Category: Downloads

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Naive Thieves & Summer Twins – Christmas With Naive Twins (2010)

Christmas With Naive Twins

Self-Released
Buy: Free! | Also Free!

Way back in 2010, Naive Thieves and Summer Twins, two LA/SoCal-based bands, teamed up for a 2-song Christmas release, Christmas With Naive Twins. The result is a lovely little piece of indie-rock Christmas that sounds like Little Joy & Local Natives got together to record some seasonal sounds. Both “Holiday in the Sand” and “What Better Time than Now” have a timeless feel, contemporary, but harkening back to a 60’s feel at times. These tracks really are something special that should be heard by more people. While it was posted on the Summer Twins Bandcamp page at one point, it no longer resides there, nor on the Naive Thieves Bandcamp. I’ve tried contacting them through Bandcamp and Facebook multiple times, but to no avail. I, for one, would love to pay them a few bucks for FLACs, but for now we’re going to have to settle for the free downloads that still exist on Soundcloud. Thankfully, they are high-bitrate MP3s.

Bottom Line: Both tracks are superb. 4.8/5

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Psst. There are free mp3s over here.

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Sleepwalkers – Merry Christmas (2013)

Sleepwalkers Christmas

Self-Released
Buy: Bandcamp

Richmond, Virginia’s Sleepwalkers have made a fantastic indie rock Christmas EP, and you should listen to it. In fact, it was their DEBUT release. Every track is strong, their production is top-notch, and they wrote their own damn songs. To my ears, its as if the Strokes met the Shins, decided to write a Christmas EP, and did it f*ing well. I may be partial to the VERY Strokes-esque “Christmas Morning,” but all the tunes are great. Pay attention to the spelling, the subject matter is quite different than the last post.

Bottom Line: Hey Sleepwalkers, how about you make this a tradition? 4.8/5

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The Weary Band “Christmas Mourning” (2011/2014)

The Weary Band - Christmas Mourning

Self-Released
Buy: Bandcamp

Years ago, I found the track “Christmas Mourning” while doing research into whether a different band’s “Christmas Mourning” was an original song – and while theirs turned out to be Julian Cope cover, the Bristol-based Weary Band‘s original stayed with me. They have re-recorded it for 2014, with all sales going to the Bristol-based charity Survive. It’s a melancholy song, with lyrics like “We’re older now / Old and blue. / How many wishes of yours came true?.” It’s grounded in a reality that gives it power, and perhaps if you take a listen, you’ll feel the same.

Bottom Line: There is something beautiful here. 4.8/5

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Ice Choir – Pure Holiday (2014)

Ice Choir - Pure Holiday

Cascine
Buy: 7″ – Norman (UK) – Saki (US) – Juno (UK) – Amazon UK | Boomkat FLAC

This is the kind of stuff I love – thanks Stubby. Ice Choir, with their shimmering 80s sound, offer up two Christmas tunes that live in another world. This synth Christmas gem will make all your friends wonder “Who the hell is this?” as they rattle off “Tears for Fears!” or “Spandau Ballet!” You shall cooly say, Ice Choir of course. Fronted by Kurt Feldman, former frontman of the Depreciation Guild and current drummer for the always-excellent Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Ice Choir has taken the sounds of yesteryear, mashed it up with a bit of modern chillwave, and created a 7″ whose digital bliss will take you away to a Christmas of big hair, bright colors, and Club Med.

Bottom Line: Not 100% how it’ll fit on my mix, if it will at all. But I really appreciate how great & how different it sounds than most everything out there this year. 4.7/5

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A Sunny Day in Glasgow – Xmas Mixer (2013)

A Sunny Day in Glasgow - Xmas Mixer

Self-Released
Buy: Free!

This 3-song Christmas EP was released on Christmas day last year – so I’m guessing this is the first time that they may be finding their way to a Christmas mix, unless you were REALLY late last year. Xmas Mixer features three members of A Sunny Day in Glasgow, each taking a song and running with it. First, there’s Jen, who sings the awful “Christmas All Around” from Love, Actually. You know, the song that the washed up rock singer is pimping? Well, she does it quite well, for it being a generally awful song! Second up is Annie, who picks “The Holly and the Ivy,” which has become a song du jour in recent years. She strips it down, layers some vocals with what sounds like cello, then adds some fluttering digital bits, all to a beautiful result. Finally, Adam supplies a synth version of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” which I honestly can’t get into. Midi Christmas has never been my thing, and never will be. But hey, I’m not you!

Bottom Line: Lets see… Two solid tracks? Check. Free? Indeed. 4/5

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Short Skirts “Christmas Depends on You” (2013)

Short Skirts - Christmas Depends on You

Self Released
Buy: Free!

I love the rabbit hole that is Soundcloud. If I find a song I like, I’ll explore all the playlists that its been added to, in the hopes that the listener has equally good taste as that particular selection. At some point, this journey led me to Short Skirts, a fantastic garage rock band from Norway. “Christmas Depends on You” brings in Ida Horpestad from Blomst on vocals, and her touch really brings this garage/surf Christmas song to the next level. The lyrics are fantastic – I really don’t want to ruin them for you before you listen. To top off an already great song… they are offering it as a free (WAV) download on Soundcloud.

Bottom Line: This song is good enough to be covered for years to come. 5/5

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A Christmas Chin para ti, Vol. 02 (2013)

Chin Chin Records Vol. 2

Chin-Chin Records
Buy: Bandcamp | CD

How the heck do I write this review? I am using a Bandcamp page to give me translations of the titles… so I have at least a clue of what they are singing about. I should cite the Spanish language titles, rather than the English titles – this I know. But now I’m jumping back between two pages for 36 tracks of fantastic Spanish garage rock/indiepop Christmas tunes – and it is feeling quite overwhelming. So, I think I may take the pressure off my shoulders, do a very shallow review, but let you know that THIS IS AWESOME. I largely have NO idea what they are saying, but I don’t care. There are a few that I know, such as The Fraukettes Spanish cover of “I Wish It Was Christmas Today,” which is absolutely lovely. Then there is Ooby & Dooby’s “Uvas o lentejas,” which Google translates to “Grapes or Lentils,” yet sounds JUST like “All Tomorrow’s Parties.” Really, this record is all over the place. Perhaps if I understood Spanish, I might have some criticisms of the lyrics, or perhaps I’d like it even more! There are two English-language tracks on here too – check out the moody “Seasons Greetings” by Leather & Lace.

Bottom Line: I have no idea what they are saying, but I like the groove on 75% of these super-short Christmas tunes. With a name-your-own price on Bandcamp, and a reasonably priced CD version (with beautiful artwork), how could you go wrong? 4.5/5

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The Lonely Wild “Holidays” (2014)

the Lonely Wild - Holidays

Ursa Major Recordings
Buy: Amazon UK MP3 | Bandcamp

I wonder if not really having seasons effects how you feel about the holidays? LA’s The Lonely Wild have released a great, bitter Christmas tune to really get you into the holiday spirit. I love a good anti-Christmas song as much as I love a Christmas song. When you add lyrics like “Holidays are coming / to rip your heart open. / Just don’t freak out / Just don’t let me down,” and “Miracles are waiting / to be found in the gutter,” you know you are in for an anti-Christmas treat! Beautiful harmonies and some killer guitar make this song one of the highlights of the (anti) season for me.

Bottom Line: I love me some bitterness at Christmas. You need a healthy mix of sweet and bitter to not rot your ears. Hey, Lonely Wild, put this on Bandcamp, why don’t ya?? Thanks! You did! 4.7/5

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Pdxmas 2014 (2014)

PDXMAS 2014

PDXMAS
Buy: Bandcamp

PDXMAS is back for its third installment since its debut in 2009. Those old tracks from 2009 & 2010 can also be found on their revitalized Bandcamp page. As I recall, when I originally hunted the PDXMAS comps down, they had a full, standalone website. They then disappeared, then reappeared on Bandcamp with a very incomplete tracklist – but everything appears back now. The third installment benefits a charity, as most of these local comps do, specifically Mercy Corps NW. This fact leads me to want to talk up the compilation a bit more than I likely would. Honestly, I find most Christmas comps so hit-and-miss, that I would equate baseball batting averages as comparable (as in .300+ batting average is stellar). PDXMAS 2014 however, just can’t get above that Mendoza line. There are some notable names on here, Typhoon being perhaps the most recognizable outside the Portland, OR area. Their take on “Silent Night” is just fine, but certainly nothing to write home about. The lone standouts (for me) are Ben Darwish‘s soulful “All I Need,” and Timmy Straw‘s mournful “Hard Times.” There are certainly other songs that were fine, just not many that spoke to me. I am most certainly not the final word on taste, so please judge for yourself. I have been known to be wrong… I remember when I didn’t quite get Father John Misty. Then, one day I did, and my world became better for it. Perhaps a song lives on PDXMAS that I’ll come back to, and truly love.

Bottom Line: There are a few special tunes on here, and its for a good cause. Listen for yourself and support some local Portland communities. 3/5

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The Very Most – Winter EP (2009)

The Very Most - Winter EP

Indiecater Records
Buy: Indiecater MP3 | iTunes | Indiecater CD

You would be hard-pressed to find a band who loves Christmas more than Idaho-based indie-pop band The Very Most. For years they have been steadily producing indie-pop Christmas classics, and their 2009 Winter EP is the strongest of the bunch. This was the last of the series of season-themed EPs, which were later compiled into the full-length, A Year with the Very Most. All three songs featured on the EP are extremely good, beginning with a fantastic indie-pop take on “Away in a Manger.” If the focus of your mix is to give traditional tunes new life, then I would highly recommend The Very Most’s take on that classic. The next two songs are both originals, which I very much appreciate. “It’s the Best Thing” sets the scene in the evening, lit up by the streetlights just as snow begins to fall. All is quiet, except for the excited shrieks of his giddy children. It’s a beautiful scene, so honest and so easy to place yourself into. I truly love that song. Finally, “When Does the Goodwill Start?” rounds out the EP, wondering (because it’s Christmas) when the goodwill and peace on earth will start. Its a melancholy Christmas song wrapped in indie-pop paper – truly wonderful in its execution.

Bottom Line: You can’t get indie-pop Christmas better than this. 5/5

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