If there's one thing in life I have an affinity for, it's a pop song, reinvented by an indie artist. Back in the proverbial day, Cat Power's version of Wonderwall got more than a few spins on my iPod and in the time between now and then, countless acoustic based artists with an underground appeal have tackled mainstream hits, but none have appealed to me quite like Chan Marshall's slow, sad take on the Oasis hit... Until I heard William Fitzsimmons' take on Kanye West.
"Heartless" is a song that, despite my lack of radio listening, I was thoroughly familiar with thanks to my Detroit based father's spinning of the track on various Michigan vacations. Lyrically, the tune seemed to just be begging for a more sensitive makeover and the maudlin sentiments of William Fitzsimmon's mournful voice is perfectly suited to the emotional core of the song.
Equal parts kitcshy appeal and a damn good take on the song, it's only a matter of time before Fitzsimmon's "Heartless" becomes the interesting song to know and gets featured placement on the wintertime mix of many a hipster.
Never heard of him before, but he pulls off the cover incredibly well. Great reimagination of it!
Posted by: John Brunner | 12/09/2009 at 02:05 PM