Tag: Post Malone

Spotify’s ‘Under Cover’ Podcast and the Art of the Cover Song

September 24, 2018

Whether it’s putting a new spin on an iconic classic or dabbling with a current hit, there’s a true art to selecting, performing, and recording a cover song—an art that Under Cover, Spotify’s new original podcast, seeks to explore.

“I feel there are three categories of cover songs,” Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard explains in his episode of Under Cover, which launches today. “There is the fairly universal song that a lot of people know. When they hear an artist they admire perform it, it sheds a new light on the song, or adds a kind of sense of humor, or weight to it … Then there are the obscure, record collector cover songs that people like myself like to bust out from time to time, to teach people about songs they might not otherwise know about. And then there tend to be the songs that are really moving me or us in a particular moment that have special significance.”

In the case of Death Cab For Cutie, it was this third category that led them to create a moving cover of Frightened Rabbit‘s “My Backwards Walk,” in memory of their late friend, Frightened Rabbit lead singer Scott Hutchison.

“We wanted to pay tribute to Scott’s songwriting,” Ben says about the choice. “I assume that there are people who maybe have not heard of Frightened Rabbit, and I would hope that if someone is a fan of Death Cab for Cutie, and they hear this song, that would inspire them to dive into Frightened Rabbit’s catalogue.”

Stories like these underpin each episode of Under Cover, produced and recorded out of Spotify’s studios in New York. Over the course of each 10 to 15-minute segment, the artists explain the mindset, memories, and inspiration that led them to record the song as part of the Spotify Single series. Every Thursday, Under Cover will take fans behind the scenes of some of the program’s most memorable songs with some of the world’s most iconic artists.

While some artists pay homage in their covers, others use them to fine-tune their craft—to experiment in sound, style, key, and tempo, and to step into the shoes of a musician they admire. Twenty-three-year-old Troye Sivan, for example, used his cover of Post Malone’s “Better Now” to explore music he wouldn’t normally have the opportunity to create.

“Mostly the songs that I cover, I’m jealous of the people who wrote them,” Troye explains in his episode. “And so I use it as an excuse to take a really good top line or a really good production, or whatever it is that’s inspiring to me about the song, and then kind of flip it, like it’s going on my album, and produce it in the same vein.”

Unpacking the song and using it to formulate your own artistic ability is often a pervasive task for many musicians. “You have to get in the head of musicians that you admire and really get inside the song and figure out why it works the way it does, why it does to you what it does,” says Rachael Price of Lake Street Dive. “And then you can take little bits and pieces of that and bring it into your own songwriting, too.”

The multi-genre Lake Street Dive, who covered “Walking on Broken Glass” by Annie Lennox, filled their sets with covers before creating songs of their own. Since paving their way with original music, they’ve been more selective about choosing tracks that have been inspirational, groundbreaking, or fundamental to their growth. “‘Broken Glass’ is this proto-EDM anthem,” a band member explains. “I see Cher hearing it for the first time and being like, ‘Dab nabbit! I wish I had recorded that song.’”

And of course, recording covers gives artists a chance to just have some fun. “I think I embellish the guitar solo a bit, just for my own ego,” says Australian singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett on covering “Houses” by ElyseWeinberg.

Tune into Under Cover every day this week and then on Thursdays through November to hear new exclusive interviews from artists like Gallant, Def Leppard, Calpurnia, Lord Huron, and 5SOS, covering favorites from Weezer, Vampire Weekend, Depeche Mode, and Neil Young.

Listen to the first episode about Death Cab for Cutie’s cover of Frightened Rabbit’s “My Backwards Walk,” (and check back to see future episodes as well):

 

Moms Listen to Top Artists, Too—Just Ask Latham Thomas and Her Teen DJ Son

May 11, 2018

Wondering what to add to your mom’s breakfast-in-bed Spotify playlist this Mother’s Day? It might not be so different from what you’d add to your own. Spotify’s latest data on the top artists for women between the ages of 20 and 70-plus show that hits are hits—no matter what your age.

In a list of top listened-to artists by gender and age group, Post Malone and Ed Sheeran take the top two slots for women ages 30 through 59, with Drake, Avicii, and Adele also scoring high. For women 60 and up, it’s all about Ed Sheeran and perennial favorite The Beatles.

Parents have a big opportunity to influence what their kids listen to, and based on the data, it looks like the next generation is repaying the favor by keeping Mom in the musical know.

Take the musical preferences of Latham Thomas, wellness and lifestyle specialist and founder of Mama Glow. Latham and her 14-year-old son, Fulano Librizzi—an accomplished DJ and musician who has spun for everyone from Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week to the New York Knicks—both get down to Stevie Wonder, but also thrive on sharing everything from jazz to J. Cole.

We spoke to Latham about what her family is listening to now, and how to bridge the generation gap with the right tunes.

What are your early memories of music?

My mom was always playing music; she would throw on a record and make pancakes in the morning. Especially on weekends, it was Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, and Diana Ross. I went to my first Prince concert when I was 3, and Sheila E threw her drumsticks in the audience and my aunt caught them. My whole childhood was always punctuated with music.

How did you begin sharing your love of music with your son, Fulano?

When I was pregnant with my son, his father had a radio show on WKCR [in New York City] called “Jazz Alternatives.” We would hang out in the studio and pull records that looked interesting­­. We had Sicilian tarantellas, blues like Lead Belly, Sun Ra, Funkadelic, and Parliament—which my son loves now. He would actually kick to the rhythm of certain things. I think playing a lot of different music for him definitely helped with shaping his aptitude. Not only is he a DJ, he arranges music; he plays guitar and bass, ukulele. I think all those instruments also help him with understanding how to create a song. It’s nice to be able to know that just our passion and love for music helped to shape him to be very musical.

Does Fulano now introduce you to new music?

Yes. All the music that is current, I only know because of my son. He’s the one who’s like, “Oh, you’ve got to listen to J. Cole, you’ve got to listen to Migos.” I find out about a lot of indie or underground artists. He’ll play me a list of stuff and say, “This is really big right now” or, “This person’s on the come up.” I don’t know all the names, but I stay in the pulse that way.

What songs are at the top of both of your playlists right now?

We both maintain a lot of the same soul classics, like Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson. As far as the more current music, we both have been listening to J. Cole. We both like Cardi B.

How can parents better get along musically with their kids?

If you have a different musical style than your kids, spend some time and get to know who the artists are that they’re listening to, because those people are definitely influencing them. It’s a point of entry for conversation and connection, and it’s a point of coolness for you. Every generation has music that the previous generation just doesn’t get. But if you can gather around what matters to kids, you can ride the soundtrack of their lives and get to know better what’s happening in their own world. Music just has that ability to make people come together.

Happy Mother’s Day!