Always a show-stopper, Antony Hegarty’s cover of Beyoncé’s Hot 100 jam “Crazy In Love” is a masterclass on how to cover a song: with its rearrangement and reinterpretation, this version projects the mirror-imaged flip side to the sentiment B and Jay-Z bottled in their buoyant club hit. Antony’s take casts the tune’s desperation in an entirely new light — from a confident celebration of irrational infatuation to one of hand-wringing loss of self-control — and the video does so literally: Beyoncé’s hyper-colored, crisply lit dance routines give way to Antony lurking in shadows, filtered through a diaphanous and murky haze. We’re unable to see him clearly, but really we’re just being put in his shoes.
(via P4K)
“Crazy In Love” is now available, stacked with “Aeon” as a double A-side single, via
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Incredible.
Pretty much I hate the way his voice sounds and have never had the ability to listen to any of his songs without feeling really awkward. Its not bad… probably… but it is certainly not my bad. Downvote away.
yeah… I meant my BAG. BAG!
ahhhhhhhh, what’s with the scary avatars?
Who listens to this shit?
Awesome
Antony, out of the thousands and thousands of amazing songs you could cover, why this one?
While you’re at it, might as well cover The Black-Eyed Peas or Lady GaGa next time.
Yea, he took a song HE liked and put a different take on it. It was carefully chosen in my opinion.
because there’ a difference between ‘good mainstream’ and ‘bad mainstream’
Theres not many that can turn an upbeat pop song into a melancholy masterpiece. I?d put Antony & The Johnsons in the list of few that can though.
this is an awful cover of a fantastic pop song. nothing like sucking the energy out of a hot jam.
not a terrible cover.
the pattern is movement cover is much better.
unlistenable AND unwatchable.When will you stop turning mental patients into indie celebs?
I really like this guy. He’s like a cross between Jobriath and Nina Simone. And, Nico Mulhy’s arrangements are stunning.
Yes, it’s a cover of a hot pop song, and yes, the original video created an immediate image that’s hard to forget. But, in all honesty, Antony’s version fits the lyrics much better than Beyoncé’s video does: he gives it the angst, the despair, and the “crazy” that a song celled “Crazy in Love” warrants. BOTH versions do what they, seemingly, set out to do, and both do it well.
Simply amazing.
Um, am I mistaken or is he wearing BLACKFACE with a drag wig in part of this video where he’s singing a black woman’s song? No one seems to have mentioned this. Maybe I’m wrong. Check the 2 minute mark. The obscure filming style seems designed to cloak this obviously boneheaded idea.
Amazing