Dante Elephante - "Game of Love"
Gregg Alexander, the man behind 90s pop-rock outfit New Radicals, found himself in the news for the first time in two decades after he was asked to reunite his former band for a one-off performance of their lone hit, “You Get What You Give,” at President Biden’s inauguration. He delivered a killer performance much to the delight of longtime supporters like myself, who hold their only full length, Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too, in high regard. While any self-respecting millennial remembers the anthemic “You Get What You Give,” what you may not know is that subsequent to the dissolution of New Radicals, Alexander started writing songs for other artists, including “Game of Love,” the 2002 Santana hit that features vocals from Michelle Branch.
Alright, so now that we got that bit of background out of the way, let’s get to why we’re here today. We’re stoked to premiere Dante Elephant’s slick rendition of “Game of Love” today on Look At My Records! The Santa Barbara-based artist’s version of the track starts off with his voice as the sole focus before the chorus kicks in and a banging, disco electro-beat takes control. The song nicely oscillates between some smooth and soulful melodies in the verses and the more uptempo, danceable choruses, which feature rhythms that’ll make you want to move your body. Without a doubt, his version of this early-aughts hit has more of a funky vibe, as Elephante supplements Santana’s ripping guitar riffs with rapid-fire percussive elements and simultaneously keeps the synths grooving throughout.
The video for the track, which is dedicated to Gregg Alexander, sees Elephante hanging out and dancing on a cliff overlooking the picturesque Pacific Ocean. He busts out a couple of moves to coincide with those above-mentioned danceable choruses and gets more pensive during the toned-down verses. The video is karaoke-ready, as the lyrics to the entire song appear on screen!
Stream the video below!
Elephante’s cover of “Game of Love” follows the January release of his third full-length, Mid-Century Modern Romance, which is out now via Born Loser Records. You can get a copy on limited edition vinyl via Bandcamp. His music is available on all streaming platforms. Keep up with Dante Elephante by following him on Instagram and liking him on Facebook.
Photo by Moises Galvan
