American Football have released Wake Her Up / Boys Don’t Cry (SiriusXM Session), a two-track acoustic recording that arrived on October 14. There’s a familiar title here for Cure fans, alongside a song from American Football’s own catalogue.
The official artist/label Bandcamp page dates the performance to an August visit to SiriusXM’s Nashville studios, between tour stops. The session has now become a digital release you can stream or buy. It was recorded earlier in the year; October 14 is its release date.
Ten minutes, with a reason to hear both tracks
The listed running times are 5:36 for “Wake Her Up” and 4:32 for “Boys Don’t Cry.” Our addition comes to 10:08. That makes it an easy release to hear from beginning to end, even if the cover is what brought you to it.
Try the original song first. Then, when you reach “Boys Don’t Cry,” you’ll already have spent a few minutes with this version of the band. You can pay attention to how they approach someone else’s writing, rather than jumping straight into a comparison with the Cure recording.
There’s also more to the acoustic billing than a guitar and a microphone. Steve Lamos plays trumpet on both tracks, and Cory Bracken is credited on synth and glockenspiel. Those are useful details to have open beside the player: pick an instrument and follow its contribution through the song.
The two credit lists aren’t interchangeable. “Wake Her Up” includes additional vocals from Justine Fallon. Nate Kinsella is listed on bass and percussion there; for the Cure cover, his second credit changes to additional vocals. Mike Garzón’s listed role changes too, from guitar and additional vocals to percussion and additional vocals.
Reading those small differences gives you a better listening question than simply asking whether you prefer the cover. What does each arrangement ask the ensemble to do?
If you want the files
At our October 15 check, Bandcamp listed the release from US$2 and advertised a 24-bit/48kHz download, with MP3, FLAC and other formats available. The Polyvinyl release page confirms October 14 and lists MP3 and WAV downloads.
Check the price and currency on whichever store you use. For a personal library, choose a format your player supports and save the credits with it. Buying a high-resolution file doesn’t settle how it will compare audibly on your system; that would need a separate listening comparison.
Our guide to reading album credits offers more ways to follow the musicians behind a recording. This session is a compact place to start: two songs, different assignments within the ensemble, and enough time to listen twice if one part catches your ear.