Whitney – "Strange Overtones" (David Byrne & Brian Eno Cover)

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Whitney – "Strange Overtones" (David Byrne & Brian Eno Cover)

Almost a year ago, Chicago’s Whitney released their most recent album, Forever Turned Around. A couple months ago, they began unveiling covers of big pop standards like John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” Then, just last month, we found out this was part of a whole new covers album called Candid. Along with that announcement, Whitney shared a cover of the Roches’ “Hammond Song.” Now, the duo is back with another one.

The latest preview of Candid finds Whitney taking on David Byrne and Brian Eno’s “Strange Overtones.” Here’s what guitarist Max Kakacek had to say about it:

The most fun part of recording this was figuring out the solo. Malcolm slayed it on the piano and having him tackle it made so much sense even though this is the first time we’ve ever had a keys solo on a recorded track. I remember after his take, which killed, he said, “I went into it thinking Bruce Hornsby but I came out of it thinking Bruce Springsteen.”

“Strange Overtones” is, as far as covers albums go, a fairly idiosyncratic option. You’re taking on two iconic artists with a storied and influential history of collaborations, but you’re selecting a latter-day echo of that work. “Strange Overtones” comes from Byrne & Eno’s great 2008 album Everything That Happens Will Happen Today, and this song was the big Talking Heads-esque track on that collection. Whitney stay somewhat faithful to the original, keeping hints of the groove while bringing the song into their typically laidback indie chill-out zone. Check it out and revisit Byrne and Eno’s version below.

Candid is out 8/14 on Secretly Canadian. Pre-order it here.

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