In Drake’s exceedingly sexy track, “Hotline Bling,” the rapper manages to make the idea of a man complaining about no longer getting booty called by a special someone rather compelling. Drake’s music has always had a nocturnal feel, but this is his late-night longing at its most vital. Perfect, then, that Disclosure — whose upcoming album, Caracal is named after a nocturnal hunter and whose recent videos have followed night-clubbers letting loose to escape a dystopian nightmare — covered the track.
Your liking of the cover will really depend on your general impressions of Disclosure, and especially their collaborations with Sam Smith — as this, too is one such joint effort. The original song is peak Drake, and this cover translates it into peak Disclosure — successfully relying on the emotive rapture of Smith’s voice to give texture to their dissociative synth pop.
They performed the cover in the BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge, along with another Sam Smith collaboration, “Omen.” (The Drake cover begins at 8:55 in the stream below. “Omen” is off Caracal, which is out September 25). Listen:
Via Pitchfork.