Tunezy Blog

Boyce Avenue vs. Linkin Park: The Battle of “Rolling in the Deep”

It’s arguably the song that you couldn’t get off of your radio last year. Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” went through the ringer, too. If your local radio station wasn’t playing “Rolling in the Deep”, they were probably playing “Someone Like You”. If your radio station featured more songs in the style of rap, that’s fine, because Jamie XX did a remix of it that was dance club happy. It might have been one of the most covered songs on YouTube, which is saying a lot about its popularity because it’s not an easy song to pull off singing. In fact, play around YouTube and you’ll find some absolutely amazing covers, and you’ll find some really weird versions.

Yet today’s Cover to Cover face off is much more like a battle of the bands. A lot of accomplished musicians tried their hand at this song, but these were the two best videos that came from anyone established on the music scene.

Contestant Number 1: Boyce Avenue is a band that has all the makings of a fun band. They have a good sound, a lot of covers in their repertoire already, and are just an enjoyable band to listen to.

Contestant Number 2: Linkin Park wouldn’t be the band I’d expect to have an Adele CD. Their last hit CD came in 2007, and even before then they were most famous for working with Jay-Z. But it’s hard to argue that they don’t absolutely kill it with this cover.

So, who walks away with the victory? Each week, we judge on three topics: What Makes the Video Cool, Their Version of the Song, and The X Factor. So…

What Makes the Video Cool: Winner, Linkin Park. I have to admit, normally I’m a sucker for the multiple camera angles on different instruments or singers, but YouTube has done this bit to death. When was the last time you saw good concert footage of a cover song? Normally, it’s someone with a shaky camera yelling all the words. Point to the Park.

Their Version of the Song: Winner, Boyce Avenue. I had to re-watch the videos a few times here to judge this one, but it became clear that, well, the lead singer of Linkin Park didn’t really hit all of the big notes that make the song fun. Boyce Avenue also mixes their song better, and though neither are as far of a departure as I’d like to see from any cover, Boyce can at least hit the notes.

The IT Factor: Winner, Linkin Park. This is decided simply by the huge jump in logistics here. Boyce Avenue has done a lot of covers, and this was just another project for them. Linkin Park, one of the bands that defined middle school for me, takes a huge departure for the norm to do this song. Though it does sound better, Boyce Avenue’s version just becomes one of the many copy and paste covers on YouTube (and though it hit 10 million views, it’s far and away from some covers by lesser known artists). Because it’s a band that’s so far on the hard rock side doing a song that’s so far on the soulful diva side, the fusion takes it. Now, if we can get Adele to do something off of Hybrid Theory…

That’s just one man’s opinion. What do you think: Agree, Disagree? Let us know why in the comments below.