Tim: A cover of a Blondie classic from two Swedish dancepop veterans, what could go wrong?
Tom: I mean, honestly, a lot of things, but sure, let’s tempt fate. What could go wrong?
Tim: Very little, it turns out. When I first heard it, I thought “hang on, have they actually done anything to this”, but then I relistened to the original for the first time in ages and realised that it’s a lot less energetic than I remember it being, and this has taken what was there and dialled it up enormously, and it’s utterly fantastic.
Tom: Whereas I disagree: to me, this sits in that uncanny cover-valley where it’s too close to the original. We’ve lost a lot of that great bassline, we’ve lost the interesting vocals and instruments, and it’s all been replaced with something a bit more generic. It is, as Jarvis Cocker would say, like the last days of Southfork. And what’s going on with those time signatures in the outro? That’s just uncomfortable.
Tim: This may well be slight heresy, but much like The Saturdays’ cover of Just Can’t Get Enough, part of me think this is what the original should have sounded like. It’s just that good.
Tom: I agree with your heresy about the Saturdays; but this, not so much.