Month: December 2023

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PHONY (featuring Ratboys) “Christmas Eve Day”, “Wedding and Funeral Family” (2022)

PHONY Industries
Buy: Bandcamp

Have you ever wondered what an Elliott Smith Christmas song might sound like? I say this, and realize that you could make a case for adding “Junk Bond Trader,” “King’s Crossing” or “Angel in the Snow,” should you be so inclined, I suppose… Well. Where do I go with this review other than saying, “Christmas Eve Day” by PHONY (the solo project of Neil Berthier, guitarist for Joyce Manor, ex-Donovan Wolfington) sure sounds like a great Elliott Smith Christmas-adjacent song. This song shares the same beautiful, haunting qualities I’ve always loved from Elliott, though best compared to his earlier, less-ornate work. The finger picking, the harmony provided by the excellent Julia Steiner from Ratboys, even the quality of Neil’s voice – I can’t shake that feeling I’m listening to a ghost when I close my eyes. That second verse is particularly vivid, especially with that repeated line at the end.

parliaments torched to the filter
on an empty stomach
christmas eve day
it had poured rain 
for the first time in ages
took my demons outside of their cages
i thought about you
and how there was
just no way to solve it
success and failure 
sound the same
a sweet evil silence
a sweet evil silence

I don’t mean to only talk about comparisons with this review. I just can’t shake them. I do believe that PHONY made something quite beautiful here, and just like an Elliott Smith record, the unflinching introspection does put you in a particular kind of space. Do you like that space? I own every Elliott Smith record, so I sure do, but I know many (my wife included) who do not. But not every song here is for everyone, but every song is surely for someone.

For folks who are on board for PHONY from that first track, “Wedding & Funeral Family,” also has some pretty explicit Christmas imagery, and Neil shakes the Elliott Smith vibe of “Christmas Eve Day” for more of an emo vibe. And yes, there are many flavors of emo, and that is a term that some folks avoid, but the song is worth it.

always on a weekday
come up with something more
than christmas cards i couldn’t save
wish you had
your cardboard box of ornaments 
i could help you hang them at 4 pm
just get out the white wine
put on some elvis to remind me of some better time
when all the lights would flash more than red and yellow
we get together but don’t seem to say hello

Did you think the first song was heavy? “Wedding & Funeral Family” takes the emotion to a new level. The record was written after Neil’s father passed from dementia, and I find this song so personal that it feels like an invasion of privacy, like I’m peering through a crack in the door. Again, I find these things interesting and beautiful – and I grant it may not be quite what your mix is looking for, but it might be what you need someday.

Bottom Line: I’ve been creeping on your Bandcamp purchases, and am quite pleased to discover this song, this band, and the Ratboys connection makes it even sweeter. These are deeply lovely and emotional songs for the kind of person that needs a hit of this on occasion.

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Arlie “Come as You Arlie (The Christmas Song)” (2018)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp (NYOP)

Sometimes you find one of those songs that you get so excited about that you both want to tell everyone, and nobody, about it. This is one of those situations… hold it until it is revealed on your mix (which is not set in stone yet, so anything can happen still!), or help the wider community impress their friends with a fantastic song. Well, I’m going with the latter as I’m sure a bunch of you are going to enjoy this one…

As for the review, I’m not going to get too specific, because I really just want you all to press play and smile. However, I will give a little background to this fantastic song. Nashville psychedelic indiepop band Arlie put this song together back in 2018 and tried to get it fully-cleared to be on Spotify/Tidal/etc, but alas, the music publishing gods had other ideas. Thus, it existed under the radar for several years, with not much on the net about it beyond a few Tiktoks that use the song, as well as one where Arlie addresses the song’s unfortunate fate. Somehow, with zero press, the song still amassed over 10K streams on Soundcloud – the only place (until VERY recently) where one could find this full song. I reached out the Nathaniel Banks, the frontman of the band, a few weeks ago just to make sure that he’d be cool with me writing about the song, as I didn’t want to stir up any trouble for him. He was happy to give me the green light – and even put the track up on Bandcamp for you all. So… warm up whatever finger you prefer to smash play with, and proceed.

Be sure to check out Arlie’s excellent full-length record, Break the Curse, as it is not on the Arlie Bandcamp. You can find it on your favorite streaming service… or perhaps from your favorite record store. Bands get WAY more money from a purchase than a stream, and everyone’s got to eat, folks.

Bottom Line: This one is going to bring a smile to many faces. And remember, name your own price means you can drop a dollar in the pot, so please do so.

LISTEN

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Vom Vorton “One Turkey Sandwich” (2023)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp (NYOP)

In response to the excellent song posted over on Christmas A Gogo today (Pen Pin’s “Office Party”), I have decided to hip you all to another excellent office party-themed Christmas song! What can I say, I want to join the party and the peer pressure is intense… The A-side to Vom Vorton’s new Christmas single (also the titular track) is the excellent “One Turkey Sandwich,” which follows the narrator’s bad decision-making at an office Christmas party. He begins by being quite sensible, as he has just started working there. Well, the night goes on and the drinking increases, and some poor decisions are made… though it doesn’t get too unbelievable to not be relatable. Simply a clever, very well executed song that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Bottom Line: Well that was a rather quick and sensible review. It’s early, and I don’t want to make a scene. Great song! Mixworthy!

LISTEN

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Neil Brogan & Band “Our First Christmas” (2023)

Brogan Records
Buy: Bandcamp

I’m curious… can we consider this whole Neil Brogan writing a fantastic Christmas song a tradition? No pressure, Neil, but I’m in favor of this. After last year’s stone-cold classic, “christmas with a small c,” Neil returns with the touching “Our First Christmas.” The song is a touching stroll through that special feeling you have towards the first Christmas with a loved one. Neil’s voice is really the selling point of this song, soft and emotive – that “ya know” he sings, somehow makes this song feel more deeply personal than a song usually can – like someone is talking just to you. Simple and beautiful.

Bottom Line: Following up one of my favorite songs of the past 5 years was a tough bar to clear, but Neil decided to stroll around it with a lovely, wholly different, and touching song.

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Prizm “Silent Night” (2023)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

Fuck. Do I love “Silent Night” now?

Dallas, Texas’s dynamic 80s-loving duo Prizm has somehow made a lush, synth-drenched version of “Silent Night,” and I had to take a break from working on my mix to write about it. Press play on the song, and it is going to sound like a *nice* electro-pop version. Not too much crazy going on here… then they transition into “The First Noel,” and that is fine too. But if you hang in there until 3:50, the guitars come flying in, the drum fills ring out, and then that saxophone pulls your ass straight into the joy that is this song. I want to eat that outro for fucking breakfast.

Why am I swearing so much?

Bottom Line: Rarely will I just let a song play like that, especially a song I’ve heard a million times before. Thank goodness I did. There. I stopped swearing!

LISTEN

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snö (2023)

WIAIWYA (Where It’s at is Where You Are)
Buy: Bandcamp (CD/Digital)

You think you know a label… After putting out three of the best indiepop compilations of the past decade-plus, beginning with 2010’s Christmastime, Approximately, then the excellent Stars in 2018, and 24 in 2021, one would imagine you get the label’s vibe. You, sir, are mistaken! 2023 brings us WIAIWYA’s most ambitious and expansive release yet, the 3-CD, 30-song collection of largely instrumental, electronic, and ambient Christmas songs, all ruminating on the theme of snow. This is how WIAIWYA describes their new release, snö: “The idea was to put together a Christmas album for escaping the stress of the holidays – canceling Christmas parties to turn the lights down, put on your slippers and have a listen over a sherry…” I wasn’t expecting this record from WIAIWYA, but I completely get the motivation.

I don’t really cover much ambient music here on Christmas Underground. I honestly don’t know if I have the vocabulary to give a credible critical review. I can say that I’ve been listening to it as I putz around the house, and have found myself wandering off to some very weird places in my mind. However, keep in mind the weather in Virginia had been unseasonably warm at the time, and a forest fire had turned the sky a hazy yellow… so songs on the theme of snow was an odd choice. I try to imagine how this record will feel gazing out at some snow, and I have to say, the idea sounds lovely. If any readers live in northern territories and can test out this theory, I’d love to hear back from you. As for me, I’m going to continue walking around the house, forgetting why I went downstairs for a bit longer this holiday season. Thanks, snö.

Bottom Line: There is a time and place for all types of Christmas music, and this extensive collection of ambient Christmas music can most surely find a place in your collection and your holiday. I strongly encourage you to buy it today, #bandcampfriday, and be sure that WIAIWYA gets the entire cut, and those (insert your preferred swear) at Songtradr get nothing.

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Have Yourself a Merry Indie Christmas (Volume III) (2023)

A Benefit for Crisis
Buy: Bandcamp

You know what is better than a few cookies? How about an entire bag! Hot on the heels of last year’s epic, two volume, 108 track opus of alternative Christmas music… it comes for us once more. Fellow weirdo Christmas-music fan Kevin McGrath didn’t plan to put this record together, it really just, kind of happened. He meant to add a few tracks to each record, slap a deluxe sticker on there, and raise some more funds for Crisis, a UK-based charity that services the homeless. Soon, Kevin realized that it would be easier and likely more successful to market the record if those additional songs he had received clearance after the cutoff last year, were put together in their own, new collection – which sounds like a fine idea; let’s maximize the potential to do good. So back into the fray, back to the hunt for more bands’ contact information for Kevin… and after one more, final herculean effort, Have Yourself a Merry Indie Christmas (Volume III) is now under our tree. This release, just like the stellar duo who preceded it, is lined with hit after hit after hit. There are many bands here that the 15-20 folks who read my blog will likely already know and love (Virgin of the Birds, Wake Up and Smell the Sun, Charlie’s Hand Movements, The Ornaments, etc, etc, etc.), but I’m sure you’ve missed a few here and there, and the chances you’re going to love it are pppprrrreeeettty high. Oh, didn’t you forget to pick up that Jacklen Ro song you loved, since it wasn’t on Bandcamp? I can also see you picking this record up, and listening to a song you’ve heard before, but connecting with it on a deeper level – yeah, you just needed some time to grow with that song. I’m thinking you should probably pick this one up, even if you’ve already got a couple of the tracks… just to be safe.

Volumes 1-3 are a guidebook to an alternate universe of Christmas music that few know exists. If you already live here, celebrate it. If you are just dipping your toes in the water, jump in because these 143 songs will provide you with plenty of depth. Swim with us, won’t you?

Bottom Line: You’re getting 35 stellar songs, conveniently packaged by a man high on his own supply of Christmas cheer, and all your money goes to help the homeless. That’s a win for everyone.

LISTEN