Playing a cover song is not as easy as one might think, at least not if it’s to be done well. Many bands try to sound as identical to the original artist as they can, and to me this is usually quite pointless. To make a cover interesting in my opinion, you have to add your own character to the song, not try to be a jukebox. In many cases this happens when artists cover a song from a totally different genre than they usually play.
This post introduces The cover series, where I present artists who do precisely this.
British sisters Becky and Rachel Unthanks, vocalists of The Unthanks, have their roots in English folk singing, and use that as the foundation for their music as it expands in different directions. Their rendition of one of King Crimson‘s most wonderful tracks, Starless, is utterly beautiful and haunting, with piano and a string quartet providing the accompaniment for the vocals and trumpet.
Below is King Crimson’s original song.