Awesome Music

Musician Samurai Guitarist created this unusual, but somehow just right cover version of the familiar Russian style theme song from the arcade classic, Tetris. We just wanted to shout Rawhide! at the end.

Musician Rob Scallon demonstrates how to play a compelling tune with just a single guitar fret. Sure, he does a whole lot of string bending, but we’re still impressed with the versatility of that one little metal bar.

The 1971 Yes track Roundabout is one of the most epic and complicated rock tunes of all time, with 43 different parts. YouTuber Friday Night Lullaby rose to the challenge, recreating each and every component himself, including the richly layered vocals.

Before a performance back in 2012, the Polish string quartet Altra Volta found this noisy faucet in a restroom backstage. Their violinist Jacek Dzwonowski decided to go with the flow, turning in an awesome bit of improv.

(PG-13: Language) Ever heard Drake with the Wii Shop Channel? How about Kendrick Lamar with Mega Man, or Nas with K.K. Slider? Because they’re all great things that go great together, as proven by 14-year-old beatmaker Toonlink.

(PG-13: Language) “A bunch of girls do it and the s**t looks fun. That’s how they do it where we from.” Missy returns with the help of Pharell’s ice cream beat, throwing shade at the artists and fans who promote a sexualized caricature of hip-hop culture, particularly its dance moves.

A few weeks ago, the Brett Domino Trio asked YouTubers to submit parts for a collaborative song. They picked 50 contributions for surprisingly cohesive and enjoyable the final piece. That clapping man has seen some stuff.

Brightly colored plants overrun a world in the music video for Slowly Rising. The song is from Full Circle, the debut album of Dutch beat maker Bastiaan van der Vlist aka Beatsofreen. Director Hideki Inaba says the song made him think of the sun and its life-giving power.

Our arm is sore from just watching musician Patrick Mathis turn the crank on this vintage instrument called a Barrel Organ. But what makes it more compelling is the track being played – Michael Jackson’s Smooth Criminal. His Miles Davis is pretty awesome too.

Musician Ian Ethan Case previews a bit of his new album Run Toward the Mountains, as his fingers fly across all 18 strings of his double-necked guitar. At times, his hands were moving so fast, we thought he was Doc Ock. The 92-minute double album drops 11/24/15.

Jazz virtuosos The Bad Plus perform their cover of Aphex Twin’s Flim live. It’s not our favorite cover song by The Bad Plus, but the video is definitive proof that drummer Dave King has a sequencer in his brain.

The 12th volume of Bob Dylan’s Bootleg series, The Cutting Edge 1965-1966 features unreleased songs and outtakes from that miraculous 14-month period in which Dylan recorded Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde. Also on digital.

Steve Onotera aka samuraiguitarist created a chill cover of Cher’s Believe by playing one instrument after another and then layering the resulting tracks to create a single song and a single video.

The ladies of Saturday Night Live break bad in this hilarious parody of M.I.A.’s 2012 Bad Girls music video. And if you complain about it being a dated reference, these girls will hunt you down and mess you up.

Awesomer faves Postmodern Jukebox and Puddles Pity Party collaborated on this larger than life cover version of Coldplay’s 2008 hit Viva La Vida, led off by the inimitable vocal stylings of everyone’s favorite sad clown with the golden voice.

On her latest album, Claire Boucher aka Grimes goes for a seemingly more radio-friendly approach than her past tracks. But give it a chance and you’ll find it to be as fresh as her previous efforts, loaded with jabs at critics and the music industry itself.

UK retailer John Lewis once again has bestowed us with a touching holiday ad, going for the feels with a story about a little girl who spots a man living on the Moon, and who could really use some Christmas cheer. The track is Half the World Away, an Oasis cover by Aurora.

Musician Lucjan Drewicz lets his fingers fly across the keys and buttons on his instrument, turning in an insanely fast performance of a Brazilian track called Tico-Tico no Fubá. He’s not as fast as this guy, but his performance is more nuanced.

We have no idea why, but Jimmy Fallon, Meghan Trainor, writer/comedian Jacob Reed, and Alanis Morissette herself decided to perform her 1995 classic Ironic not just dressed as giant chickens, but they clucked the entire tune. BAWK!

Musician and sculptor Andy Thurlow has created not just one or two, but dozens of unique musical instruments, each of which makes strange and unusual sounds. He says he built them because he was tired of everything else sounding the same.

Musician Chad Neidt performs a rapid-fire medley of every James Bond theme – at least for the official flicks – there’s no Never Say Never Again, and we’re okay with that. And 1967’s Casino Royale had no lyrics, though we would have liked to hear Chad hum it.

Musician Martha Psyko performs rock and metal tunes on her electric violin. From AC/DC’s Thunderstruck to GNR’s Sweet Child O’ Mine to Bon Jovi’s Livin’ on a Prayer, to Metallica’s Master of Puppets, she knows her way around a fiddle. Her Misirlou ain’t bad either.

Just in time for Bohemian Rhapsody‘s 40th anniversary, Bandai’s S.H. Figuarts has released an action figure of Queen’s frontman in his now iconic Wembley concert outfit. It comes with three pairs of hands, two faces, a microphone and a mic stand.