We do love a good cover song at Moshville Times. And there’s been absolutely no shortage of them in recent months. So leave it to Anchor Lane to provide one of the best we’ve heard yet. And of course, they had to go one better than most and rope in a whole host of their buddies – many of whom we’ve featured on our own pages in the past such as:
- Adam Breeze (RavenEye) – drums
- Bones (Darkness Divine) – vocals
- Steve Hill (SKAM) – vocals
- Ken Hanlon (Darkhaus) – vocals
- Sam Wood (Wayward Sons) – guitar
- Alan Rimmer (Revival Black) – guitar
As the band themselves covered “Whiskey in the Jar” last year, they took it in the direction of Thin Lizzy and Black Star Riders’ interpretation of the Irish folk song. So you can breathe a sigh of relief, it’s not that Metallica version.
Wonderfully mixed and mastered, everything blends together perfectly. It never feels too much or disorientating as vocalists drop in and out before they all come together at the end as they all bring their own spin on it. Meanwhile, the guitars are given their proper reverence, meshing well with the beefy drums and bass work. And essentially, this is what all good covers should do – pay homage to the original (or in this case, the one we all know in popular music) while bringing their own unique take to it. Calling in a number of talented musicians has certainly helped to do that.
But that’s not all, there’s a reason to why Anchor Lane brought in a number of their friends as they comment:
The collaboration highlights the importance of musicians coming together to create valuable content for music fans to enjoy at a time where live music isn’t possible. However with many venues at risk of being permanently closed down, the opportunities for artists and audiences to connect once again will simply disappear in a lot of cases.
It’s a cover which shows that musicians are naturally collaborative and creative people and in this case, helps to bring attention to the Music Venue Trust’s #SaveOurVenues campaign – a crowdfunding effort which aims to ensure there will be a grassroots/local scene when live music can make its return which is still a long way off.
So if you like the cover (or even if you don’t), throw some money at the campaign and read about the campaign’s aims to ensure there’s places for live music to return to its habitat and continue to flourish.
Header image © No Half Measures
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