Anana Kaye – There Is A War

After “Cordelia,” an outstanding, critically acclaimed single, Nashville-based singer-songwriter Anana Kaye returns with another single that will immediately resonate with anyone who appreciates exceptional music. Serving as a second single from her forthcoming new record ‘Are You There?,” “There Is A War” is a marvelous cover of Leonard Cohen’s classic. As many of you probably know, covering a renowned artist without ruining the original song is always a challenging task to achieve, but Anana Kaye is a clever, skillful, talented singer-songwriter who knows what works and what does not work on this track. Leonard Cohen himself recorded this composition several times, always offering a slightly or more distinctive take compared to the previous versions, which invites artists, bands, and other music outlets to reinterpret this classic. If you’re familiar with several original versions, then you probably know that Leonard Cohen almost always incorporated some of the finest properties of contemporary folk, folk rock, and sophistipop, music genres that unquestionably suited his crooning voice. Anana Kaye used the same approach and reconstructed this classic to suit her magnificent vocal abilities. Therefore, you’ll stumble upon a more modern structure where some of the finest properties of alternative rock, indie rock, electro, and avant-pop shine in the limelight, offering a perfect backdrop for Kaye’s voice to shine. The artist offers a more raw, unfiltered yet somehow calm, soothing, relaxing, and elegant take on a classic that definitely suits her musical direction.

As soon as you press play, you’ll immediately realize how much Anana Kaye’s version differs from the original.  She entirely deconstructed and reconstructed the structure, making her rendition more suitable for modern times. Her take carries all those qualities that meet the trends in contemporary music production, yet somehow it shines with that retro swag, elegance, and lush ambiance. It’s one of those covers that will not only appeal to longtime Leonard Cohen fans but also to anyone who appreciates tastefully constructed music. It’s nearly mindblowing how her voice suits this song so perfectly. Her soulful, passionate, sincere, confident, emotional performance seamlessly balances low, mid, and high notes with such precision and finesse, emphasizing everything she intended to achieve with this cover. You’ll notice how she decorates each sonic and rhythmic maneuver, each segment, and simultaneously contributes emotional depth and complexity to an already intricate song structure. Her voice suits this cover so well that you’ll almost get the feeling of how this song must be crafted for her. She elevates everything to new heights, commands attention, and guides listeners on a sonic journey through the expansive sonic universe. You’ll also hear how the additional vocal layers and back vocals contribute more depth, making this song even more appealing to the ears. But the main difference between this version and the original song comes from the fact that Anana Kaye entirely substituted acoustic guitars, percussion, and string section with synths, electric guitars, and electronic beats. These instrumentations breathe fresh air into the classic, making it more suitable for an audience who favors modern sound over old-school production. You’ll notice how all those carefully constructed synth pads, lines, and various sonic maneuvers uplift everything to an entirely new level, while the guitars deliver catchy, memorable, engaging, heavily distorted guitar riffs, offering more grit, abrasion, and aggression. It’s nearly mindblowing how all these layers articulate together without overwhelming each other, proving that Anana Kaye thought about everything while reworking the original track.

Besides all those lush synth and guitar works, you’ll hear how all those vividly hearable, warm-sounding, intricate, powerful basslines roam around, contributing more than necessary heaviness, clarity, and depth while simultaneously serving as a binding element between the mentioned orchestrations and rhyhtmic patterns. These low-ends are so rich, deep, dense, heavy, offering more groove, detail, and depth without overwhelming the remainder of the instrumentations. In the meantime, the cleverly crafted, flawlessly programmed, well-accentuated beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics keep everything in line while dictating groove and pace. With their downtempo, half-time tempo, these rhythmic patterns almost sound like something trip-hop music outlets would eventually implement into their songs, but they perfectly suit Anana Kaye’s vision. Each hit of the snare, kick of the bass drum, accentuation over hi-hats, and splash over the cymbals bring more groove, power, and complexity to an already intricate track. Anana Kaye achieved something that not so many singer-songwriters could do. She reimagined the classic track without losing the pure essence of the original. All the elegance, swag, and lush instrumentations are still there, but reworked for these modern times. If you ever worked one similar project, you definitely know that’s a challenging task to achieve, but it seems like she managed this with such ease. Her songwriting, composing, arranging, and producing abilites are on full display here, offering a marvelous cover song that will appeal to longtime Leonard Cohen fans and newcomers to her sound. Anana Kaye is a one-of-a-kind artist whose creativity, talent, and skills stand out from any other singer-songwriter on the contemporary music scene, and this cover song unquestionably exemplifies her brilliance. You should immediately head to your favorite streaming platform and check it out.