A.V. Club Undercover

If you're a careful follower of A.V. Undercover, you'll know that "One More Try" by George Michael is not actually on this year's list. Here's what happened: Iron And Wine's Sam Beam chose "Islands In The Stream" to cover, and had a special guest lined up to sing with him. That special guest couldn't make it at the last minute, and rather than have Sam pick a different song from the list, we let him play one that he'd been itching to do anyway (and a song that feels completely in the spirit of Undercover). We're hoping against hope that Iron And Wine and their special duet guest can come back before the end of the run and perform "Islands In The Stream" as sort of a bonus track. In the meantime: SPOILER ALERT! Though Iron And Wine was the first band to choose a song, they weren't the first to perform. So if you want to spoil some upcoming surprises, look closely at the wall. If you don't, then don't squint. Oh, and yes, that's Marketa Irglova from Undercover alums The Swell Season singing backup here!

For his cover of LCD Soundsystem's unstoppable "All My Friends," Baths--a.k.a. Will Wiesenfeld--asked us to procure him a piano. We immediately knew that his version wouldn't be terribly similar to Baths' excellent debut album, Cerulean, which wraps pop in gauzy electronic washes. No, Will stripped the song to its essence, asking his friend and tourmate Dexter--of the band Houses--to provide some truly organic percussion.

Dum Dum Girls' massively catchy debut album I Will Be ranked as our 13th favorite album of 2010, so we were delighted when these cool-as-ice ladies agreed to stop by the office and play us a cover. We were doubly delighted that they chose "September Gurls" by Big Star, because then we can say dumb stuff like "Girls play 'Gurls'." Okay, maybe not. In any case, please enjoy this performance.

Nobody planned it this way, but it worked out nicely that Providence, Rhode Island's The Low Anthem would tackle Wilco's classic "A Shot In The Arm" for Undercover. Though there are plenty of heirs apparent to Wilco's crossover-Americana charm, TLA seem like particularly strong candidates based on an already-impressive discography. (The Low Anthem's latest, Smart Flesh, was even released by Nonesuch, Wilco's home until very recently.) Enjoy.

We wouldn't have guessed that New Jersey's mighty Titus Andronicus would tackle They Might Be Giants 1990 quirk-pop classic "Birdhouse In Your Soul," but apparently they're big fans of the song. Of course, they didn't give "Birdhouse" a particular straight reading: They start by sampling Charles Bukowski's "Bluebird" before careening into the song. If you don't already own last year's The Monitor--one of The A.V. Club's favorites of 2010--you should remedy that post-haste. Watch for contemplative Rodney at 1:58. Enjoy!

Yes, we're well aware that you voted for this year's Undercover to include only bands that hadn't played last year. But if you look at the numbers carefully, you'll see that lots of people (47%) were okay with returning acts, particularly if they were one of the top vote-getters from last year. But really the reason we wanted to invite Baltimore duo Wye Oak back into the round room is that they're awesome. Their new album is called Civilian, and it's an early-ish contender for best of the year in at least one book around here. And oh man, Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack (along with Callers' Don "Donzig" Godwin on tenor horn) didn't disappoint. They tackled Danzig's "Mother" with exactly the amount of seriousness it deserves. Jenn even wore a special black hoodie and allowed herself to be temporarily tattooed in an homage to the former Misfits frontman. This song was chosen for Undercover by way of reader suggestion: About six of you thought it would be a good one, and you were right. (Oh, by the way, Wye Oak will be the only repeat performer from last year. Respect.)

Is Michael Benjamin Lerner our first drummer/lead singer? He just might be. The Telekinesis mainman released his second album, 12 Desperate Straight Lines, earlier this year, and it was once again expertly produced by Death Cab For Cutie's Chris Walla--and performed largely by Lerner himself. But you can't fuzz-pop that hard by yourself, so Lerner recruited Jason Narducy (who's played in both Bob Mould and Robert Pollard's bands, in addition to Verbow) and Cody Votolato (who used to tear it up in Blood Brothers) for his most recent live lineup. Together, they brought a bit of crunch to Belle & Sebastian's fantastic tale of... love? Paranoia? Anyway, "Like Dylan In The Movies" and Telekinesis. Together at last.

Rocky Votolato started his rock life in earnest in the mid-'90s with the band Waxwing, which also included his brother Cody--currently of recent Undercover alums Telekinesis. But the quiet life called more strongly, and Rocky took to a solo career filled with more gentle sounds. Matt Pond PA is a band led by singer-songwriter Matt Pond (you follow?). Rocky and Matt recently toured together, and we asked them to collaborate for Undercover. They chose The Human League's undeniable 1981 smash "Don't You Want Me," with Rocky deciding that Matt would play the role of the lady in this tumultuous relationship. We think you'll find it swell.

You may recognize three of the four people in today's session as Retribution Gospel Choir, one of A.V. Undercover's earliest participants and bravest re-interpreters of cheesy '80s hits. This time, as Low--which in its current incarnation is all of Retribution Gospel plus singer/drummer Mimi Parker--they've decided to tackle "Africa," the 1982 smash hit by Toto with the, umm, incredibly distinctive lyrics. (Worst offender: "I know that I must do what's right / sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti.") They tried to blame me for daring them to try it, but I think you'll agree that Low takes "Africa" and brings something special to it. And if you haven't seen the original video, you owe it to yourself, if only to see a bunch of bad haircuts playing on top of a stack of books. Low's latest album is C'mon, and you should check it out.

Chicago's Smith Westerns released their second album, Dye It Blonde, earlier this year, which is a fairly remarkable achievement considering how young they are. The band's sound tips toward glammy stuff like T. Rex, though for A.V. Undercover, they nabbed the salt-of-the-earth Tom Petty classic "American Girl." Oh yeah, all right, take it easy baby.

We didn't know what to expect when psych-influenced, Technicolor indie-rockers Of Montreal chose The White Stripes' straightforward, superquick "Fell In Love With A Girl" to cover. Would they fill the room with DayGlo colors and twist the song into a ten-minute jam? They most assuredly would not. Here's another side of Of Montreal: a four-piece capable of rocking the crap out of modern garage-rock classic. Enjoy.

Sharon Van Etten is no stranger to cover songs: Hers have been on the receiving end of tributes by Bon Iver, among others. Here, the Jersey-born singer-songwriter--who has two stunning albums out, Because I Was In Love and Epic--invited her tourmates Ari and Laurel (a.k.a. Little Scream) to help out on a slow-burning cover of Fine Young Cannibals' 1989 smash hit "She Drives Me Crazy." Rather than imitate Roland Gift's weird falsetto, Van Etten goes slightly twangy, with predictably fantastic results. Enjoy.

When we heard from John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats that the band had chosen Jawbreaker's 1994 classic of punk-scene angst, "Boxcar," to cover for us, we were tickled. When they actually came in and played it, we were delighted. Though the band-song pairing seems a little incongruous, it actually makes a lot of sense: Both Jawbreaker and The Mountain Goats were/are led by literate guys who like to put their feelings right out there, naked. It just so happens that this song is an indictment of the kind of holier-than-thou punk attitudes that Darnielle probably can't relate to personally. Which makes it all the more fun to see and hear him rock the lines: "You're not punk, and I'm telling everyone" and "One, two, three four, who's punk, what's the score?" Sharp-eared fans will note a couple of lyrical changes, made perhaps so that Darnielle could relate to the song better. And sharp-eyed fans will recognize drummer Jon Wurster in his second Undercover performance, the first being Superchunk's version of "In Between Days."

We knew when we asked Parts & Labor to choose a song for A.V. Undercover that the result would likely sound pretty different from the original, no matter what the experimental NYC rock band chose to do. We were excited that they accepted the challenge of Kanye West's "Runaway," a modern classic we figured most bands would see as too great a challenge. Singer B.J. Warshaw told us that they skipped the verses that they "couldn't reasonably sing honestly"--which left them mostly with choruses. (They're right: The line about dick photos would sound silly coming from almost anybody but Kanye.) In any case, we hope you'll enjoy this partly manic, partly chill interpretation. Parts & Labor's latest album is Constant Future, and it's a corker.

When the young Floridians in Surfer Blood chose the Pixies classic "Gigantic" for A.V. Undercover, we assumed that one of them would just have to come up with a falsetto. Instead, they recruited their friend Sarah Baldwin--drummer for The Girls At Dawn--to take the lead. We hope you enjoy it, as you're probably already enjoying Surfer Blood's debut, Astro Coast.

The guys from ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead asked us if they could do Undercover, but they didn't exactly understand the concepts. E-mails were exchanged, pitching songs that weren't on our master list. Finally, when they suggested doing this Indigo Girls song, we decided to stop trying to explain the concept and just have them do it. (They were sharing a bus with Surfer Blood anyway, so they weren't far away.) And thus we have... an Undercover bonus track. And we have a really nice drawing on the wall of the round room. Enjoy.

When the gentlemen of Sloan were setting up in the round room, they lamented all of the songs they would've liked to have performed, including Billy Squier's "Everybody Wants You." But they landed on Gary Numan's only real American hit, 1979's "Cars." It's perfect, though, since Numan is currently celebrating the 30th anniversary of the album that spawned "Cars," The Pleasure Principle. Sloan is no slouch in the longevity department, either: The Canadian band has been together since 1991, and just released its 10th album, The Double Cross. It's been met with some of the best reviews of Sloan's career, including an A- right here at The A.V. Club.

As you may recall, They Might Be Giants’ “Birdhouse In Your Soul” was on this year’s Undercover list, and was tackled by Titus Andronicus. Many vocal commenters weren’t too fond of the version—though we got a bunch of e-mails from people who liked it. One of those people was They Might Be Giants’ John Flansburgh, who offered up his band’s services for a rendition of Chumbawamba’s “Tubthumping.” Flansburgh also had the brilliant idea of recruiting backup singers from our office to sing/shout the chorus. He asked me to determine how many people we could fit in that room—it was 16, plus two camera men, plus the band—and on Memorial Day, TMBG made a special stop in Chicago to perform the song. Needless to say, when I set about finding A.V. Club staffers and friends to populate the room, nerdgasms abounded: You’ll see Tasha Robinson, Genevieve Koski, Kyle Ryan, and new web producer Sarah Collins in the room. Oh, and Pop Pilgrims co-host Dan Telfer! And a special appearance by my baby boy Jasper! (You may notice that the lights are a little low in the round room, both for atmosphere and to keep things cooler.) Anyway, we think this one’s epic, and we think you will, too. They Might Be Giants’ new album, Join Us, will be released on July 19. It doesn’t feature “Tubthumping,” but it’s awesome nonetheless.

The Get Up Kids didn't have to go far to choose from the list of this year's Undercover songs: The longtime Blur fans had already been playing a bit of that band's "Girls And Boys" during their sound checks. The cheeky track originally appeared on the excellent album Parklife in 1994, just before The Get Up Kids started playing music in Kansas City, Missouri. Although the band would become most associated with the second wave of emo, The Get Up Kids have always specialized in a kind of hooky power-pop that isn't as far removed from Blur as it may appear—and this year's There Are Rules finds the band expanding its sound.

It might seem like singer-songwriter Matt Nathanson came out of nowhere with "Come On Get Higher"--a song that's graced many a TV show--but he's been releasing albums since the early '90s, flirting with big success for years and years. In recent years, he's toured with everyone from Sugarland to Maroon 5, which makes him perhaps the most mainstream artist ever to grace our round room. But that doesn't mean Nathanson doesn't have great taste: His repertoire of covers includes a bunch of Prince songs, plus a bang-up version of James' "Laid." Here, he tackles "Little Red Corvette," acknowledging upfront that he doesn't have quite the funk of the song's originator, but nailing it just the same. Nathanson's latest album is Modern Love.

When we saw that Bob Mould was coming through Chicago, we couldn't resist inviting him in to perform his own song: "If I Can't Change Your Mind" from Sugar's classic 1992 debut, Copper Blue. Mould, who also fronted the legendary Husker Du, just released his autobiography, See A Little Light. He's had an amazing career that just continues to bloom, and it's a fascinating journey to read about. (You knew he was a writer for World Championship Wrestling, right?) Anyway, the big question here was whether this performance should count as a cover, since Mould wrote it. We decided to let Bob figure that out, though based on his self-deprecating interview—he couldn't have been more gracious or fun at this taping—it's not exactly clear what the answer was.

We were all set to cross “If I Can’t Change Your Mind” off the master list after Bob Mould came in and told us it definitely counted as a cover when he played it. But the list was still out with The Decemberists, who agreed to play a song after we badgered singer-guitarist Colin Meloy on Twitter. When they asked if the Sugar classic was still available, we figured it wouldn’t hurt to have another version. Where Mould went solo-electric (and sang the little guitar bit at the end), Meloy and his current merry band—minus longtime member Jenny Conlee, who is battling breast cancer—decided to go with the five-man-acoustical-jam setup, the second Undercover performer to do so. The band’s performance at the Aragon that night was fantastic, and likely its last concert around here for a while, since Mr. Meloy will apparently be concentrating on his writing career for a bit.

It was a rocky road getting to “Janie Jones.” Let me tell you some tales out of school. (The bands involved won’t care.) First, The Dismemberment Plan expressed interest in playing the song, very early in the series, but couldn’t make it work with schedules. Then, Wild Flag claimed the song, 24 hours before Against Me! said they wanted it. It was painful to have to deny the Florida punk band, and nothing else on the list really interested them. Then Wild Flag had to bow out due to a scheduling conflict, and the Against Me! dudes were gracious enough to step back in and slay “Janie Jones.” What a great song.

Basia Bulat and Ted Leo’s fantastic “Where Have All The Rude Boys Gone” aren’t the most obvious match. Bulat is a gentle folkie, but it’s probably fair to call Leo a folk singer as well, though far more fiery than that word usually implies. But Bulat, who frequently plays an autoharp, clearly loves the song. (As the song itself goes, “Someone sang me through it.”) We think you’ll like this version, too.

Intrepid Undercover watchers already noticed that Huey Lewis' "The Power Of Love" had been scrawled on our wall, autographed by awesome shredder Marnie Stern, for a couple of months. In the first (and hopefully last) case of Undercover technical difficulties, that session basically turned out unusable. We apologize to Ms. Stern and her band. But in stepped The Hold Steady, who you readers angrily insisted we get in here for a session anyway. They felt the power, they felt the power of love, and now they've passed it along to you. Ladies and gentlemen, The Hold Steady.

Although Otis Redding has basically owned the song since 1966, the history of “Try A Little Tenderness” begins more than three decades earlier as a much more staid love song composed by a trio of professional songwriters. But it quickly became a go-to song for other performers, and in the many years since, it’s been reinterpreted by everyone from Bing Crosby to Three Dog Night. So it’s only natural that Peter Bjorn And John join the tradition in our little round room while touring to support their latest album, Gimme Some. How will three white guys from Sweden handle one of the staple songs of American soul music? Take a look.

Because we are loathe to offer you repeat performers (excepting the exceptional Wye Oak), we've tried to bring all new bands to Undercover this year. But because of some van trouble, a band that shall remain nameless couldn't make their appointment with the round room. But in stepped the lovely voice and sunny personality of Eric Johnson and The Fruit Bats--or a stripped-down version thereof. You'll find this trio (which includes guest Dan Hindman of Vetiver) a different animal than the full outfit that covered Hall & Oates for us last year. Johnson hadn't heard "The Other Woman" (which was written by Betty Sue Perry and made famous-ish by Loretta Lynn) before accepting the challenge of the final slot, but he nailed it just the same. Enjoy! At some point this week we'll be asking you to vote on your favorite Undercover of the year...