Skylet Gunner *IS* a Wild One.
Covers. Covers. Covers. We do so love them, yet they can be ever so tricky to pull off. it's often a matter of attitude as it is aptitude, lucky for us Iggy Pop fans (whose own version of this Johnny O’keefe classic is the most popular), Skylet Gunner the New Yorker-turned-Angelena has both... in spades.
On the razor's edge where electro-pop and rock & roll can meet is where you'll find her and very few others, or at least that is where you'll mostly find her because this time around Skylet's on the Shiny and chromed side of Rock & Roll with no ifs and buts, and only the entrancing psychedelic riffs taken straight from the late '60s for a piece that feels entirely her own; exactly what you want a cover song to be.
Partnering with Multi-Grammy-winning producer, songwriter, and musician, Sam Barsh (ASAP Rocky, Kanye West, The Weeknd, and many, many more) turned -inevitably- to gold when they chose to cover Iggy Pop's "Real Wild Child" (Wild One) with Gunner's trademark dark Americana flavor.
"Iggy Pop is a legend, so it was fun to flip this track. Sam Barsh did an incredible job with the production, and I especially love his organ solo. He really captured the Skylet Gunner essence to the point where people think it’s an original!
For the music video, Gunner brought photographer and director Tanner Vonnahme on board to try and capture that retro vibe the sound definitely goes for in the middle of the Arts District of Los Angeles. In an appropriate move, the whole thing starts out with the very much classic and time-appropriate "Our Feature Presentation" title card used in so many independent theaters of the 60s and 70s. In that very same vibe, Skylet and Tanner set about shooting their music video in a very guerrilla-film fashion, as they simply went cruising around to see what they could find as a suitable backdrop to Skylet's seductive performance.
What they found, aside from the gritty backstreets and warehouse loading bays (which echo so many crime thrillers from the era) was a Ford Ranchero fortuitously parked by The Ford Theater, a perfect opportunity that they certainly didn't waste.
If you've never heard of Skylet Gunner up to this point, then you'll be extremely delighted to know that this release is part of an "ongoing" debut EP set for full release on January 2023 (so there's some ground to cover and more to look forward to!). The EP is called "Serpent Soul and it "embodies themes of female-empowerment, self-reflection, and modern romance." Skylet has said.
MEET THE AUTHOR
Samuel Aponte is Venezuelan-born raised and based.
I joined Rival Magazine after a few years of doing PR work for independent musicians of all stripes; understanding their struggles to be heard in a sea of constant ADHD noise and paywalled access to platforms, I now bring a willingness to always appreciate and encourage the effort and creativity that artists put into their work . Can also find some of my writings on LADYGUNN and We Found New Music.