Category: Upcoming

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Kristian Noel Pedersen – Bullshit & Gift Wrapping (2025)

A photo of a christmas tree, and a man sitting in a chair looking at the light up tree.

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

I recently listened to a podcast featuring indie-Christmas legend Kristian Noel Pedersen (KNP), the always wonderful 12 Songs of Christmas hosted by Alex Rawls. It was a great conversation and a peek behind the curtain of our most prolific Christmas-creative. KNP has released sixteen albums of original Christmas music, and after his most recent trio of beautiful, hilarious, and genuinely touching records centered on the fictional, aging pop star Saul McCartney, I was under the impression he was planning to strip things back a bit. Sometimes plans change, though, because we’ve got a mini-album of six new songs (plus some voicemail interstitials), and if the first two tracks are a taste of what’s coming… consider me hungry.

The record opens with “Bullshit & Gift Wrapping,” which might be the best title for a Christmas song I’ve heard in ages. The track is packed with bitterness, profanity, jangling guitars, and—strangely, but in the best possible way—a Gin Blossoms vibe? I don’t know what I ate for dinner, but that’s the only comparison my brain wants to make right now. And I low-key love the Gin Blossoms, so I’m here for it.

KNP has also previewed the second track, “Christmas on Your Own,” where the guitars get fuzzier but the attitude—and profanity—stick around. He paints these small scenes across a few Christmases, following someone leaving a bad relationship and starting over. The song feels frayed at the edges, from the loose feel in the instrumentation to the lo-fi (well, lower-fi) vocals, and that roughness fits the emotional journey perfectly.

While we only have two tracks so far, any longtime reader will immediately clock track six: “Winter,” featuring vocals by Winterval, another prolific and supremely talented songwriter I’ve featured here many times. I absolutely cannot wait to hear that one.

The rest of the record drops on Friday, December 5th, along with probably every other major indie release of the season. Why? Bandcamp Friday—when Bandcamp doesn’t take a cut and the artists get every dollar (minus credit-card fees, I imagine). So add this one to your cart now… and wait until Friday to check out!

Bottom Line: Two songs in, and I’m singing the same songs of praise for the latest Kristian Noel Petersen joint.

LISTEN

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UPCOMING: Sunturns – Live at Parkteatret EP (12/1/2025)

a band standing on stage bathed in red light.

Fika Recordings
Buy: Bandcamp

Ok. How deep do I go in the bio of Sunturns, a classic indie Christmas band? Do I explain how this Voltron of Christmas combines forces nearly every year to bless us with a new track, a vinyl record, or a live show (which, unless I win the lottery and quit my job, I’ll never attend – Dec 12 this year for folks near Oslo)? Well, if you are new here, click this link and read up.

Now that everyone else is reading the old posts, we can finally talk. Sunturns have a new Live EP, Live at Parkteatret, coming out on December 1! You’ve got four tracks off last year’s Christmas III and one from the classic debut, Christmas. Short, but solid. I always love hearing from Sunturns, and this little live postcard from them is a welcome addition to my holiday. It sounds pretty great, too.

Bottom Line: It’s Sunturns! If you know and love them, add this one to the collection – you won’t regret it. If not – dive in!

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UPCOMING: Polish Club – Christmas Stinks! (2025)

Self Released
Buy: Vinyl | Apple Music? | 7Digital (FLAC/MP3)?

Sydney, Australia’s Polish Club put out one of the best — and hardest to get — Christmas 7-inch singles I’ve ever had the pleasure of writing about when they dropped the excellent Xmas Single back in 2017. That thing is amazing! I still don’t have one… Hell, they’ve even got a New Year’s release worth checking out — “Countdown” (which I should really write about) — which was so fantastic that it closed out my 2020 Christmas mix, Christmas Storytelling.

So… when they teased the cover art on their Facebook page the other day, I pretty much freaked out. I found the site, saw the vinyl, tried to buy one, got rejected by geolocation — and here I stand. Not quite sure what to do. But they did respond to my comments… in due time, I’m assured.

Christmas Stinks! is being debuted on Facebook, with a new cover posted each day for 20 days (they’re on day two as of this post), leading up to two shows on December 20 and 21. There was even a write-up in Rolling Stone Australia yesterday — not sure why they didn’t debut it here! This site is massive!

I did love one quote from Novak that really sums up what they’re doing:

“I used to be somewhat of an edge-lord holiday hater, but I’ve grown to really appreciate how the holiday period affords us a sleep-in, a big belly, and some genuine quality time with people you perhaps should spend more time with,” Novak admits. “I’ve also learned that if you’re sick of Christmas carols and holiday tunes, the best way to get over that is to record your own rock’n’roll versions and embrace the Christmas chaos.”

I’m game, folks. I’ll be listening — hoping that one of these covers makes it onto my next mix — and that I can figure out a way for myself (and everyone else outside of Australia) to exchange money for goods and services.

Bottom Line: I’m listening…

LISTEN

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Sharon Van Etten and The Attachment Theory “2000 Miles” (2025)

Sony Masterworks/Mutant
Buy: 7Digital (MP3/FLAC) | Apple Music | Amazon MP3 | CD/Vinyl | Amazon (CD/Vinyl/Exclusive Vinyl)

I love Sharon Van Etten. I saw her with her new band, Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory about a month ago, and it was absolutely incredible. I was a huge fan, and am now a massive fan. I’ll be excited to hear from her with anything she does. Thus, she dropped a cover of The Pretenders’ “2000 Miles” for the Oh. What. Fun. soundtrack, and I was pumped. I’m going to float down from my initial heights though. This is a good cover, though it does not reinvent the song. Would I have preferred something a bit more interesting than adding the shimmering synths to the arrangement? Yes. But I do love her voice, and I’m sure some of you are going to be all over this.

There are some heavy hitters on this soundtrack. Interestingly, Sharon appears to be the first single off it (Gwen Stefani was first – exclusive to Amazon), surprising when you’ve got this lineup:

1. Shake the Snow Globe – Gwen Stefani (2:53)
2. The Things We Do for Love – The Bird and the Bee (3:20)
3. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas – St. Vincent (2:33)
4. 2000 Miles – Sharon Van Etten & The Attachement Theory (3:09)
5. Angel in the Snow – Fleet Foxes (2:44)
6. Step Into Christmas – Uwade (3:35)
7. Silent Night – The Wang Family (1:00)
8. Hot Cocoa – Gwen Stefani (3:38)
9. Snowqueen of Texas – Weyes Blood (3:21)
10. Christmas Eve Can Kill You – Andy Shauf & Madi Diaz (3:18)
11. It’s My Life – The Bird and the Bee (3:43)
12. Christmas Must Be Tonight – Jeff Tweedy (3:27)
13. Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy – Lorely Rodriguez (Empress Of) (1:39)
14. I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day – The Wang Family (1:01)
15. The 12 Days of Christmas – Dominic Sessa (1:36)

Of note – Michael Showalter, whom I have loved since The State, is the director! I’m genuinely excited for this movie…

Bottom Line: Sharon Van Etten is pretty flawless. Also – she could pretty much play Chrissie Hynde in a biopic. Just sayin’…

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UPCOMING: The Cords “Favorite Time” (12/06/2024)

Slumberland/Heavenly Creatures
Buy: Bandcamp (Digital/Flexi)

I’ve previously written about how much I look to Scotland (this was just a few posts ago!) for excellent Christmas tunes. The Cords are an excellent indiepop duo from Greenock, Scotland, and this upcoming track has a high probability of being excellent. Normally I might wait to review the track before sharing it here – but as there are flexis available now – and likely not for much longer – and I felt I should let you all know ASAP. So, check out The Cords, decide if they are your jam, and buy it.

Hat tip to @noloveforned for the heads up on this one.

LISTEN

Here’s a non-holiday release to check out the band.

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UPCOMING: Sunturns – Christmas III (12/6/2024)

Fika Recordings
Buy: Bandcamp

What timing – to announce your new record on the same day as Dean & Britta & Sonic Boom’s album… I’ll let you in on a little secret: I ordered this record first. If you are new to this blog, you may be new to Sunturns, and I’m a little jealous of you. There are two previous records full of wonderful, original indiepop Christmas songs for you to discover. Comprised of members of Monzano, Making Marks, Little Hands of Asphalt, Moddi, and Einar Stray Orchestra, this crew has been killing it since 2011 – which predates this blog! Hell, you might say that they were part of the reason I started this thing… not enough folks were talking about Sunturns! Well, 2024 brings us Christmas III, compiling several tracks they’ve released in the years after Vol 1 & 2, while also gifting us a whole fistful of brand new songs. I’m incredibly excited about this one – and boy does that vinyl look pretttttty. Of note, if you haven’t bought Vol. 1 & 2 on vinyl… it appears they are down to 2 copies on Fika’s website. I nearly bought one today so I could have a backup copy…

There’s a rather extensive press release on their Bandcamp page – I’d say go there and check it out to further pump yourself up for December 6th. I will highlight one paragraph below that I found particularly useful (and endearing):

If previous albums Christmas I (2011) and II (2015) are somewhat different from each other, then Christmas III represents a fusion of the two. Sunturns’ debut is full of youthful exuberance and was recorded with plentiful overdubs in Oslo, while 2015’s follow up is more pensive and somewhat darker, and was recorded live during one week in the Swedish forests. Einar elaborates: “I love making records like this: short, effective sessions with limited time and therefore no bland ‘perfection’. There’s a nerve to knowing you can collectively bring it all together without the luxury of time”. Christmas III represents a return to the lighter tone, on at least some of the songs, but with the wisdom of age that emerged on the second. You can’t just return to your twenties, however much you might want to!

“You can’t just return to your twenties, however much you might want to!”

I hear that. Especially my body 🙂

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UPCOMING: Dean & Britta & Sonic Boom – A Peace of Us (11/22/2024)

Carpark Records
Buy: Bandcamp | Rough Trade (exclusive Christmas splatter vinyl variant) | Carpark Records | Amazon | Amazon.uk

I don’t have the time for this today. Two of the biggest releases of the season, each popping up in succession on my Bandcamp feed. I’m not going to give away the other one yet (those in the know… know already), so I’ll start with the biggest news – a full-length holiday record from Dean Wareham (Galaxie 500/Luna/Dean & Britta), Britta Phillips (Luna/Dean & Britta), and Sonic Boom (Spacemen 3). While this was not necessarily expected, it is not exactly a surprise. Dean & Britta have long-dipped into holiday music, with Luna’s “Egg Nog” being a particular favorite. Dean did a Lagniappe holiday session a few years back on Aquarium Drunkard, and the pair also booked a full, holiday-themed livestream concert a few years ago (which was wonderful). However, the spiritual ancestor to this release is most certainly the holiday 7″ from back in 2007, “He’s Coming Home,” which features all three of these folks – and was absolutely killer. I’ll drop the press release below.

From Dean & Britta’s Bandcamp:

In a season where we all seek comfort, tradition, and a return to a home of sorts, a trio composed of indie music’s foundational members have gifted us A Peace of Us—an album of diverse holiday tunes filtered through their musical imaginations. Dean & Britta, well-known from their work defining a genre with Galaxie 500 and Luna, join Spacemen 3’s Sonic Boom, another bastion of indie’s collective adolescence, to bring to life a collection that draws from early ‘60s pop, garage, country, James Bond soundtracks, Christmas carols, and electronica. Dean Wareham recalls a sentiment from his DJ friend Chris: “You can experience all the emotions of Christmas through music: love and hate, joy and heartache, nostalgia, regret, anticipation, and frustration.”

Their venture into a holiday album was organic, spurred by a few cover tunes over the years, a Christmas special during the pandemic, and finally collaborative sessions between Dean & Britta in L.A. and Sonic Boom in Portugal. The trio all contributed vocals, with guitars by Wareham, bass and keyboards by Phillips, effects, and mixes by Sonic. The result is an album of exploration as well as comfort, “like Bing Crosby…on acid,” Britta adds, the tracklist a reminder that the holidays are complex and tragicomic.

As is often the case with holiday merriment, the album has a soft undertone of the bittersweet. Wareham sings one of David Berman’s final songs, “Snow is Falling in Manhattan,” one Dean believes is “destined to be a holiday classic.” Its lyrics foreshadow Berman’s tragic death: “Songs build little rooms in time / and housed within the song’s design / is the ghost the host has left behind.”

The Christmas blues surface again with Willie Nelson’s “Pretty Paper,” rendered here as a duet between Britta and Sonic Boom, their pulsing synth-heavy production updating the song for a darkened nightclub rather than a bright honky tonk. This collection steers clear of the usual Christmas chestnuts, but fans of classic indie haze may find a new favorite in “Peace on Earth / Little Drummer Boy” (created for Bing Crosby and David Bowie’s 1977 TV duet). Wareham notes that “Our favorite version is the German one by Marlene Dietrich, so that was our jumping-off point.” All three sing this one together: Wareham’s tenor, then Sonic Boom’s thrumming baritone, and finally Phillips’ soothing contralto making the plea for peace.

If collaboration is the fuel, peace and mutual understanding is surely the fire, and A Peace of Us has us gathered around it. “Christmas is mostly for children anyway,” says Dean. Sonic adds, “Or the inner child in all of us. Goodwill to all men. Hopes and fears for the year to come. And light in the darkness. Where this festival began.”

I must say, this record sounds incredibly promising. I already know that it features both “Old Toy Trains” and “He’s Coming Home,” both stellar tracks, the first single – a cover of Willie Nelson’s “Pretty Paper,” is an electropop gem. One might say they found some wonderful new wrapping on this track… you could call it pretty for sure. And a cover of David Berman’s “Snow is Falling on Manhattan!” Not the first time Dean & Britta have tackled it, as it was featured on a Section26 compilation a few years back… curious if they’ve reworked this in a similar fashion…

The anticipation is killing me, and boy was this an expensive holiday music day.

LISTEN

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UPCOMING: Jangle Bells – A Rough Trade Shops Christmas Selection (12/08/2023)

Rough Trade Shops
Buy: Rough Trade (UK only so far)

Rough Trade Shops has a little Christmas gift lined up for their (so far) UK devotees… as they are releasing one of the strongest Christmas complications of the past few years. Compiling a number of top tracks from the recent past with a few exclusives, Rough Trade are flexing their taste muscles with this lineup. I’m most intrigued by the exclusives, obviously, and am paying particular attention to that Marika Hackman song, “Driving Under Stars,” as it sounds like a stripped-back version of one of my favorite holiday songs of the past ten years. The Peaness track, “Kiss Me Sweet Pea,” (edit – added below) could also be pretty amazing, as I really love this incredibly catchy band. There also appears to be a new Ellie Bleach track (edit – posted below!), which is encouraging… as I still may write about her previous song from a few years back (edit – she deleted it!) … Most certainly a worthy addition to your Christmas music collection, should you be the collector-type.

Tracklist (* denotes that I believe them to be exclusive to this release)

  1. Marika Hackman – Driving Under Stars (Piano)*
  2. Pale Waves – Last Christmas
  3. Allo Darlin’ – Will You Please Spend New Years With Me?
  4. Julia Jacklin – Baby Jesus Is Nobody’s Baby Now
  5. The School – Shouldn’t Be Alone For Christmas
  6. The Big Moon – It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
  7. Los Bitchos – Los Chrismos
  8. Linda Lindas – Groovy Xmas
  9. Black Midi – Jingle Bell Rock
  10. Chubby and the Gang – Violent Night (A Christmas Tale)
  11. Peaness – Kiss Me Sweet Pea*
  12. Bubble and Squeak – The Christmas Stick
  13. Ellie Bleach – Merry Christmas, Do You Ever Think Of Me?*
  14. Sinkane – Christmas Wrapping
    CD Only
  15. Dream Nails – Lonely Star (Christmas Song)
  16. Willie J Healey – Merry Christmas
  17. Girl Ray – I Wish I Were Giving You a Gift
  18. Stars – Christmas Anyway
  19. Alex Lahey – Merry Christmas (I Don’t Wanna Fight Tonight)

Bottom Line: A good number of these tracks have been celebrated here before, so yeah, this looks good. Check it out, maybe buy the limited vinyl or the expanded CD… or cherrypick some songs below (where applicable) and give your money directly to the bands!

LISTEN

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UPCOMING: Dragon Inn 3 – It’s Christmas (10/10/2023)

American Laundromat
Buy: Bandcamp (Vinyl/Digital)

I am not usually excited by a Christmas release that is only covers, but Kansas City’s Dragon Inn 3 (featuring members of Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin and friends) has shaken this resolve. I’m a fan of their 80’s synth pop vibes, as well as their choice of songs (well… 2 of 3 ain’t bad!). I’m lowering my expectations for the “Last Christmas” cover, but the other two are far more obscure targets. You may remember the Coconut Records track, “It’s Christmas” from the wonderful 2010 Target (yes… that Target) compilation, The Christmas Gig. Solid song for sure… and certainly reason enough for me to preorder the 7″. They must be big Jason Schwartzman (Coconut Records/many Wes Anderson movies) fans because they also sneak on a cover of the tremendously short Mark Mothersbaugh piece from the Rushmore soundtrack, “Snowflake Music.” I relate to the desire to fit as much music on a disc as possible… and they no doubt had a bit more space! Should be a fun one… and since you are not a dummy like me and preordered it months ago, you now have the opportunity to grab a signed 7″ for only $2 more at their Bandcamp.

Bottom Line: I haven’t heard it, but their last record sounds great!

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UPCOMING: Lenny Kaye, Cedar Sparks – Holiday Split 7″ (11/24/2023)

La Societe Expeditio
Buy: Rough Trade

This upcoming release looks quite interesting and has the pedigree to be fantastic. Lenny Kaye, guitarist, founding member of the Patti Smith Group, and curator of the touchstone Nuggets compilation series, contributes a new song, “Santa’s Knee,” as well as scribbles his name on the cover of this Rough Trade-exclusive 7″ release. The B-side is the only known quantity from this slab of wax, as Lenny Shares the flip with Cedar Sparks, comprised of Tim Carbone (Railroad Earth) and Lou Rogai (Lewis and Clarke), as they share their 2018 folk-Christmas track, “Gathering Song.” Inspired by seasonal depression and “It’s a Wonderful Life,” “Gathering Song” is infused with beautiful, melancholy violin melodies and some wonderful sing-along lyrics. I can only vouch for 50% of this release, but so far so good.

EDIT: This is also an RSD Black Friday release. So… there are a few more than the 150 Rough Trade has. Whew!

Bottom Line: This looks like a very solid Christmas 7″ for the fan and the collector – Rough Trade is the exclusive retailer of 150 green vinyl signed copies. Grab them fast!

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EDIT: Well… it appears that I may have hipped Cedar Sparks to the fact that their song was still available (for free) on Bandcamp. (And now it is gone)