No longer can we ignore one of the biggest bands in Australian history…
[Video][Website]
[6.62]
Edward Okulicz: Like A Version is a long-running thing on Triple J where bands cover other songs and then invariably they become popular and discussed and eventually become radio hits on the station in their own right. At its worst, it sometimes provides an outlet for people to like things they shouldn’t with ironic distance when a “cool” act covers an “uncool” act. At its best, you get the diametric opposite — an “uncool” act covers a “cool” act. Honestly, the results are delightful — The Wiggles strip the veneer of psychedelia from “Elephant” and reveal that it’s actually kind of goofy and that the rhythm lends itself to being jaunty fun. A whole lot of love and effort has gone into this and the first time I watched the video I had a huge smile on my face. But I can’t imagine listening to it over and over, so this topping the Hottest 100 is down to a lot of people liking it a little rather than people thinking it’s true greatness.
[7]
Jessica Doyle: Neither I nor my children were ever Wiggles connoisseurs (if I want a nostalgia hit from an indie-rock-and-kid-friendly-entertainment crossover I’ll go to Feist, or maybe sloshy). So I have to take this on its own terms, and regretfully report that the “Fruit Salad” interlude sounds shoe-horned in enough that the cover doesn’t impress me. It’s cute, though!
[5]
Alex Clifton: This sounds like a number on a children’s Halloween special about the wonders of fruit and the dangers of arrogance — which is to say: this absolutely slaps. Tame Impala could never.
[8]
Ian Mathers: I am not trying to be snarky or clever when I say that this is genuinely the most I have ever enjoyed a Tame Impala song. The “Fruit Salad” interpolation is fun and the vocals, guitar solo, and drumming are honestly upgrades.
[7]
Alfred Soto: As ubiquitous for the generation younger than thirty as much as Aerosmith or Kanye in another, Tame Impala specialize in vaguely demonstrative arena gestures whose innate reluctances honor what remains of indie values. This cover, I suppose, disinters “Elephant”‘s recessive core; we hear how Imagine Dragons in 2002 might’ve arranged it, as if that’s the point.
[5]
Katherine St Asaph: We lived through the late-2000s musical phase of aging Gen X hipsters trying to reconcile their indie-rock past with their suburban-dad present. We absolutely do not need to live through another.
[3]
Al Varela: This was an inspired cover choice for The Wiggles. “Elephant” was already a pretty goofy song, at least in its structure, so a band like The Wiggles who thrive on that goofiness can easily turn it into something fun, yet genuinely catchy! I’m kind of amazed by just how good this cover sounds. Near indistinguishable from the original! But of course, hearing them interpolate their own hit, “Fruit Salad”, into the song was an absolute delight. Truly deserving of being the new Australian national anthem.
[8]
Nortey Dowuona: this is a fantastic cover and the Wiggles are truly one of the greatest musical collectives to ever exist. wiggle on, y’all.
[10]