Aug

Cover Fridays: Ellie Goulding – “High For This” (Originally by The Weeknd)

Hello loyal WGWI readers,

We decided to do something a little different every Friday.

Since this blog has been around for quite some time, we decided that it was high time for us to settle down and have a set feature or two. The first (and only…for now) feature that we are going to have will appear each Friday, and will be able to be spotted by their “Cover Fridays” title. Obviously, each article posted under this name will be a cover of a popular (or just one of our favorite) song, but unlike our other posts, this feature will not necessarily feature exclusively new music, but rather, will have a mix of some awesome covers that we have loved for a long time and songs that we have just discovered.

To debut our newest section, we are starting with a double feature! Ellie Goulding with her cover of “High For This” and Coeur de Pirate with her cover of “Wicked Games” (which you can read here) are both going to be featured this week, which is perfect since both were originally recorded by The Weeknd. So without further adieu…

Ellie Goulding, of “Lights” fame, made a cover of The Weeknd’s “High For This” back in the end of May, but I was only turned onto it recently because of summer 2012′s obsession with doing a million dub-step covers of “Lights” that I am forced to listen to on the radio. The actual, original “Lights” is pretty great, but with all the wub wub, I just want to take two Advil and a nap after listening.

Luckily, Goulding’s version of “High for This” is elegantly electric when it needs to be, and quietly sensual in other places. While the original is much more stripped, Goulding’s comes from an electronic European place, without, y’know, bringing too much of that in order to honor the original piece.

Although The Weeknd’s voice is much more powerful and chilling, and also creates more of a demand (“you GOTTA be high for this”), while Goulding’s softer touch lends well to the song but creates a completely different feel that the original does not even explore (“this is something you might be high for…now dance!”).

Check out both versions of the song below!

Ellie Goulding – “High for This”