Ongoing History of New Music 9 Great Alt-Rock Cover Songs (From the Vault)
Mar 25, 2026
A dive into nine striking alt-rock reinterpretations of well-known songs. Stories cover unexpected legal battles, viral fan campaigns, and powerful late-career reinventions. Hear how tempo, arrangement, and context transform originals into fresh, sometimes darker or quieter versions.
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What Makes A Song Truly Great
- Great songs survive radical reinterpretation and reveal songwriting craft when stripped or reimagined.
- Alan Cross argues a composition that works solo or full-band shows strong structure, melody, and production choices.
Bad Wolves Gave Zombie Back To Dolores
- Bad Wolves covered The Cranberries' Zombie and sought Dolores O'Riordan's blessing before release.
- Dolores loved it and planned to add parts, but died the night before studio time; Bad Wolves released it and donated profits to her children.
Eddie Vedder Revived A Forgotten Canadian Song
- Eddie Vedder covered Indio's Hard Sun for Into the Wild after Sean Penn handed him the song on a long-out-of-print CD.
- Gordon Peterson sued over lyric changes but lost; the cover revived Peterson's Big Harvest album.