American Football have officially released their stripped-back take on the classic ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ – praised by Robert Smith as “one of the most heartfelt and beautiful Cure covers I have ever heard”.
The cover of the hit 1979 song was first performed by American Football during their debut on SiriusXMU earlier this summer – recorded between stops on their global ‘No Feeling Tour’.
That song marks only the second cover the alt-rock giants have broken out in their 30 year discography, following them putting their own spin on Mazzy Star’s ‘Fade Into You’ in 2021. The SiriusXMU appearance also saw them perform an acoustic rendition of their own track ‘Wake Her Up’, which was released as part of their latest album ‘LP4‘ and originally featured Wisp.
Now, both the acoustic version of ‘Wake Her Up’ and the cover of ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ have been officially released and available to stream for the first time.
“The Cure, and specifically ‘Boys Don’t Cry’, has not only been fundamental to my growth as a songwriter but as much or more so on my development as a man,” said frontman Mike Kinsella. “It just seemed like the perfect fit for a bunch of melodically-driven, emotionally available grown men to deconstruct and try to make our own.
“We replaced the jangle with some spindly guitars, slowed it down quite a bit, and added a mournful trumpet solo, but the plain-spoken adolescent longing remains as resonant as ever.”
The Cure’s frontman Robert Smith also gave the cover his seal of approval, describing it as “One of the most heartfelt and beautiful Cure covers I have ever heard”.
The release of ‘Wake Her Up / Boys Don’t Cry (SiriusXM Session)’ arrives ahead of the midwest emo band kicking off the next leg of their ‘No Feeling World Tour’, having already played across the US, UK, Europe, Asia, and Mexico throughout the summer.
Highlights of the tour have already included surprise appearances from Hayley Williams, Wisp and Soccer Mommy, and the remainder of the live shows will take place across North and South America throughout the remainder of the year.
Dates kick off in Chile on November 28, and continue with stops in Brazil, Argentina and Peru, before wrapping up with eight shows across the US. In a new partnership with PLUS1, $1 from every ticket sold will go towards organisations protecting immigrant rights and supporting deportees, migrants and refugees.
Visit here for tickets, and check out a list of remaining dates below.
NOVEMBER 28 – Santiago, CL @ Fauna Primavera 30 – São Paulo, BR @ Audio
