list season: the top seven cover songs in 2005. [with honorable mentions]

cover songs are a tricky breed. some strip all of the elements of the original song and make something even better, and other strip the elements of the original song and make it a steaming pile of crap. some bands add things, and others take everything out except for the melody [see: tv on the radio's cover of "mr. grieves", one of my favorite cover songs of all time]. so, here are some of the cover songs i heard in 2005 that made me think of the original in a whole different light:

7. mystery jets- "pioneers" [bloc party cover]:
an almost calyspo-pop cover of the paranoid-sounding original. makes me wanna dance instead of worry about the state of the world.

6. the subways- "staring at the sun" [tv on the radio cover]:
a bright, acoustic cover of a dark, electronic original. the subways take something frantic and turn it into something beautiful. props to them for being a breakout major-label band covering such a genius band that is still in relative obscurity.

5. maximo park- "isolation" [john lennon cover]:
these boys take a classic and absolutely OWN it. probably the only band in the world besides the futureheads that can make a neo-new-wave dancefloor anthem in 5/4 time.

4. bishop allen- "psycho killer" [talking heads cover]:
it sounds almost just like the original, but that's why it works. most dance-punk bands should play this at every show.

3. the decemberists- "ask" [smiths cover]:
they probably played this in years past, but i only heard it about three months ago. the saxaphone and the military-esque drumming makes it work for me.

2. iron & wine- "such great heights" [postal service cover]:
better than the original. the lyrics work better with sam beam's hushed vocals and harmonies better than the twitchy synth-pop. maybe i'm biased, because i don't like the postal service. at all.

1. the arcade fire- "maps" [yeah yeah yeahs cover]:
one of 2004's best bands covering another one of 2004's best bands. a novel idea, and it works, due to the arcade fire's fixation on excessive instrumentation, whereas the original was based on minimalism.

honorable mentions:
david gray- "smile like you mean it" [killers cover]
the decemberists- "wuthering heights" [kate bush cover]
okkervil river- "black sheep boy" [tim harding cover]
the white stripes- "walking with a ghost" [tegan and sara cover]


best fresh cherries from yakima covers:
"you are a runner and i am my father's son" [wolf parade cover]
"eli, the barrowboy" [decemberists cover]
"waiting on you" [weezer cover]
(they're floating around the internet, so you can find them if you try. hint: use my sidebar)