Two of the biggest rules in rock music: Never play “Stairway to Heaven” at a guitar shop, and don’t try to cover Radiohead. Apparently, Pierce the Veil didn’t get the memo for the latter, and went ahead and recorded a cover of “Karma Police.”
Thankfully, Pierce the Veil didn’t turn Radiohead’s OK Computer masterpiece into a pop-punk ditty or a metalcore anthem. Instead, they remain fairly faithful to the 1997 original, keeping it at the same tempo but infusing their version with heavy guitars and distortion. All the while, frontman Vic Fuentes delivers an impassioned vocal performance that adds a little emo vibe to the song.
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Pierce the Veil originally recorded “Karma Police” during a session for Australia’s triple j radio station, and have performed it numerous times in concert ever since. The fan reception led the San Diego post-hardcore act to lay down a proper studio version of the cover.
“We are products of the 80s and 90s MTV era, so songs like ‘Karma Police’ live deep within our childhood minds,” said Pierce the Veil in a collective statement. “We dug this one up as an opportunity to indulge in something comforting and familiar. Taking inspiration from the memories and emotions the song evokes in us, we created a version that reflects where we come from as a band. We were happy to discover that the song remained haunting and beautiful even when fed through distortion pedals and loud guitars.”
Last year, Pierce the Veil released their fifth album, The Jaws of Life, which debuted at No. 14 on the Billboard 200 chart and yielded the No. 1 Alternative Airplay single “Emergency Contact.”
This summer, Pierce the Veil will support blink-182 on a North American tour that kicks off June 20th in Orlando Florida, and runs through August 15th in Toronto (tickets available here). Along the way, they’ll play Lollapalooza in Chicago in early August.
Take a listen to Pierce the Veil’s cover of Radiohead’s “Karma Police” below.
