Did your favourites make the cut?
It's the end of the year which means it's not just ol' mate Santa making a list and checking it twice. No doubt your feeds are flooded with rankings from every man and his dog - anyone want to see my Spotify Wrapped? - and today triple j jump aboard the train, revealing their biggest Like A Versions from 2019.
The segment, which sees both local and international acts performing an original and a cover on the station, had a huge year with some massive bands and songs covered. Today's list compiled by triple j is ranked by combined views on YouTube, Facebook, and triplej.net.au with Denzel Curry coming in at #1 for his epic cover of Rage Against The Machine's Bulls On Parade. It's racked up almost seven million views on YouTube alone, the majority from us tbh, and is responsible for our weekly chiro appointments from the subsequent headbanging. Harts also makes a cheeky appearance, shredding on his Strat, but the real, "Holy fuck," moment comes when Curry slots in a verse from Sirens in place of the iconic guitar solo. As the kids would say, it's straight fire.
It's also a cover that ranks high in The Music's favourites for the year. Here's our pick of the bunch that didn't make triple j's top ten.
Bad//Dreems - Blackfella/Whitefella (Warumpi Band)
Baddies blew it out of the park enlisting Peter Garrett, Emily Wurramara and members of Mambali for this moving cover of Warumpi Band's 1986 anti-racism rock song Blackfella/Whitefella. Stand up and be counted.
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Hermitude & Jaguar Jonze - Heart-Shaped Box (Nirvana)
Hermitude divided viewers with their hot take on Nirvana's 1993 classic Heart-Shaped Box but we've been busting out Jaguar Jonze's epic dance moves ever since it aired. The cover builds around the same kind of chaotic, dark energy fuelling late-night dancefloors.
Slowly Slowly - Skinny Love (Bon Iver)
Ok, yes, we know nobody comes close to Justin Vernon's angel-like voice, but Slowly Slowly's take on Bon Iver's Skinny Love is still a win no matter which way you cut it. The Melbourne outfit's punk rock cover of the 2008-released classic at triple j's Good Az Friday event in April not only showcased just how good Slowly Slowly are live, but it also proved that vocalist Ben Stewart is one of the best frontmen in Australia right now. Vernon would be so proud.
Angie McMahon - Knowing Me, Knowing You (ABBA)
Come on, it's like you don't know us at all. Anything with ABBA is an automatic yes.
Ceres – A Thousand Miles (Vanessa Carlton Cover)
Everything about this cover just works and when you think things can’t get more emotional, Ceres find a way. The string section is a nice touch, but it’s really the range in Tom Lanyon’s raw vocals – and the grit he delivers in the chorus – that makes this Like A Version a winner.
Lime Cordiale - I Touch Myself (Divinyls)
What a bloody song. The Sydney brothers get in the groove to this '90s Aussie classic, moving our hips in all the right ways. Miss ya Chrissie.
As for the rest of triple j's list, Halsey and YUNGBLUD hit us right in the 15-year-old feels with an emotional cover of Death Cab For Cutie's I Will Follow You Into The Dark. Jorja Smith lands at #3 with her version of Killing Me Softly recorded when she was in town for Laneway Festival. Childish Gambino gets spiritual with Chris Gaines' Lost In You and Cub Sport impress channelling Gen Z disruptor Billie Eilish.
Elsewhere we've got Little Simz making her mark on Gorillaz' Feel Good Inc and Aurora covering a little known band called The Beatles. Hilltop Hoods merge Phil Collins and Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Allday brings pals The Veronicas in for Joni Mitchell's Big Yellow Taxi.
Rounding out the list is the Gerard Way-approved Alex Lahey cover of Welcome To The Black Parade. She really is the saviour of the broken, the beaten and the damned.
Check out the rest of the top ten below.
2. YUNGBLUD & Halsey - I Will Follow You Into The Dark (Death Cab For Cutie)
3. Jorja Smith – Killing Me Softly (Roberta Flack/The Fugees)
4. Childish Gambino – Lost In You (Chris Gaines)
5. Cub Sport – When The Party’s Over (Billie Eilish)
6. Little Simz – Feel Good Inc (Gorillaz)
7. Aurora – Across The Universe (The Beatles)
8. Hilltop Hoods – Can’t Stop (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
9. Allday & The Veronicas – Big Yellow Taxi (Joni Mitchell)
10. Alex Lahey – Welcome To The Black Parade (My Chemical Romance)