Lorde's Catching Fire Cover Probably Won't Be Your Favorite Song

Let’s be clear here: I really like Lorde. I think Pure Heroine is an impressive debut album, I like how mouthy she is, I like her hair. I tried to do my eye makeup like her over the weekend, but unfortunately came off looking more like a tired, sad, old clown vampire than I did an ethereal New Zealand teen witch. So, yes — Lorde is great! That said, her cover of Tears for Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” for the Catching Fire soundtrack is…less great?

Granted, I am a sucker for the original (the combination of optimistic-sounding synth with depressing lyrics does it for me), but the Lorde version just seems like it’s trying so hard to hit us over the head with the overwhelming darkness of it all.

But Tears for Fears’ Curt Smith is into it. As he told MTV Hive, “I think it’s absolutely amazing, but then I love her, I think she’s brilliant…. We love it when other people cover our stuff. Sometimes we steal them and use their version live.”

That’s the funny thing about tastes, isn’t it? Some people like things and other people don’t.