Colin Peterik Talks His Lana Del Rey Cover “West Coast”
It takes more than chops and imagination to cover a song by Lana Del Rey. It requires guts, too. Lana Del Rey has made inimitability part of her mission from the beginning of her career. But Colin Peterik has never shied away from a musical challenge. The Chicago rocker hasn’t picked something from the periphery of the Lana Del Rey catalog to reinterpret. He jumped right in with one of her essential tracks: “West Coast,” the brooding centerpiece of Ultraviolence, and a song that draws connections between show business, sexuality, freedom and addictive behavior, and American iconography.
That’s a lot to handle — but Peterik is the right man for the task. He was practically born into the music industry: he’s the son of the legendary Jim Peterik, writer of “Eye Of The Tiger,” “Hold On Loosely,” and dozens of other era-defining songs. Colin Peterik knows all about the magic of rock and its promise of freedom, and he’s seen the dangerous underside of the dream-making machine, too. Like Lana Del Rey, he’s thought long and hard about American myths and how they’re often represented (and distorted) on pop records. Everything And Nothing, his upcoming full-length, is a culmination of a life spent grappling with the legacy of pop and rock traditions: a modern-sounding album with roots deep in American cultural history. The set, which was mixed by Grammy-winning engineer Craig Bauer (Kanye West, Ed Sheeran, Justin Timberlake), foregrounds Peterik’s expressive, soulful vocals and the earthy sensuality of his band.
Notably, Ultraviolence was produced by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys; Lana Del Rey’s “West Coast” is a pop recording with powerful classic rock underpinnings. Peterik’s arrangement brings those elements to the forefront, drenching the mix in overdriven six-string and augmenting the song’s rhythmic pulse. Yet he’s preserved the vulnerability of the Ultraviolence original and enhanced its immersive quality, menace, and sense of Southern California as a surreal, dream-drunk place where anything might happen. The “West Coast” clip catches Colin Peterik and his group in the studio, and while nothing hallucinatory happens, the washes of red light and strange reflections in the control-room glass suggest an altered state. These musicians are giving themselves over to the song — a modern classic that has bewitched listeners ever since its release.
Your father, Jim Peterik, is a Grammy award-winning songwriter, singer and musician. How did he influence your passion for music, and how did your upbringing shape your voice and sound?
My Dad has influenced me in so many ways. He always brings the same passion and energy on stage whether he is playing in front of 10 people or 10,000 people. That to me says a lot about a person. Little things like acting professionally at a gig from the moment you arrive, to the moment you leave. Going out of your way to be nice or make a conversation with the stagehands, the interns, etc. Having a positive attitude will always come back to reward you. He is an obsessive songwriter, he has thousands of notebooks of songs and song ideas. To be so passionate about something is truly inspiring. His world is his office, and I’ve always loved that concept.
When did you start songwriting and producing your own music, and when did you realize you wanted to pursue music as a career?
I started writing music in high school and taught myself to record with a simple 4 track tape recorder. Soon I got my hands on Protools and never looked back. Now I use Protools as a songwriting tool by recording instrumental music and singing different ideas over it until something sticks. It’s like co-writing with yourself. I knew that I wanted to pursue music as a career the moment I felt that power to create something out of thin air.
What made you gravitate toward covering “West Coast” by Lana Del Rey? What about this song resonates with you, and what is special and unique about your cover of it?
Music has the ability to transport the listener to a different place and time, and this song is a great example of that. I picture myself at a late-night party, outdoors, maybe in the 1970s, vulnerable and ready to succumb to the night and everything that comes with it. For a 3 minute song to inspire all of those emotions is really special. I sing it from a male perspective, which highlights a vulnerability in men that is not often represented in art.
What was your experience shaping this pop hit into a soulful, rock arrangement? What was your creative process, and how do you feel your version brought new life to this already smashing track?
When I decided to cover the song, I stopped listening to the original so as not to be influenced too much by its production. I brought it to the band and we worked it out live- everyone in the band brought something unique to the table and it became bigger than the sum of its parts. We did it live in the studio with minimal overdubs to keep it authentic, and I think that comes across in the recording.
What was your experience shooting the “West Coast” cover music video? How was the band’s energy in the studio?
It’s always stressful when cameras are rolling during a recording session, but the team was super easy to work with and made us feel comfortable enough to just focus on the performance. The “fly on the wall” approach was crucial to let us energize and perfect the performance. I think we all forgot the cameras were even there halfway through the session, which is why the video seems so authentic.
What releases should fans and followers be expecting from you next?
My full-length album “Everything and Nothing” is coming out worldwide on June 12th, 2022. I also have another cover version of a song dropping. This time it’s from one of my favorite UK bands, Prefab Sprout. So definitely check them out and keep an eye out for my tribute to a truly underrated group. For all news and show, announcements visit www.colinpeterik.com.
Follow Colin Peterik:
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About the Author
Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.
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