Awesome Alternative

When he’s not creating cool originals, musician Xkaii performs unique arrangements of popular and alternative songs that blend vocals with cello. The balance between his warm, soulful voice and string sounds is truly captivating. Be sure to check out his covers of Mad World, Creep, Pumped Up Kicks, and Where Is My Mind?

All the time you spent, you gotta be running from your head. The music video for Wand’s track JJ drops us into a world where creatures procreate in the strangest way. Vernon Chatman & lilfuchs‘ animated clip could be interpreted in many ways, but we think it has something to do with a creator building a world and ultimately being rejected by those he gave life to.

With tracks like Clint Eastwood, Feel Good Inc., and DARE in their catalog, Gorillaz has made some great music. Throughout most of its history, only two things remained constant – musician Damon Albarn, and artist Jamie Hewlett, who brought the group’s image and backstory to life. Music Vibe explores the history of the band, its characters, and its collaborators.

A24’s Talking Heads tribute album Everyone’s Getting Involved turned out to be a mixed bag. But it did give us this wonderful cover from Ohio’s indie rock legends, The National. Matt Berninger’s distinctive tired-but-still-fighting voice and the weighty drums give the song a more somber and nostalgic vibe. We actually like it more than the original.

Lorde provides her take on Talking Heads’ cover of Al Green’s Take Me to the River. It’s chill and minimalist, but you can still chicken bop to it. The single is part of A24’s upcoming tribute album, which will feature covers of songs that Talking Heads played in their 1984 concert fil Stop Making Sense. The list of artists is on A24’s Instagram page.

On 3.11.2024, NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concert dropped this excellent short performance by alt-rock band 311. Lead singer Nick Hexum and his bandmates sound as good as ever, with a four-song set that includes Beautiful Disaster, All Mixed Up, Amber, and Down. We always loved the way they blened rock, reggae, and funk sounds.

Musician Alex Melton is known for taking popular songs and changing up their genres. His cover of Van Halen’s Jump is unlike any we’ve heard before. His toned-down indie pop arrangement of the track imagines what the song might have been like if John Mayer or Hozier sang it. Melton’s version could totally be a hit on its own merits.

The twangy sound of a pedal steel guitar is invariably associated with country and bluegrass. But as Noah Faulkner proves, it’s perfectly capable of playing alternative and pop music in the hands of the proper musician. Sit back, click play, and enjoy his covers of Depeche Mode’s Enjoy the Silence, the Cure’s Just Like Heaven, and Don’t Dream Iit’s Over by Crowded House.

Radiohead and The Smiths are both English bands, and they’ve both taken up political and social causes in their music. But sonically, they couldn’t be more different – until now. Musician Desmond Doom took the restrained sounds of No Surprises and gave it the jangly guitar and vocal stylings of This Charming Man.

The Foo Fighters’ tune Everlong is damned near perfect the way it was recorded back in 1997. But if you slow it down to just the right speed, it might even be better. Maybe it’s just that we get to enjoy the song a little longer, but ARK’s speed-adjusted version of the track is simply stellar.

1980s and 1990s music fans will remember MTV’s 120 Minutes as the go-to show for the latest in alternative music. Thanks to fan Chris Reynolds, there’s now a YouTube playlist featuring the more than 2500 music videos that ran on the show between 1986 and 2003. We’re assuming he had a little help from this website.

“It’s been a long time since I made a new friend… waiting on another black summer to end.” The Red Hot Chili Peppers just dropped their first new song in six years. The intro track off their album Unlimited Love also marks the return of producer Rick Rubin and guitarist John Frusciante. The album drops 4.1.22.

(Flashing Images) Filmmaker Páraic McGloughlin’s abstract music video serves as the perfect complement to the driving rhythm and headphone-worthy sounds of Weval’s track Someday. The imagery and sounds reflect the fragility of our planet, and humanity’s desire to hold on.

Come for another enveloping tune by alt-folk singer/songwriter Tom Rosenthal, stay for the fantastic and eyecatching visuals by animator/illustrator Chloe Jackson, who blends a sort of 1970s Yellow Submarine sensibility with something uniquely her own.

“Have you ever seen a prawn cause a world war?” Indie pop band Superorganism brought their irresistibly cute music and performance to NPR Music. They played The Prawn Song, Night Time and Something for Your M.I.N.D., all from their self-titled album.

“How does it feel, to be your own deceiver? Signals raised, then lost to the aether.” People hide from an omnipresent light before succumbing to it in the music video for Son Lux’s Dangerous, from their awesome post-truth protest EP Remedy.