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Yesterday I came across a fantastic article by Amrit Singh on Stereogum about Peter Gabriel’s [official, Myspace] new project. For those of you that don’t know, I’m a huge fan of Gabriel’s work both on and offstage. His song, “Here Comes The Flood“, is one of my all-time favorites and each of his records is truly a work of art. I’m also a big fan of The Arcade Fire [Official, Myspace] and their song “My Body is a Cage” was definitely one of my top tracks of ‘07; so Imagine my joy when I saw this pearly piece of goodness:

Peter Gabriel Covers Arcade Fire (Stereogum Premiere)

The concept behind Peter Gabriel’s forthcoming indie rock covers project is an intriguing one: it’s a song swap, Peter singing over orchestral reinterpretations of songs from a staggering list of artists — Bon Iver, Lou Reed, the Mag Fields, Radiohead, Bowie, Talking Heads, etc. — with the intention of creating “a dialogue with the writers,” paving the way for a companion piece in which a string of artists would return the favor. The first installment is Scratch My Back, which Peter put together with Bob Ezrin and John Metcalfe. Our first full listen is this take on Arcade Fire’s “My Body Is A Cage,” and unsurprisingly, its gothic bombast is a fine foil for Metcalfe’s symphonic arrangement. It’s the only song from the collection to feature a choir. Gabriel spoke in depth about the cover in this podcast, calling Arcade Fire a “self-contained” universe, and explaining both his take on the song and intention in reworking it.

To read the rest of Amrit’s post please visit Stereogum.com

Check out Peter Gabriel’s cover below. What do you think? Do you prefer his version or the original? Drop us a line!

Hope this finds you feeling healthy!

-Mason