she can hold & be with her child.
11-14 Time and again, I have shed old skins - of which I am not ashamed of. For each helped me grow; and gave me chance - to change and adapt, to evolve and not be trapped.
11-21 Loyalty is oftentimes blindness.
11-23 Knowledge is power but all kinds of power can be intoxicating that you may fail to notice the harm it does to others and to yourself. Now pair it with humility and you can do wonders!
12-07 I rarely watch music videos because music is intended for & is best experienced by the ears, not the eyes.
12-12 Watching a noon-time show laughing at people acting stupid just for the money. Then I realize, 'Hey sometimes we look stupid in the office too! And we're there for the money as well. So we might not be different from those TV contestants after all.'
12-20 Take only what you need. But the rich is driven by greed. So as the earth does what is just, the poor turns victim in the rush.
12-25 Merry Christmas one and all! Gather your friends around, open a bottle of wine & believe in miracles!
12-27 Give credit where credit is due. Stop owning other people's works & ideas just for the sake of your false reputation.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)