It’s been a few years since we’ve heard from the Chicago instrumental crew Pelican, whose most recent album Nighttime Stories came out in 2019. But today they’re back with a cover as part of Numero Group’s ongoing series, and they’re paying tribute to the beloved Boston band Karate, who reunited in 2022 after spending a few years reissuing their music through the label. Pelican took on Karate’s “Gasoline,” the opening track on their 1995 debut LP.
“We’re all huge fans of Numero, so when they asked us if we’d cover music from their extensive catalog we were beyond honored,” the band said in a statement via Revolver, continuing:
Karate’s ‘Gasoline’ emerged as a superb vehicle for lifting the curtain on the emo-adjacent influences that been foundational to our music. We tapped our good friend Chris Hansen from Pinebender, with whom we’ve shared many a stage, to handle the song’s vocals as the timbre of his voice seems particularly dialed in for this material and we couldn’t be more stoked with how it turned out.
Listen below.
Pelican’s cover of “Gasoline” is out now.