Speedy Ortiz – “Hanging Around” (The Cardigans Cover)
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Speedy Ortiz released their excellent sophomore album Foil Deer this spring, but that hasn’t stopped Sadie Dupuis and crew from making more music in the meantime. The best thing off Foil Deer is an ominous R&B-laced sweet surger called “Puffer,” and their new cover of the Cardigans deep cut “Hanging Around” is darkly sweet in a similar way. Dupuis told The Boston Globe why the cover felt like a natural choice for them:
In December, Speedy played a hometown residency at our beloved hangout spot Great Scott. We tried not to repeat any songs over the course of three shows — four, actually, if you include the one we played in a basement under a fake name. That meant playing at least 40 (!) original songs for our Boston pals, plus a few covers, one of which was this album track from the Cardigans’ 1998 release Gran Turismo. The Cardigans make really smart pop music dosed with contradictory textural choices — crunchy guitars, moody electronics, seemingly intentional tape warping. Their hits are pretty well known, and are all great, but I love “Hanging Around” for its detached, spooky lyrics. This song could be about cognitive dissonance, or it could be about some invading body snatchers — maybe both? We stayed pretty true to the original on this one, ‘cuz we think the original is so good.
Listen below.
Foil Deer is out now via Carpark.