English Teacher are defying what post-punk should sound, look, and feel like. Earlier this year, the Leeds-bred band made noise with their buzzy debut album, This Could Be Texas, which took listeners through a 13-track journey of deft melodies, rhythmic intricacies, and experimental unpredictability. From the incorporation of ’90s math rock to prog leanings, the band — completed by Lily Fontaine (vocals/rhythm guitar/synth), Douglas Frost (drums/piano/vocals), Nicholas Eden (bass), and Lewis Whiting (lead guitar) — also survey their country’s landscape, wading into social issues and topics like Brexit while touching on universal subject matter like mental health and intolerance. Undoubtedly, their songs demonstrate their substance and style as part of a fresh, important wave of British voices.
Read more: 15 greatest supergroups across rock, punk, and metal
As the band gear up for a slew of festival appearances and a supporting run with IDLES across North America in the fall, they rattled off several of their favorite cover songs. From Denzel Curry tackling ’90s giants to Dana Gillespie’s take on a Bowie classic, they’re far from expected. Dive in below.
Kero Kero Bonito – “Rock & Roll Star” (Oasis)
Even if the rest of the band disagree, I believe this will always and forever be better than the original. Oh, and also I don’t like Oasis. Sorry. —Douglas Frost
A.G. Cook – “Beetlebum” (Blur)
A.G. Cook is unhinged, and I love all of his covers on 7G equally, but it’d be a mistake not to pair “Beetlebum” alongside “Rock & Roll Star.” —Douglas Frost
Scissor Sisters – “Comfortably Numb” (Pink Floyd)
I have no idea what Scissor Sisters were thinking when they did this, and that’s why I love them. It’s perfect in every single way, and I would listen to this over the original any day, no offense to Pink Floyd. —Douglas Frost
Denzel Curry – “Bulls on Parade” (Rage Against The Machine)
Denzel Curry covering Rage with his own ad-lib verse? Yes please. —Nick Eden
Little Simz – “Feel Good Inc.” (Gorillaz)
Little Simz covering Gorillaz with her own ad-lib verse and playing bass? Yes please. —Nick Eden
Radiohead – “The Headmaster Ritual” (The Smiths)
Legends covering slightly older legends. Also, they cover someone called Björk and this band called New Order. No idea who either of those are. —Nick Eden
Blur – “Nite Klub” (The Specials)
Terry Hall and Damon Albarn singing together and a bass solo in the middle. Nice. Shame about the awful lyric before the final chorus though… —Nick Eden
Sonic Youth – “Superstar” (Carpenters)
Such a classic song but, through the lens of one of my favorite bands, seemed like an obvious pick for this. It scratches a part of my brain that the original just doesn’t hit. —Lewis Whiting
Pavement – “The Killing Moon” (Echo & The Bunnymen)
Pavement doing Echo & The Bunnymen. Great song. What more can I say! —Lewis Whiting
Dana Gillespie – “Andy Warhol” (David Bowie)
Not sure if this actually classifies as a cover. I think Bowie wrote this with or for Dana? Either way, I prefer it to the version on Hunky Dory. —Lewis Whiting
