DJ Xero, Operative of SeeDarkly™ (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
seedarklyxero) wrote2019-11-24 10:00 am
seedarklyxero) wrote2019-11-24 10:00 am
SeeDarkly Sunday DisCOVERies: It's Been Dark
Welcome to SeeDarkly Sunday DisCOVERies:
a weekly exploration of goth, industrial, & dark alternative cover songs!
First time here? Click here for details from first entry.
Looking for something previously featured? Click here.
Once upon a time, before I started this blog, I organized a couple of Thanksgiving "Covered Dish" dance parties at the clubs where I worked to showcase goth/industrial covers all night long. This week... I offer you not so much of a "dish" but really a "turkey" basted in darkwave and facetious irreverence... you might just thank me.:
Seer of the Merciful Own – One Week (Barenaked Ladies)
Canadian novelty alternative rockers Barenaked Ladies released their fourth studio album, Stunt, in July 1998. Its first single, One Week, came out two and a half months later. The song, a lyrically fast-paced collage of pop culture references, was their first number one hit in the U.S. and a their biggest worldwide success. The verses are entirely irrelevant to the chorus which is devoted to a story about a couple's conflict. Singer/songwriter Ed Robertson has said that was because he "couldn't figure out the verses at all" and he was encouraged by bandmates to simply freestyle the rest. As random as most of the stream-of-consciousness verses seem, they end the song with a shout out to "Birchmount Stadium, home of the Robbie." The "Robbie" is an annual international charity soccer event which raises money for Cystic Fibrosis Canada in honor of Robbie Wimbs, a victim of the disease for whom the charity was initially created.
There are a few covers of the track by mostly unknown artists but none take it to quite as dark a place as Seer of the Merciful Own.
They released a five song EP titled Pars Mortuorum (best translation from Latin is apparently "Book of the Dead") in July of this year. It's described on their Bandcamp page as "Now That's What I Call Darkwave Covers of Music" and includes versions of Hero by Enrique Iglesias, My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion, Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes, and Blister In The Sun by Violent Femmes. Their version of One Week is the opening track of the EP.
But Seer of the Merciful Own is not what they appear to be and their identity isn't entirely straight forward. The project seems to be created by an independent experimentalist musician operating out of Delaware under the name "tshima" whose real name may be "Slater Clampitt." Their range of musical genres is by no means rooted in darkwave, and Pars Mortuorum is regarded by them as a "dumb idea" (one for which they thank someone named "Dan.") Their version of the song kicks off with a strong sense of darkwave musicality, but as the deep and clearly pretentious vocals unfold, over time their delivery doesn't keep pace with the tempo leaving you to wonder if this is artistry, parody, or both. Not that it was ever a song to take too seriously, but in the spirit of the season in which we celebrate heaping helpings of Mystery Science Theater 3000, try to remember it's just a song, you should really just relax.:
The Cover:
The Original:
Next week:
December is here and winter is coming... everything is so hazy...
Feel free to tell me what you think about today's cover! Comments, suggestions, discussions, etc... welcome! You do NOT need a Dreamwidth account to reply below, but all replies are screened for spam prevention.
I've at least one gig in December, though another is in development and a few things on deck for 2020 have already been announced. Details can be found on my schedule as well as other updates soon!
(And if, after 4+ years and 238 weekly entries, you find this blog of any value, consider leaving me a tip in the form of the gift of music and get me something from my wishlist on Bandcamp if you like. It'll go to good use! Thanks!)
Thanks for reading and keep dancing in darkness,
-Xero
Previous DisCOVERies
Nov 17 - Attrition– Underpass [click, click, drone] (John Foxx)
Nov 10 - Simple Minds – Teardrop (Massive Attack)
Nov 03 - Horrorfall – Juke Joint Jezebel (KMFDM)
Oct 27 - Panic Lift – Every Day Is Halloween (Ministry)
Oct 20 - Missio – Zombie (The Cranberries)
. Directory of All Previous DisCOVERies .
a weekly exploration of goth, industrial, & dark alternative cover songs!
First time here? Click here for details from first entry.
Looking for something previously featured? Click here.
Once upon a time, before I started this blog, I organized a couple of Thanksgiving "Covered Dish" dance parties at the clubs where I worked to showcase goth/industrial covers all night long. This week... I offer you not so much of a "dish" but really a "turkey" basted in darkwave and facetious irreverence... you might just thank me.:
Seer of the Merciful Own – One Week (Barenaked Ladies)
Canadian novelty alternative rockers Barenaked Ladies released their fourth studio album, Stunt, in July 1998. Its first single, One Week, came out two and a half months later. The song, a lyrically fast-paced collage of pop culture references, was their first number one hit in the U.S. and a their biggest worldwide success. The verses are entirely irrelevant to the chorus which is devoted to a story about a couple's conflict. Singer/songwriter Ed Robertson has said that was because he "couldn't figure out the verses at all" and he was encouraged by bandmates to simply freestyle the rest. As random as most of the stream-of-consciousness verses seem, they end the song with a shout out to "Birchmount Stadium, home of the Robbie." The "Robbie" is an annual international charity soccer event which raises money for Cystic Fibrosis Canada in honor of Robbie Wimbs, a victim of the disease for whom the charity was initially created.
There are a few covers of the track by mostly unknown artists but none take it to quite as dark a place as Seer of the Merciful Own.
They released a five song EP titled Pars Mortuorum (best translation from Latin is apparently "Book of the Dead") in July of this year. It's described on their Bandcamp page as "Now That's What I Call Darkwave Covers of Music" and includes versions of Hero by Enrique Iglesias, My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion, Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes, and Blister In The Sun by Violent Femmes. Their version of One Week is the opening track of the EP.
But Seer of the Merciful Own is not what they appear to be and their identity isn't entirely straight forward. The project seems to be created by an independent experimentalist musician operating out of Delaware under the name "tshima" whose real name may be "Slater Clampitt." Their range of musical genres is by no means rooted in darkwave, and Pars Mortuorum is regarded by them as a "dumb idea" (one for which they thank someone named "Dan.") Their version of the song kicks off with a strong sense of darkwave musicality, but as the deep and clearly pretentious vocals unfold, over time their delivery doesn't keep pace with the tempo leaving you to wonder if this is artistry, parody, or both. Not that it was ever a song to take too seriously, but in the spirit of the season in which we celebrate heaping helpings of Mystery Science Theater 3000, try to remember it's just a song, you should really just relax.:
The Cover:
The Original:
Next week:
December is here and winter is coming... everything is so hazy...
Feel free to tell me what you think about today's cover! Comments, suggestions, discussions, etc... welcome! You do NOT need a Dreamwidth account to reply below, but all replies are screened for spam prevention.
I've at least one gig in December, though another is in development and a few things on deck for 2020 have already been announced. Details can be found on my schedule as well as other updates soon!
(And if, after 4+ years and 238 weekly entries, you find this blog of any value, consider leaving me a tip in the form of the gift of music and get me something from my wishlist on Bandcamp if you like. It'll go to good use! Thanks!)
Thanks for reading and keep dancing in darkness,
-Xero
Previous DisCOVERies
Nov 17 - Attrition– Underpass [click, click, drone] (John Foxx)
Nov 10 - Simple Minds – Teardrop (Massive Attack)
Nov 03 - Horrorfall – Juke Joint Jezebel (KMFDM)
Oct 27 - Panic Lift – Every Day Is Halloween (Ministry)
Oct 20 - Missio – Zombie (The Cranberries)
. Directory of All Previous DisCOVERies .