Indie film company A24 has announced a new tribute album to The Talking Heads, featuring a “Burning Down the House” cover by Paramore.
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A24 first became involved in the 80’s art rock scene when remastering and re-releasing the Talking Heads’ concert documentary, Stop Making Sense. The 1984 concert was originally filmed during the height of the band’s popularity, and includes performances of hits like “Psycho Killer” and the then newly-released “Burning Down the House.” Stop Making Sense quickly became an acclaimed concert film and cult classic, and has since been preserved within the National Film registry due to its “enduring importance to American culture.” Thus, A24 sought to revamp the movie and reunite the band for the first time in over 20 years.
All has been quiet since its fall 2023 re-release, that is, until they released a teaser trailer yesterday. Featured across all social media, A24 wrote, “We've got a tape we'd like to play you. 16 tracks from 16 artists. Track 1: Paramore. Coming soon.”
The teaser itself shows Hayley Williams of Paramore receiving a package in the mail and finding a boxy gray suit- reminiscent of David Bryne’s famous concert outfit. She then brings over a cassette tape of The Talking Heads to her bandmates, before the teaser flashes the words: “a Stop Making Sense tribute album. 16 tracks by 16 artists. Track 1: Paramore.”
The mashup might seem disjointed for fans unfamiliar with Paramore. However, the band could easily bring The Talking Heads style back into the fray, given their own dance rock hits like “Hard Times”, “Caught in the Middle” and “This is Why”. And the last few seconds of audio in the teaser video nearly prove it already- you can hear Hayley and the band singing the chorus of “Burning Down the House.” From what we can tell, the song is a true tribute to the original by keeping its focus on the guitar, drums and group singing. At the same time, the electric guitar sounds more modern and Hayley Williams’ sharp, iconic tone will surely make their cover a hit of its own.
You can check out the full teaser on the A24 Instagram page here. We don’t know the other 15 songs and artists on the upcoming tribute album, nor its release date, but if you keep listening to the bands via Audacy’s Paramore Radio and Talking Heads Radio, we’ll be sure to keep you informed!