As a rule, I very much dislike covers. I do not like playing them, I do not like listening to them, I often irrationally feel somewhat slighted when I find out a song that I really enjoy is actually a cover. Despite my rational brain, I just have a personal distaste for hearing someone butcher another person’s art by half-ass learning it just to get a huge round of "woos" when it comes around to chorus that everyone knows.

Now, before you get all twisted, I also know there are many, many exceptions to this. I know how pop music works. I understand the game. I really do. I actually have a long-standing conspiracy theory that the pop music industry is just some elaborate Wizard of Oz-esque hoax. Just one tired old mindless robot of a man hunched over in a room with no windows cranking out the next "Call Me Maybe" or "Starships."  But, I’ll save that for another blog post.

Regardless, when a cover is pulled off correctly, it accentuates and elevates the original piece of music. It tips its hat to the original spirit while bringing in a new and exciting flavor. I suppose I can even make myself admit that covers can be an art unto themselves.

For a recent compilation by our friends over at Kill Your TV, James Christos and Wurm & the Madness surely reinforce that. The track is called "Revolt (Off the Wall)."  Originally performed by James Christos (James D’ Conqueror) featuring Ava Bella, it is 3 minutes and 35 seconds of high-energy, sub-busting, dance-infused hip-hop. Christos’ precise and cutting verses lay a solid groundwork upon which Bella fiercely drives the hook with a soulful, sassy and scalding vocal that jumps off the track. It is lively, fun and accessible, even for a whiter-than-white-bread boy like me. I will freely admit I don’t often listen to a lot of hip-hop, but I would if it all sounded as good as this.

So, along comes Wurm & the Madness. They describe themselves as an art rap outfit. Philosophical and/or indie hip-hop would be another good descriptor. Revolt is a pretty straight forward party song, so I was certainly intrigued to hear what they would do with this track.

Driven by a verby and textured acoustic guitar, their take on the song wanders towards the Portishead or Soul Coughing direction. However, it’s not all folk and mirrors, as the track is accompanied by a most definite electronic percussion element and what I’m guessing is a distorted bass. Wurm’s verses drip with piss and vinegar, gradually building an aura of distress and tension. Kitten, the female half of Wurm & the Madness, handles more vocally than just hook duties and is often paired with Wurm’s half-spoken/half-sung vocals to great spooky effect.

The duo manages to transform the party song into a slow anxious stumble down a dimly-lit hallway, the masked killer certain to prey from the shadows at any moment. Occasionally the hook comes around to provide a strip of light to see by, but then quickly back into the dark and psychological. Wurm & the Madness’s version is the Saw trap that the original song got put into.

Both versions of "Revolt (Off the Wall)" are phenomenal in their own right. Even beyond that, both of these artists are certainly worth checking out. Christos may be one of the hardest working music people in this town.

In addition, Kill Your TV KC has a whole compilation of covers in the works. Locals covering locals. Keep your ears open as that gets updated. I hope all the efforts that come out of it are as good as these.

Other songs on the Kill Your TV KC Cover Up Series currently include:

• "Go Down, Baldwin City, KS" by Ddean Cassidy, covered by The Dirty Fingers
• "Ghost Movie.Octopus Girl" by The Black Bullet Promise, covered by The Swing
• "#4" by Kitten Tits, covered by Merriweather
• "Freak Out" by The Quivers, covered by Vitae and The Pale Horse
• "Rushmore" by Merriweather, covered by Kitten Tits

–-Zach Hodson

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Natureboy does that impossible thing that people cutting their teeth exclusively on kosher diets of classic rock n’ roll will never be able to understand: re-imagining rock into something that sounds entirely new. Natureboy is the brainchild of Sara Kermanshahi, a first generation American of Iranian descent. None of this matters when you listen to the music of course, but it might help explain some of the magic that Natureboy brings.

On new record ‘The Sweep,’ Kermanshahi channels her border-crossing background toward ecstatic delivery, guiding her spirit through erupting waves of vocal intensity in tracks that cover all the bases, from ‘Blow to the Head’ to ‘Head to Toe.’ On this record (and especially when seen on stage), it’s obvious Natureboy means every word. As proved by this artist, sometimes you only need to listen to someone outside your Spotify playlist to understand what’s really possible for music. You can see her when she plays Joe’s Pub on September 16th – Mike Levine (@Goldnuggets)

Like some kind of critical exercise, or perhaps only for the aesthetic nuances, Howth took their music to three different spaces, from the studio to ‘Blake’s place’ to the stage, to expose through the recording of their latest EP Secret Goldmine the differences in textures, effects and ambiances that occur from one environment to the next. A heartfelt declaration may seem somewhat sterile when compared to the intimacy of a home recording, the sound of the live will lose in depth as it bounces further away, etc. Every track finds its own strength. Having spent the last month on the roads, touring the US to promote this new record – their second EP, closely following a second album they released in May – the band will soon be heading back to Brooklyn, where you can catch them for their homecoming show at Cameo Gallery on Saturday (8.25).

Has New York stumbled upon our own verson of The Swell Season? A City On A Lake is taking a stab at providing us with that special dialogue particular to the young and in love. A soft meditation on lessons learned and love found, Alex Wong’s latest song ‘Oceanside‘ will gently rock you back and forth through its lilting violins, lullaby harmonies, and moonlit rhythms. For the song, singer/songwriter Wong recruited Mexican rocker Ximena Sariñana to provide the tune’s opposite voice, and the pair perform beautifully together. Check out the new video below & see him play this Thursday (8.23) at Rockwood Music Hall – Mike Levine (@Goldnuggets)

Featured in our latest Deli NYC print edition (here!), art pop quartet Conveyor released a couple of weeks ago a first self-titled full-length album; one of those rare records that can display so wide a range of sonic experimentation without ever seeming to find the process self-sufficient, Conveyor is a deliciously rich combination of lush harmonies and offset rhythms, flowing gracefully whilst leaving you on a constant vital edge. Any second the tingling melody could turn to roaring freakout, an acoustic introduction could pull you suddenly into a shimmering fusion of electronic sounds… Long story short (you can find out more in a recent Deli interview with the band here), to watch the magic happen on stage, don’t miss them tomorrow evening (8.22) for their homecoming show at Brooklyn’s Glasslands Gallery!