Today in Rock: Listen to Punch Brothers Cover Beck’s Funked-Up “Sexx Laws”

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Punch Brothers, the virtuosic avant-bluegrass gang led by mandolin master Chris Thile, are known, in part, for concocting some inspired covers. In the past, they’ve put string-heavy spins on The Strokes’ “Reptilia” and The Cars’ “Just What I Needed,” to name just a couple. On April 4, 2012, the quintet rolled through Daytrotter Studio in Rock Island, Ill., while on tour behind their album from that year, Who’s Feeling Young Now? (which featured a cover of Radiohead’s “Kid A”). Thile, fiddler Gabe Witcher, banjo player Noam Pikelny, guitarist Chris Eldridge and bassist Paul Kowert opened their four-song set with a punchy rendition of Beck’s “Sexx Laws,” the lead single from 1999’s funktastic Midnite Vultures. The song is peppered with “oohs” and “ahhs” and features plenty of string gymnastics, then segues seamlessly into the bluegrass standard “Train on the Island,” showcasing this group’s unmatched ability to meld modern pop and classic American folk forms.