Rising star Liz Cass has announced the release of a four-track covers EP.
Out June 29, ‘Teardrops’ features reworked versions of a handful of classic hits, including the title song, a cover of the iconic Womack & Womack number.
Regarding the tune – her version of which is out now – Liz says: “Teardrops is one of my favourite songs – the lyrics get me straight in the heart.
“While I was out running one lockdown evening, Yes by Chromatics came on my Spotify and I started hearing Teardrops to it in my head.
“Dramatically slowed down with some emotive chords felt really moving, so the next day I made this version over Zoom with Ed Graves, inspired by what I was imagining out on my run.”
She adds: “I loved the process of putting my own spin on a classic track which I’ve always loved – the lyrics lend themselves so well to a melancholic ballad. They’re kinda heartbreaking!
“We revisited it in January and Louis Eliot (Grace Jones/Rialto) added some beautiful, atmospheric guitar parts but we kept the original bedroom vocals.
“It’s nice to finally release it three years later! I hope people can connect with it in a different way from the original.”
Also featured on the EP are new versions of Joy Division’s Love Will Tear Us Apart, Fade Into You by Mazzy Star and Rialto’s Untouchable.
Listen to Teardrops below.
Earlier this year, RETROPOP featured Liz as One To Watch in 2023 and in an exclusive interview she opened up about working with Ed on her debut album, ‘The Words’, which she released last November.
“I never really had much confidence in my own songwriting before working with Ed,” she admitted. “I can’t really explain it, it’s this strange thing when I get in the studio with him. It’s almost like he can read my mind and tell what my mood is or what I need to get off my chest. We’re on the same wavelength where the music that he’s playing is exactly what I want to hear – and then the lyrics just flow.”
Having received critical acclaim for the album, the singer-songwriter went on to tease her plans for the future. “I’d love to release a ‘Side B’ or ‘Behind The Scenes’ album of all the darker, more melancholy songs that didn’t make it,” she suggested.
And then on to album No. 2: “I’m already halfway through the next album, so I’ll be working on that as well. I feel like the floodgates have opened and all I want to do is write songs and take it to the next stage.
“The sky’s the limit,” Liz smiled, “and I have no intention of giving up and going back to a nine-to-five now. So I’m cracking on!”
READ MORE: Introducing… Ones to Watch in 2023