Schneider TM, Kpt.michi.gan - The Light (3000)

A friend of mine brought this to my attention, I believe he had gotten it off a "back to mine" album. I played it off and on for about a year, it kept growing on me. And for the past couple of years I have come to realize that is the greatest pop track of our century yet. I never knew it was a cover of the Smiths, never heard them, before right now, when I logged on to discogs for the first time. And the only reason I did that was to find out if this Schneider band/person had made any other songs. Funny.

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Why do some people always compare cover tracks with the original? Stating that it lacks the original whatever-ness and hasn't got the same sounds, feeling, melody etc. It is a bit like saying I like the color green, but I don't like it when people mix blue and yellow together. Or, I don't like my cousin Paul because he is nothing like his dad.

Why would anyone want to hear a cover version of a famous tune that sounded just like the original? I prefer music to evolve, like everything else, this is what makes life fresh and interesting rather than 'same as'.

This is by far one of the best cover versions of any track I have heard, and most people I know, who know anything about music, would state the same. I never would have thought that someone could cover the Smiths in such a way as these people have. It is an excellent contrast and homage to the original, whether you are a Smiths fan or not. I know a lot of people who are heavily into electronica and we all agree on the importance of such an off beat moody track. The production on this is perfect.

Whilst people are entitled to there opinions of this track, I'll stick the educated rating that has been applied. I only wish I had 47 copies to give to the other Discogs members who have this release in their wantslist (at time of writing).

As a fan of The Smiths, I would love to hear some more modernly tweaked versions of the great tracks they put out. One of electronica's finest moments.

For me, The Light 3000 misses out all the subtleties that make The Smiths' original one of the greatest songs ever.

The dynamics are fairly flat and it misses the dark/bright-verse/chorus mood contrast. The off-beat bass notes in the chorus seem to have no direction and the simplified verse loop again lacks the melancholy feel of the original. Overall, the production is quite noisy and I find the two-track vocals annoying.

I think it appeals to those who wouldn't be heavy into electronica because of the reference point. i.e. a lot of people would know the lyrics off hand & be able to identify straight away. As electronica goes though, I think it could only be considered average at best.

The idea of a bleepy cover version of one the Smiths finest moments seems horrible. In reality it manages to subvert the original while still remaining a tear jerker and a truely emotional record. As more people hear this record its reputation will grow and grow.