All Them Witches Release Free Cover of “Born under a Bad Sign”
Posted in audiObelisk on September 4th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
There’s a lot to like about All Them Witches‘ new cover of Albert King‘s “Born under a Bad Sign.” Here’s just a sampling of what I’ve come up with so far:
1. No pretense.
Take a listen to the vocals. Nobody’s trying to sound like Buddy Guy. Hell, even Cream‘s version of the song was more of a put-on. All Them Witches take a popular, well-known track — Albert King‘s version was first in 1967, but it’s been covered by everyone from Jimi Hendrix and Blue Cheer to Homer Simpson — and put a heavy psych jam spin on it to make it their own. It’s not trying to be something it isn’t, and it feels all the more authentic in what it winds up being.
2. Tripped out drums.
It’s nice to be reminded every now and again that percussion can be psychedelic as well. Drummer Robby Staebler‘s kit is pretty deep in the mix, but it’s always present in the echo of the song, the cymbals adding sweet wash to the slow shuffle that runs throughout.
3. Tone.
Positively drenched, this one is. The leads that pepper both the early verses and the instrumental jam that plays out afterwards are soaked in echo, giving the track a sense of space that works exceedingly well with the languid groove. All Them Witches seem to have pared down their lineup some since Elektrohasch issued their Our Mother Electricity full-length (review here) earlier this year, but at least on “Born under a Bad Sign,” that seems to just make guitarist Ben McLeod and bassist Michael Parks, Jr.‘s work stand out all the more.
4. It’s free.
Self-explanatory, right? We live in an age of immediate gratification and free distribution. It’s killed my career and so, so many others, but at least we can get some good music out of it.
5. It means progress.
And progress not only in terms of the band’s creativity — which, let’s be fair, it’s kind of hard to judge with a cover song — but progress as well on the recording of the follow-up to Our Mother Electricity. Not sure when that will surface, but if the “Born under a Bad Sign” single is a means to keeping the momentum going as the band finalizes their next record, I’m more than happy to take the bait.
Enjoy and download All Them Witches‘ “Born under a Bad Sign” on the player below, hoisted from their Bandcamp:
