What music are you listening to?

First Aid Kit are a perfect group to cover pretty much anything McVie wrote, but that is just gorgeous. And it looks like they just did it in a dressing room or something.

Quote by Mendalla

First Aid Kit are a perfect group to cover pretty much anything McVie wrote, but that is just gorgeous. And it looks like they just did it in a dressing room or something.

I love their music, and that stripped-down cover was a nice surprise to stumble upon.

First Aid Kit - Ready to Run (Official Video)

Three cellos, drums, and one of the most magnificent voices in rock. What a combo when Apocalyptica teams with Dutch singer Simone Simons of the band Epica.

I like Silver Lining by First Aid Kit. My other half keeps saying it's a rip-off of Miley Cyrus' Nothin' Breaks Like a Heart.

Same type of song but not the same in my humble opinion.

This dropped into my YouTube box yesterday. As soon as I heard it it made the hairs on my neck stand on end.

Lívstræðrir by Eivør. From the TV show, The Last Kingdom.

Oh Helga Natt - Tommy Johansson

Quote by AnnaMayZing

Oh Helga Natt - Tommy Johansson

And Tommy singing it in the familiar English version. This was his final Christmas video for this year. I am not usually crazy about rock and pop singers singing this one. It really needs a voice with a some range and skill. However, between Tommy's two versions and Floor Jansen's performance of the Finnish version from a few years back, I am realizing that the better metal singers can pull it off.

Quote by Mendalla

And Tommy singing it in the familiar English version. This was his final Christmas video for this year. I am not usually crazy about rock and pop singers singing this one. It really needs a voice with a some range and skill. However, between Tommy's two versions and Floor Jansen's performance of the Finnish version from a few years back, I am realizing that the better metal singers can pull it off.

I wonder if it is because metal singers do have the power it needs.

This was the version that made me fall in love with it, even without Karen's wonderful voice.

A favorite New Year's tune from an old favorite band. The reference to "end of '89" is problematic for covering it today, I guess, but it's otherwise a good song for the occasion.

Quote by Mendalla

A favorite New Year's tune from an old favorite band. The reference to "end of '89" is problematic for covering it today, I guess, but it's otherwise a good song for the occasion.

Can't top that, Scott. If you hadn't done it, I would have. Happy New Year. 🥂🍾

But I can add this, from the same Album;

Actually, my favorite from that album (which I consider to be their best, though The Visitors, their criminally underrated final album of their original run, comes damn close) is

Amberian Dawn, a Finnish metal band (yes, Finland produces a lot of those) is about to drop an album of ABBA covers. Apparently they are big fans. This song originally appeared on Super Trouper as well and Dawn's cover actually predates the album project.

My favourite is from Abba - The Album

I found this, a metal version of Eagle by Thrakonia. Ok, it's a fair effort but it just doesn't work for me. I suppose I like the original too much.

Tom Waits - "Old Shoes (& Picture Postcards)"

Ralph McTell - Streets of London

Lully Lulla Lullay (French) - Philip Stopford

Jean-Michel Jarre - Rendevous. This was a fantastic concert from London's Docklands before they were redeveloped with all the fancy skyscrapers. The 'stage' was a barge, moored on the River Thames.

Fourth solo single from Floor Jansen has PTSD as its theme. A full solo album looms in a couple months. The percussion and pulsing strings really drive this one forward, with some of the Floor's best singing yet in her burgeoning solo career.

And since I've been away, here's a twofer. Swiss singer Melissa Bonny's band Ad Infinitum is also dropping a new album in March and continues to impress with the prerelease singles.

First Aid Kit - Wild Horses II (Live in London)

Not usually a fan of Leann Rimes, but this one really grabbed me when she dropped the original video. This is a live performance from Luke Evans : Showtime, a concert video that she was a guest on.

From the superb pairing of Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris, All The Road Running

The "Made in New Orleans" playlist on Amazon Music. Both for inspiration and to remind of my time there.

Having seen a few band 'videos' from Wacken 2013, that must have been one heck of a weekend! Here is the Alice Cooper Band.

10 Guitar solos from Emppu Vuorinen of Nightwish

Speaking of a certain Finnish symphonic metal band, they revived a song that has been off their setlists for 17 years when they played Amsterdam on the European tour last Fall. Fulfilling a promise made by lead singer Floor Jansen to her friend and duet partner Henk Poort, they performed "The Phantom of the Opera" by Andrew Lloyd Webber for the first time since 2005 with Henk joining in on the male part. Henk actually sang the role on stage many years ago so knows the piece well and Floor has done it with him many times since they first performed it together in 2019 so this is a wonderful performance all round.

In the original Nightwish cover (they originally covered it for their album Century Child and also performed it live in concerts after that album came out), it was original lead singer Tarja Turunen and bassist-vocalist Marko Hietala and the live video of it from their live DVD End of an Era is also wonderful.