Top 5 Eerie Acoustic Covers I Like Way Too Much

Most covers suck.

This is not an overstatement. Anyone who has ever been subjected to Sheryl Crow's anal rape of Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine" can attest to that. The rare occasion when one musician takes another's work and reinterprets it is to be celebrated. I picked these five because they're all peculiar live performances that on paper should suck balls but are actually pretty cool.

5. "Billie Jean" - Chris Cornell (Michael Jackson cover)



I came across this on comic book writer Brian Michael Bendis' message board. At first I was freaked out, then I was kind of intrigued, then I went back to being freaked out, then I listened to it another three or four times. I dig it. Its the second most surprising thing Cornell has done that I like (the first being his Bond song in Casino Royale.)

4. "Cry Me A River" - Glen Hansard (Justin Timberlake cover)



After seeing Once I totally fell in love with the musical stylings for Glen Hansard. The Irish-guy-with-a-guitar genre is pretty well plummed, but something about the emotions he evokes is startling and genuine. Plus, he seems to have a quiet, understated sense of irony, which is always welcome.

3. "Sweet Fantasy" - Owen Pallet (of Final Fantasy) (Mariah Carey cover)



Anyone who can channel Screaming Mimi armed only with a violin (or is it a viola?), a looping board, and what I eyeball at 76lbs of body weight is pretty fucking impressive. I've never been a big Final Fantasy fan, but this cover is cute, sort of the way a young girl is when she puts on mommy's make-up, or, come to think of it, a young boy in mommy's make-up.

2. "Thriller" - Ben Gibbard (Michael Jackson cover)



Despite looking suspiciously like a Lego blockhead person brought to life by some feeble, Gepetto-type, Ben Gibbard's got some soul. Not a lot of soul, mind you, but enough. He manages to turn probably the least scary song written about scary things ever into the scariest. In the original, there's so much dancing and Quincy Jones produced awesome that you seldom feel afraid (except for all the Vincent Price stuff, or choice parts of the legendary music video.) Here, though, beneath the veneer of hipstery "Hey, I know that song!" snark, there's some genuine chills to be had.

1. "Since U Been Gone/Maps" - Ted Leo (Kelly Clarkson/ Yeah Yeah Yeahs cover)



I love Ted Leo. He's like a little indie-rock Bruce Springsteen. I also seriously love the song that made Kelly Clarkson tolerable, but before this cover, it wasn't quite okay to admit to that. To be honest, it still isn't, but I feel comfortable knowing Ted's in my corner, eating a veggie burger and nodding his head. Also, gotta love that he capitalizes on the ripped Nick Zinner guitar part to seque into another great song no one should feel ashamed to love.

Bonus:

I don't like Donnie Darko as much as most fanatics do, but this is a pretty choice cover. Most know it from that freaky Gears of War tv spot.

"Mad World" - Gary Jules (Tears For Fears cover)