Nashville by way of D.C. singer-songwriter, Nate Bergman has shared a soul-stirring cover of the My Chemical Romance enormo-hit ‘Helena’, twenty years after its original release. Bergman has now put his own distinctive, acoustic spin on it. He even dared to share it with his long-time friend (and My Chemical Romance guitarist) Frank Iero. Bergman produced and recorded the single himself at Icarus Sound Studio in Nashville, TN, with mixing duties handled by Mike Fahey at Starbird Sound in Nashville, TN.
A surprising choice of cover? Bergman explains:
“The idea came about when I was on tour supporting Thursday last year and they were also doing arena shows supporting My Chemical Romance. I got to see the show about 12 times. Full on rock ‘n’ roll – it was so beautiful and made for large crowds. I remember hearing ‘Helena’ and thinking this is one of the best songs ever… how can I re-imagine it like a folk/soul ballad?! I started playing it live with Amigo The Devil and it sort of took on a life of its own.” He grins, continuing, “Luckily, when I sent it to Frank [Iero] he seemed to love it as well!”
Bergman has managed to beautifully distil the power of this track with just vocals and guitar. The magic you can hear is pretty much down to his voice, emotionally channelling the heart-wrenching lyrics of the original. The tears will start to flow on the first chorus.
Check it out, here
Find out more via Bergman’s Website or Facebook
Check out our interview with Bergman here
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