Watch The Wombats Cover Kate Bush’s ‘Running Up That Hill’
The Wombats have performed a cover of Kate Bush‘s Running Up That Hill. The cover, which aired this morning, was performed at the studios of triple j for the Australian broadcaster’s ‘Like A Version’ segment.
It marked their fourth time on the segment, with the trio first appearing on it in 2011 to cover Jessie J‘s Price Tag. They returned in 2015 to cover Jarryd James‘ Do You Remember, and again in December 2018 for a festive take on the segment with a cover of Bing Crosby’s White Christmas.
Watch the band’s cover of Running Up That Hill for ‘Like A Version’ below.
In a post-performance interview, drummer Dan Haggis noted that the trio were already “huge Kate Bush fans”, but were compelled to attempt a cover following its resurgence as a part of Stranger Things.
“I first heard Kate Bush… in a van, on a cassette tape, driving across the south of Spain to a cousin’s wedding when I was, like, 10 or something,” Haggis recalls. He went on to note the advent of streaming made access to artists from bygone eras possible: “Those great songs will resurge again,” he said.
The band pointed to their own song ‘Greek Tragedy’ achieving a second life through a remix on TikTok as an example. “It’s nice seeing [songs] have their own little life,” said frontman Matthew Murphy. “You can leave them dormant, and then suddenly they’re back again.”
As is ‘Like A Version’ custom, the band also performed an original song to pair with the cover – in this instance, their song This Car Drives All By Itself.
The Wombats are one of several artists to have covered Bush’s Running Up That Hill – ranging from Placebo to metal band Within Temptation. More recently, Kim Petras and Halsey have covered the song – the former for an Amazon Music exclusive, the latter during a performance at the Governors Ball.
Since its inclusion in Stranger Things, Running Up That Hill has topped the charts in nine countries, including Australia and the UK. Its popularity has also brought Bush herself out of her reclusive state, with the singer sharing several responses on her website and a giving a rare radio interview with the BBC.
The Wombats have just completed their first Australian tour in nearly four years and will return to the country this November, performing as part of the Spilt Milk festival.