Folk rocker Lissie burst onto the scene a decade ago with her debut album Catching A Tiger, which was recorded in Nashville and spawned the hit single When I’m Alone, chosen by iTunes as their ‘Song of the Year’ for 2010. Three further albums have followed over the last ten years – 2013’s Back To Forever, My Wild West three years later, and Castles in 2018 – releases which solidified her reputation as a singer-songwriter with a real talent for crafting country-tinged modern folk songs.

Lissie has also long excelled in taking other’s songs and turning them into wonderful cover versions, adding her own personality and special interpretations of the track. Way back in 2010, her cover of Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance was chosen as ‘Cover of the Year’ by Paste magazine, and her other well-known covers include Go Your Own Way and Dreams by Fleetwood Mac, Pursuit Of Happiness by Kid Cudi and Nothing Else Matters by Metallica. And so, with her latest release, she’s returned to the world of the cover version with a five-track EP Thank You To The Flowers that features covers of female artists who have inspired Lissie herself. 

It’s an eclectic collection, too. We’re treated to songs from the likes of Martha Wainwright, Miley Cyrus, Paula Cole, Lana Del Rey and Sinead O’Connor. The EP’s lead single is the profanity-laden Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole, which is accompanied by a great video with an immersive outer space theme. The cover itself is handled beautifully, with Lissie’s exquisite voice stretching the song to new boundaries, and infusing the song with an electric emotion.

And each and every track here gets similar treatment. Wrecking Ball is a particular highlight, Cyrus’s operatic original reshaped into a stripped back and bitingly raw affair, while Change is outright haunting. But each track contributes to a wonderful collection from a truly talented artist with a penchant for captivating covers.

Thank You To The Flowers tracklist:

1. Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole (Martha Wainright)

2. Wrecking Ball (Miley Cyrus)

3. Where Have All The Cowboys Gone? (Paula Cole)

4. Change (Lana Del Rey)

5. Nothing Compares 2 U (Sinead O’Connor / Prince)

Watch the official video for Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole here.

Author: Joe Sharratt

Joe Sharratt is a writer and journalist based in the UK covering music, literature, sport, and travel.