Last Friday (Nov 13th) Marika Hackman released her album full of covers featuring songs from artists like Radiohead and Grimes, tackling each one in a way that adds another layer to the artist original. Her take on Radiohead’s 1994 song ‘You Never Wash Up After Yourself’, swaps guitar for piano and features the unnerving noise of insects buzzing. Between the Bars sees her add something more to the melancholy cult musician Elliott Smith’s classic tune. Amongst classic stripped back versions, Hackman squeezes in those she has completely reinvented like Grimes’ Realiti. The song is almost completely unrecognisable with strings and harp taking over. ‘Pink Light’ is a cover of American pop trio MUNA’s soft but powerful hit except she has added a coldness to it which makes it entirely her own.
She also strips back Beyonce’s ‘All Night’ to its bony frame leaving nothing but simplistic layers of vocals. Put together whilst in lockdown at her parents’ earlier this year, Covers allowed Marika to have an outlet in a time where original ideas were limited. It also creates a nice middle ground between 2019’s ‘Any Human Friend’ and any future works whilst providing familiarity in a time of uncertainty.
You can stream Covers here