By Mohammed Hijazi

It’s been less than two months since the release of Adele’s record-breaking single “Hello”, which reached an astounding 27 million plays in 24 hours and a total of 650 million plays (as of December 9, 2015). And unless you’ve been living in a cave, you must have come across not only the song, but the flood of remixes, covers, and renditions that shows no sign of abating.

Some of these covers and renditions are good, and plenty are bad. Here are the five that I have enjoyed the most:

1- Adele – Hello (Moseqar X Alice Olivia Cover)

This remix stands out the most. The song features skilled Egyptian musician/producer who goes by the name “Moseqar”, and talented british singer/songwriter Alice Olivia. It’s very different when compared to the other remixes or covers, and Moseqar managed to remix the song whilst maintaining his signature sound. There is nothing much going on in terms of instruments and sounds but despite its simplicity, the track sounds full.

The soft sounding piano chords, pizzicato string arpeggiation and electric guitar picks give the instrumental the right flow. The reverbed high-pitched vocal samples, vocal manipulations, and the way the drums/percussions are programmed give the song a contemporary R&B vibe.

Vocals sound warm and breathy with a limited vocal range which is what I like the most. Unlike other remixes, the vocalist did not try to recreate Adele’s exact performers, and instead of shifting a whole octave to hit the high notes, Alice kept it soft and warm even towards the chorus part, which preserved the mood of the song. But it also sounds very fresh because the vocal articulations and harmonies are different from the original.

You can also listen to the original cover by Alice Olivia here:

2- Jimmy Fallon, Adele and The Roots Sing “Hello” (w/Classroom Instruments)

This is an unplugged version of the original song featuring Adele, Jimmy Fallon and The Roots using a ukulele, xylophone, melodica, toms, percussions and a teenage engineering op-1. Despite being funny to watch, the performance looks and sounds good, especially with “The Roots” choir-like backing vocals.

3- Adele – Hello (metal cover by Leo Moracchioli)

If the original “Hello” is too soft for you liking, this one will make your head bob right away, maybe even start a moshpit with your friends at work. The whole thing is perfectly put together, build-up is exciting, riffs are aggressive, solo is intense and vocals are incredibly well done.

4- Alaine – Hello (Adele Reggae Cover)

If metal is not your thing, check out this reggae cover by American singer/musician Alaine Laughton. At first it sounded a little off but seconds towards the build-up, the whole thing took another turn. Funky bass, groovy drums, clean synths and rhythmic electric guitar are all beautifully placed within the mix. Although it’s a completely different vibe, it sounds pretty soulful.

5- Adele – Hello (Oud cover) by Ahmed Alshaiba

This is an entirely different approach to remixing/covering the song. Ahmed Alshaiba is a Yemeni Oud player and composer known for his renditions of popular music using nothing but a Oud, frame drum (daf), virtual choirs and string sections.