August 2014 – Christmas Underground

Self-Released
Buy: Bandcamp | iTunes | 7Digital MP3/FLAC

Eux Autres released their Another Christmas at Home 7-inch back in 2009, and in the subsequent four years, have earned (what I would consider) a status of indie-Christmas classic. Their original song, the titular “Another Christmas at Home” is 2:18 celebrating a warm fuzzy drinking-at-home Christmas that I’m sure a number of us can relate to. Short, sweet, and great. Their two covers, Slade’s “Merry Christmas Everybody” and the Jacobites’ “Teenage Christmas” are equally wonderful – Eux Autres’ sound adds something to the song that makes you think they should be Eux Autres originals. (I especially love the lo-fi indiepop take on “Teenage Christmas.”) Unfortunately, the 7″ version will be hard to come by, as it was limited to 250 copies and is sold out – but do some digging and you might get lucky.

Bottom Line: The kind of solid effort you wish would come out more frequently. Truly enjoyable with some great choices. 5/5

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Self-Released
Buy: Discogs 7″ | iTunes

Fucked Up are no strangers to Christmas music. For those who actually like this song (I may not be one of those…), this is a solid version. They change the production and modernize it a bit, and the singing is not very good in parts… all of which I actually appreciate. The gloss of the original can feel so syrupy-sweet that it’ll rot your teeth. Along with members of Fucked Up, you’ll find Andrew W.K., Bob Mould, David Cross, Ezra Koenig, GZA, Kevin Drew, Kyp Malone, Tegan and Sara, and Yo La Tengo on this track. Likely, if you’re reading this blog, you’ve heard of this version, if not actually heard it already.

OF NOTE: If you read this today or tomorrow, ~~you can pick up the David’s Plan 7″ (with this song as the b-side) from Insound for a sweet $1.50~~. That is kind of insane.

Bottom Line: Good for what it is. 3.8/5

Month: August 2014

Eux Autres – Another Christmas at Home (2009)

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Fucked Up – Do They Know It’s Christmas (2009)

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