My Chemical Romance, Pepper, Britney Spears, More Announced For Record Store Day 2020

In a few Saturdays, thousands of people (myself included) will be flocking to record stores in hopes of copping some new, exclusive vinyl records for Record Store Day 2020.

This year’s event which takes place on Saturday, April 18, will feature over hundreds of artists and musicians dropping rare, exclusive, or reissuing old records. Mainstream acts like Maroon 5, The Rolling Stones, Post Malone, Sam Smith, and Britney Spears are dropping records (ex. Spears’s release is a remix and B-sides record featuring tracks from Oops!…I Did It Again.) Scene bands like CHON, The Menzingers, Bayside, Asking Alexandria, and My Chemical Romance, will also have content.

Others dropping records of all speeds and sizes include Pepper, August Burns Red, Glass Animals, Ice Nine Kills, Hootie And The Blowfish, Odd Future, Snoop Dogg, U2, HUNNY, and Eve 6, just to name a few. To see the full RSD 2020 lineup, look for the full list here.

If you want to see if any record stores in your area are participating, click or tap here to find out.

Oh God, Here’s 20 More Of The Weirdest Covers Ever Recorded (Part One)

I never planned on making this. There was never supposed to be a third list, but here we are. I stumbled onto a cover that mewithoutYou did and then I fell into a rabbit hole of bizarre covers, and here we are again.

Pray that I don’t make a fourth list.

As I mentioned prior in my other lists, “I have to inform you that the songs on this list are covers that were recorded for a compilation, an album, or as a single. There will be no live covers on this list.” Who knows if I’ll ever do a list for strange live covers.

Before I start, I would like to thank the people in Midwest Emoposting on Facebook for helping me find some songs to put on this list.

Well, here we go. This is part one.

1. mewithoutYou – In Bloom (Originally by Nirvana)

Nirvana are one of the most influential bands from the 90s. With that being said, numerous artists have covered their songs. Case in point, “In Bloom” from their sophomore record Nevermind. That track has been covered by several artists and bands such as Four Year Strong, Torche, Sturgill Simpson, Hooverphonic, and So They Say. But when mewithoutYou covered it for Come As You Are: A 20th Anniversary Tribute To Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’, every other cover got blown out of the water. The simplistic take by mewithoutYou features an acoustic guitar, a kick drum, an accordion, an electric guitar, and Aaron Weiss’s haunting vocals. It just doesn’t sound like how you would expect “In Bloom” to sound like. mewithoutYou were able to transform this song into one of their own, and that’s impressive. Also this album features covers done by Civil Twilight, Hawthorne Heights, Story Of The Year, Finger Eleven, and Anthony Raneri of Bayside.

2. Roses & Revolutions – Sugar, We’re Goin Down (Originally by Fall Out Boy)

I found out about this cover from an unlikely source: my mom. She showed me this cover that apparently played on her Sirius XM radio and I had to look it up. Glad I did. This haunting acoustic version from this indie duo from Rochester is beautiful and bizarre at the same team. Alyssa Coco’s vocals are soft and fit well with guitarist Matt Merritt’s equally soft strumming, turning this pop-punk classic into something you’d hear in a Starbucks.

3. New Breed – Raise Your Glass (Originally by P!nk)

I’ve talked about the Japanese Punk Goes Pop albums before, and they’re either hits or misses. Mostly misses. This is one of those misses. The Japanese screamo act New Breed butcher the fuck out of P!nk’s party jam “Raise Your Glass”. There has to be a rule for having way too much blast beats in your song. It’s just a messy cover that never seems to calm down and needs some adderall to relax. Overall it’s a hot mess. Dear lord.

4. Clivillés & Cole – Pride (In The Name Of Love) (Originally by U2)

Oh fuck. I’ve dreaded talking about this cover. Clivillés & Cole, who would later become C+C Music Factory (you know, these guys), covered this song by U2 for the movie Gladiator (no, not the Russell Crowe film, this one). It’s a horrible techno version that stretches out the track from the original 3:48 minutes to nearly eight minutes. That’s almost double the original version. For your safety, avoid this track like the plague.

5. Everclear – I Will Follow You Into The Dark (Originally by Death Cab For Cutie)

Why? On their greatest hits album, 90s punk rock band Everclear ruined the sacred acoustic song “I Will Follow You Into The Dark” by Death Cab For Cutie by making it a punk track. No, fucking no. Oh, and that’s not the only cover on that album. They also did “I Won’t Back Down” by Tom Petty and “Brown Eyed Girl” by Van Morrison. Also, I’ve been meaning to put this cover on the previous lists but I kept forgetting. Or maybe it was subconscious trying to save me from making the world remember this cover.

6. Wind Rose – Diggy Diggy Hole (Originally by Yogscast)

To quote iiZach Gaming, “From a Minecraft clip… to a fan made song… to an official song… to a metal version of the song. Wow.” “Diggy Diggy Hole” originated as a joke from Yogscast, then it became a song made by a fan, then a real song by Yogscast, and then redone by a fucking metal band. Many were shocked when Italian folk metal group Wind Rose made their own version of this song. The band explained why they did this, saying, “Mining is one of the most important activities for a Dwarf, naturally Wind Rose needed a theme song for this great honor of collecting these jewels from the soil, so sing with us with pride!!” I honestly have no idea what to say. Dig on.

7. Act As If – Pathetic (Originally by Blink-182)

What if Coldplay wrote “Pathetic” instead of Blink-182? That’s what indie pop group Act As If answered back in 2011 with their lovely rendition. The fast punk track gets redone as a beautiful, heartfelt pop song. Peter Verdell’s vocals are so soothing while backed over a gentle guitar strumming, Sara Lindsay’s voice, and a xylophone. It even got Mark Hoppus’s seal of approval when he shared it on his Facebook page.

8. Hidden In Plain View – Mr. Jones (Originally by Counting Crows)

In 2004, indie label Vinyl Summer Recordings released a tribute album called Dead And Dreaming: An Indie Tribute To Counting Crows. On it, bands like The Rocket Summer, Between The Buried And Me, Punchline, Houston Calls, and The Junior Varsity, covered their favorite songs by Counting Crows. The odd one that takes the cake has to be Hidden In Plain View’s rendition of “Mr. Jones”. The emo act add electronic elements and some autotune into their version. It would be a good cover if it weren’t for the autotune. And if you’re wanting to buy this album, it’s incredibly rare. You can purchase it here.

9. Biffy Clyro – Modern Love (Originally by David Bowie)

One listen to this cover and you’ll say, “That’s supposed to be a Bowie song?” When Howard Stern recruited several musicians for his tribute called The Howard Stern Tribute to David Bowie. It featured 25 musicians like Greta Van Fleet, The Struts, Car Seat Headrest, Lisa Loeb, and Garbage, paying tribute to the legendary British musician. Scottish rock trio Biffy Clyro go all out on their take of “Modern Love”, making it sound unrecognizable. The screams, jangly guitar parts, and heaviness of the cover are eyeopening, and it’s a beautiful tribute to the late Bowie.

10. Skip The Foreplay – Champagne Showers (Originally by LMFAO)

Remember when every metalcore band covered a pop song? I do. Back in 2011, Quebec based trancecore group Skip The Foreplay covered LMFAO’s “Champagne Showers”, being a minor hit for the group. It had over a million views on YouTube and was included on their only album Nightlife, which Epitaph Records (The All-American Rejects, Mannequin Pussy, Quicksand) released. Oh, and this cover was the reason they got to tour with Lamb Of God, We Came As Romans, blessthefall, Falling In Reverse, and Abandon All Ships, plus an appearance on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour with Tonight Alive, Hostage Calm, and Impending Doom. If you’re curious about where they are now, they went defunct in 2014 and renamed themselves Now And On Earth. They went defunct again in 2015.

Part two will be posted later.

20 More Of The Weirdest Covers Ever Recorded (Part Two)

Better finish what I started.

Last year, I wrote a two–part article called “The 20 Weirdest Covers Ever Recorded.” When I wrote that, I did a lot of research trying to find the strangest covers you’ve (probably) never heard, such as singer/songwriter Adam French covering Millencolin’s “No Cigar,” Tori Amos’s haunting rendition of the Slayer classic “Raining Blood,” and Our Last Night butchering “Who Let The Dogs Out?” by Baha Men with help from the Baha Men.

However, as time went on, I found some more weird covers and felt that I had to make another one. And so, here it is, twenty more bizarre covers that were recorded.

As I mentioned in my previous articles, “I have to inform you that the songs on this list are covers that were recorded for a compilation, an album, or as a single. There will be no live covers on this list.” That is if I ever choose to do an article about the strangest live covers I’ve ever heard or seen.

This is part two. If you didn’t see part one, click here.

With that out of the way, let’s end this.

11. And Then There Were None – If You Had A Bad Time (Originally by Alkaline Trio)

A few years ago, I borrowed a CD from Jack Friend of ASHES. That CD was A Tribute To Alkaline Trio. It featured bands like Punchline, The Wonder Years, Allister, Into It. Over It., and Koji covering deep tracks and singles from the popular McHenry, Ill., punk group. However, there was one cover on this CD that I found bizarre: And Then There Were None’s rendition of “If You Had A Bad Time.” The original was a slow rock track and is a deep cut from Alkaline Trio’s ever-growing discography. So what was so weird about this cover? It sounds like One Direction singing it. No joke. Huge on poppy hooks, some guitar, and feels like it was made for Top 40 radio. I was shocked the first time I heard it and I’ve since grown to like it. It’s weird, but not bad.

12. Fall Out Boy feat. Missy Elliott – Ghostbusters (Originally by Ray Parker Jr.)

If you thought the 2016 Ghostbusters remake was bad, then you didn’t hear this track on the soundtrack. Whoever thought that Fall Out Boy and rapper Missy Elliott should collaborate on the beloved Ray Parker Jr. song should be shot. It’s beyond bad. If you actually wanna hear a decent cover of the song, just hear Walk The Moon’s version. They at least try to make it sound good.

13. NOFX – Vincent (by Don McLean)

Oh look, another Don McLean cover. On their version, NOFX give the acoustic folk song a punk retouch, doing it the way only NOFX can. It doesn’t even feel like it’s insulting the original, but instead feels as if they’re paying tribute to McLean in some way. But overall, what a weird song for NOFX to cover.

14. Scissor Sisters – Comfortably Numb (Originally by Pink Floyd)

Fucking why? This track from their self-titled debut record shows them putting a Bee Gees twist on this prog rock classic. Everything about this cover feels wrong. To quote someone on a YouTube video, “they managed to turn a very serious, angsty song about descending into madness into an ode to amyl nitrate.” There’s literally nothing more I can say about this. Fuck this shit.

15. The Story So Far – Wrightsville Beach (by A Loss For Words)

In 2012, now defunct clothing line Glamour Kills released a split 12″ featuring six bands on that year’s Glamour Kills Tour. Each band covered a song from another band on that tour, like The Wonder Years covering Into It. Over It., and vice versa. One of the most crazy covers on this record is the hardcore twist The Story So Far did to A Loss For Words’s “Wrightsville Beach.” The original pop-punk track gets reworked as a Terror song, going hard as all hell. Fun fact about this song: this was my first time ever listening to TSSF and I hated it. Once I listened to What You Don’t See, my opinion changed.

16. Set Your Goals – Put Yo Hood Up (by Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz)

Punk Goes Crunk is considered a gem. Artists like Forever The Sickest Kids, All Time Low, Say Anything, Hot Rod Circuit, and New Found Glory, covered rappers like 2Pac, OutKast, Skee-Lo, Rihanna, and Arrested Development. The craziness hits the fan the second the album begins, where easycore group Set Your Goals turn the Lil Jon track “Put Yo Hood Up” into a Star Wars song, featuring Yoda rapping the first verse and all “n-words” are replaced with “Jedi.” Dear God it’s insane.

17. I AM THE KID – Adam’s Song (Originally by Blink-182)

Many years ago I used to listen to fake Punk Goes albums on YouTube. There was this one song on the fake Punk Goes 90s 2 EP that just drove me bonkers: a metalcore version of the saddest Blink song ever recorded. The anti-suicide song gets an August Burns Red-ish makeover and it’s one of the most uncomfortable experiences I’ve had to, well, experience. Just why?

18. H2O – Someday I Suppose (by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones)

In 2011, hardcore punks H2O released a cover album titled Don’t Forget Your Roots. On it, they cover Bad Brains, 7 Seconds, Rancid, Dag Nasty, and Sick Of It All. Yet their rendition of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones’s “Someday I Suppose” just falls flat. Maybe it’s the fact that maybe some ska-punk songs don’t translate well without horns or the well-known riffs. It instead feels like some generic punk rock song. Overall, H2O’s cover feels kinda hollow, but it could be worse, right?

19. Duran Duran – 911 Is A Joke (Originally by Public Enemy)

Why? How the fuck do you make “911 Is A Joke” by rap group Public Enemy sound like a long lost Beck track? I don’t know but that’s what Duran Duran did on their version from their panned album Thank You. 911 may be a joke, but this cover is a bigger joke.

20. Veil Of Maya – Sunday Bloody Sunday (Originally by U2)

Remember the video game Homefront? One of the many promotions the game did was a soundtrack filled with several protest songs covered by metal bands. You had As I Lay Dying doing “War Ensemble” by Slayer, IWRESTLEDABEARONCE covering Muse’s “Uprising,” Arsonists Get All The Girls’s rendition of Bob Dylan’s “Masters Of War,” and, for some fucking reason, Winds Of Plague covering “For What It’s Worth” by Buffalo Springfield. Simply put, the whole album’s a mess, so it’s kinda hard to pick the worst of the worst. So let’s just go with Veil Of Maya’s rendition of U2’s “Sunday Bloody Sunday.” Trust me when I say that it’s a complete clusterfuck. No wonder the game flopped.

Here’s What’s Available For Record Store Day 2019

It’s here!

The twelfth annual Record Store Day is taking place Saturday, April 13, and the list for what’s available that day was released earlier today. Artists like Elton John, U2, Gorillaz, The Menzingers, Janis Joplin, Basement, The Used, Pepper, Justin Courtney Pierre, and Foo Fighters, will be releasing special records for the event. The whole list can be found here.

Soundtracks will also be released for RSD. Movies like The Crow (The Cure, Nine Inch Nails, Rage Against The Machine), Lost In Translation (Kevin Shields, Phoenix, My Bloody Valentine), Coneheads (Soft Cell, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Barenaked Ladies), Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse (Juice WRLD, Aminé, Post Malone), and the first three Transformers films (Linkin Park, Taking Back Sunday, Goo Goo Dolls, Paramore, My Chemical Romance, Black Veil Brides, Green Day, Nickelback, The All-American Rejects), will all get vinyl pressings for the first time ever.

As said earlier, Record Store Day is Saturday, April 13.