By Azzam Bilal 
HangupsMusic.com – Montreal, the landscape of independent rock is often defined by moments of sudden, frantic energy—the kind of lightning-in-a-bottle magic that characterized the mid-2000s indie boom. At the heart of that era was Wolf Parade’s "I’ll Believe in Anything," a track that served as a cornerstone of their 2005 debut masterpiece, Apologies to the Queen Mary. Nearly two decades after its initial release, the song has found a second life, not just as a nostalgic relic, but as a living, breathing piece of art. Spencer Krug, the co-frontman and primary architect of the song’s haunting melody, has officially released a new solo piano version of the track, capturing a different kind of intensity than the synth-driven original.
The impetus for this new recording was twofold: a surge in mainstream visibility and a deeply personal reconnection with the material. Recently, "I’ll Believe in Anything" experienced a viral resurgence after being featured in a central, emotionally charged sequence of the HBO romance series Heated Rivalry. The sync placement introduced the 2005 anthem to a new generation of listeners, prompting Krug to revisit the song during his live performances. After performing a stripped-down rendition during a concert in Vancouver last month, the overwhelming audience response convinced Krug that a formal studio recording of this arrangement was necessary.
In an industry where legacy acts often shy away from their early hits or deliver perfunctory acoustic versions for the sake of content, Krug’s approach is remarkably sincere. Taking to Instagram to announce the release, Krug shared his reflections on the process of reimagining a song that has followed him for twenty years. He noted that while he has experimented with various solo iterations of the track over the decades, this specific piano-led version stands as his definitive solo interpretation. He placed it in high esteem, suggesting it is the only version that rivals the original Wolf Parade recording in terms of emotional weight.
According to Krug, the goal was not to replace the original but to honor its spirit through a different lens. He described the new version as "heartfelt, grandiose, and cathartic," qualities that defined the 2005 version but are here expressed through the resonance of a piano rather than the frantic, shimmering synthesizers and driving percussion of the band’s early days. Krug remarked that playing this arrangement brought back the same visceral feelings he experienced two decades ago when the song was first being written—a period of discovery where the track’s identity was still forming.
The story behind the song’s recent viral success is as much about cinematic vision as it is about musical quality. In a detailed conversation with Vulture, Krug and his longtime bandmate Dan Boeckner discussed the licensing process for Heated Rivalry. The series creator and director, Jacob Tierney, was not looking for a generic indie backdrop; he specifically sought out "I’ll Believe in Anything" to anchor a pivotal moment in the narrative. Tierney reportedly approached the band with a clear blueprint of how the song would interact with the script, emphasizing its importance to the scene’s emotional payoff.
Krug recalled being impressed by Tierney’s dedication to the track. The director’s passion made the decision to license the song an easy one for the band. Krug noted that Tierney’s intent was so specific that had Wolf Parade declined the request, the director likely would have had to rewrite the scene entirely. This level of intentionality is rare in the world of television syncs, where songs are often treated as interchangeable mood-setters. For Krug and Boeckner, knowing that the song was being handled by someone who understood its internal mechanics and emotional stakes allowed them to entrust their "baby" to the screen with confidence.
To understand the weight of this new version, one must look back at the legacy of Apologies to the Queen Mary. Released on Sub Pop in 2005, the album was a lightning rod for the Montreal music scene, which was then the epicenter of the indie rock world. Produced by Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse, the record was a chaotic, beautiful collision of Krug’s eccentric, keyboard-driven compositions and Boeckner’s gritty, guitar-heavy rock. "I’ll Believe in Anything" became the album’s emotional centerpiece, a song that felt like it was constantly on the verge of collapsing under its own desperation before soaring into a triumphant, if weary, chorus.
The song has long been a critical darling, famously ranked at No. 95 on Pitchfork’s list of the 200 Best Songs of the 2000s. Its enduring popularity is a testament to Krug’s ability to blend cryptic, surrealist lyricism with universal themes of devotion and the desire for salvation. When the band went on an indefinite hiatus in 2011, many feared that these songs would only exist as digital artifacts. However, Wolf Parade’s return in 2016, accompanied by a deluxe reissue of their debut, proved that their chemistry remained intact. The band further cemented this legacy in 2022 by performing Apologies to the Queen Mary in its entirety during a series of highly successful anniversary shows, featuring the original lineup.
While Wolf Parade remains a vital part of his identity, Spencer Krug has spent the last several years carving out a distinct solo path. After years of recording under monikers like Moonface and Sunset Rubdown, he began releasing music under his own name in 2021 with the album Fading Graffiti. This was followed by 2022’s Twenty Twenty Twenty Twenty One, a project that showcased his continued evolution as a songwriter who is unafraid to embrace both complexity and vulnerability. His solo work often leans into the piano as a primary instrument, making this new version of "I’ll Believe in Anything" a natural bridge between his past and his present artistic self.
The new studio recording strips away the wall-of-sound production of the original, leaving Krug’s voice and the piano to carry the narrative. This exposure highlights the nuances of the lyrics—the plea for a "place where we can go" and the desperate offer to believe in anything if it means finding a sense of belonging. In the absence of the original’s driving rhythm section, the song takes on a more elegiac quality. It feels less like a call to arms and more like a private confession, a shift that reflects the perspective of an artist who has lived with these words for twenty years.
The success of the Vancouver performance that birthed this recording speaks to the unique relationship Krug has with his audience. In a live setting, the intimacy of the piano arrangement allowed for a shared moment of reflection between the performer and the fans who have grown up alongside his music. The decision to enter the studio immediately afterward suggests that Krug recognized a specific spark in that arrangement—a "joy to play," as he described it—that deserved to be preserved beyond the walls of a concert hall.
As the music industry continues to grapple with the influence of social media and television syncs on the charts, Krug’s response to the Heated Rivalry viral moment serves as a masterclass in how an artist can reclaim their narrative. Rather than simply letting the original track climb the streaming charts, he used the moment to offer a new perspective on his work, inviting both old fans and new listeners to hear the song as he hears it now.
This new solo version is now available for streaming, offering a poignant bookend to the "I’ll Believe in Anything" story. It is a tribute to the endurance of great songwriting and a reminder that even the most familiar songs can reveal new depths when the lights are dimmed and the synthesizers are replaced by the steady, resonant keys of a piano. For Spencer Krug, it is a homecoming; for the rest of us, it is a chance to believe in the song all over year again.