Click to listen to The Civil Wars' "Disarm (Live)"

The Civil Wars, an indie-folk duo from East Nashville, recorded this stunning cover the Smashing Pumpkins' 1993 hit "Disarm" at the SXSW festival two weeks ago. The band put their own spin on the song, trading out the original studio recording's bombastic orchestration for mournful, atmospheric finger-picked guitar arpeggios. They also turned the song into a male-female duet, with John Paul White and Joy Williams trading off lines in the chorus in a way that sounds both anguished and supportive. The band's iTunes Live: SXSW EP is available in the iTunes store now, along with live SXSW recordings from several other bands.