[Editor’s Note: As we’ve noted before, covers are more important for original bands now than they’ve been in years. Our newest contributor, Sean McKeown, goes into why]

Like a haircut, the right or wrong cover choice can make you seem prettier or uglier than you really are. Choose wrong and you may seem silly, pretentious, lacking chops, or downright offensive. Choose right and you could make a lot of new fans.

That being said, there are many benefits to playing cover songs for an original band:

#1. Covers help introduce your style of music. Contemporary music has become such a pastiche, with diverse influences and contravening sounds, that it can be hard to latch into music on the first listen. A cover can serve as a familiar touchstone in the set, letting the audience see you make a song your own, elucidating your band’s sound.

#2 Covers make the shows more fun for the audience. People come to shows to enjoy some exciting new music, of course. But the conditions aren’t always optimal. After three opening bands in a poorly lit and ventilated room, anyone’s attention starts to wander. Hearing a new take on a familiar song can really rope the audience into your set.

#3 Covers make the show more interesting for the band. Usually a band has a predetermined set running anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour. And if you’re a new band, this set is comprised of the same songs you’ve been playing for a year. As with friends, although you love them, you can grow weary of them after too much time together. Having some covers hashed out in practice or on the road can give your sets some variety and keep things fun.

#4 Covers can help with a band deal with the variability of set lengths. When playing a bill with multiple performers, your set can either be cut short or extended due to circumstance (and it will be). Having a couple covers in your back pocket does more than keep people in the room. It makes your band an asset in such scenarios and more desirable for future shows.

#5 A well-done cover can turn a good show into a great one. A good show takes many factors – a great set played well, an appropriate venue and an enthusiastic crowd are all key. But it’s the little things that push a solid set into the realm of a great one, and make the difference between a forgettable band and a memorable band. Things like legitimately funny stage banter, outrageous stunts onstage, or costumes and sets that complement the music can keep people coming to your shows even if they’re not head over heels about the music yet. Well-chosen covers can function in the same way.

Take for example a Market Hotel show this past February. Along with headliner Surfer Blood, the bill also featured Beach Fossils, Turbo Fruits, Grooms, and last minute addition The Morning Benders. Three of the bands – Surfer Blood, Turbo Fruits and the Morning Benders – played covers as parts of their sets. You can find a few videos of the show here: http://bit.ly/dlakTu.

Morning Benders played a cover of Neil Young’s “Bad Fog of Loneliness” as an encore to a great response from the crowd. Turbo Fruits’ excellent high-energy set was capped off with a raucous cover of CCR’s “Bad Moon Rising” that had the whole place belting it out. And Surfer Blood, deep into their set, teased Weezer’s “Undone” while tuning, and found themselves in an impromptu sing along with the audience. Moments like these connect the band and the audience and make the night even more memorable.

But when playing a cover, the potential risks are at least as great as the potential rewards. An overplayed song, an ironic song choice that doesn’t resonate, or choosing too popular of a song can suck the energy right out of the room. Not to mention the ultimate pitfall – what if the cover is far and away the best song you play?

Still, if you’re confident both in your set and in your choice of covers, you can make the show more fun and memorable for everyone.