Muna Slips Into Taylor Swift’s ‘August’

Cancel your plans, because Muna is calling. The Los Angeles-based indie pop band dropped their Live at Electric Lady EP, exclusively available on Spotify, and one of the five songs on the set is a cover of Taylor Swift’s “August.” 

The band’s rendition doesn’t stray far from Swift’s original from Folklore, but offers a dreamy, atmospheric vibe.

“The whole environment at Electric Lady Studios is so supportive and open, it often leads to making new creative choices while you’re in the midst of recording,” Muna said in a statement of the EP, which is a Spotify exclusive, before explaining their take on Swift’s song. “’August’ took on this very breathy, quiet quality that we hadn’t anticipated, but we just went with.”

The Live at Electric Lady EP also includes “Silk Chiffon,” “Anything But Me” and “Kind of Girl” (all from the band’s third album) and “Taken” (from 2019’s Saves the World), in addition to “August.” Muna’s Swift rendition isn’t the first cover the band has executed in collaboration with Spotify — they flawlessly delivered Normani’s “Motivation” for Spotify Singles in 2019.

“Silk Chiffon,” an ode to queer love off their new self-titled album, has drawn buzz. The band recently performed it during a sold-out show at New York City’s Irving Plaza, where comedian and Saturday Night Live star Bowen Yang joined them onstage.  The single is the band’s first release from since signing to Saddest Factory Records, a label spearheaded by Phoebe Bridgers.

“We look forward to this lifelong partnership and Phoebe raising our firstborn children, as was included in the contract,” the band joked in their May statement announcing the signing. “This will be the last time we speak publicly as we will be giving her our voices in a cursed golden locket (with the exception of our bi-monthly contribution to the Podcast Industrial Complex). And maybe some music.”

Listen to Muna’s cover of “August” below: