Hozier - ‘Do I Wanna Know (Arctic Monkeys Cover)'

Covers are always tricky. You don’t want to stray too close to the original, but you don’t want to write a completely different song, either. You want it to sound distinct but recognizable. Moreover, the question will always be ‘is it better than the original?’ when really the question should be ‘does it need to be?’ and the answer should always be ‘nope’. A cover is like your mum’s version of your grandma’s famous lemon slice - it’ll rarely be comparable, but it’ll be made with love and worth a nibble nonetheless. And in the case of Hozier’s rendition of ‘Do I Wanna Know’, mum has come pretty damn close.

The Irish troubadour dropped by the BBC’s Live Lounge to take on the sizzling Arctic Monkeys tune, and laid down something a good few notches more mellow. Lesser men might be tempted to use the word ‘beautiful’. I’ll stick with ‘worth a nibble’.