Tag: 2025

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The Bret Tobias Set “For Christ’s Sake” (2025)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

Hey! Is The Bret Tobias Set lining up to be a yearly Philadelphia Christmas tradition? Can I manifest this? We’ll see… (I missed 2024’s song… but go check it out!)

I wrote about The Bret Tobias Set’s excellent 2023 cover of Everything But the Girls’ “25th December” earlier this year, with what might be one of my shortest reviews of recent memory. I don’t know why I get sheepish about that kind of stuff – I just don’t want folks to think because I haven’t gone on and on about their record that I don’t really love it. Some days I just have a few minutes to spare, a headache, or existential ennui… you know… shit happens! Do all those words above count towards the review? I hope so!

The Bret Tobias Set is back with a reworking of a 2004 song that Bret wrote with his previous band, The Bigger Lovers, for their last record, This Affair Never Happened… And Here Are Eleven Songs About It. Bret calls the Lovers’ version “blue-eyed soul,” and I suppose I hear that – but it just sounds like a rock ballad to me. When I hear the term blue-eyed soul, I think about half the bands on Colemine Records, not The Bigger Lovers. But I am NO expert, despite this silly site.

Bret’s new version, which he calls a “country pop duet,” has Bret sharing vocals with Krista Umile, and man, these voices sound lovely together. The song lightens with the addition of Krista as well as the increased tempo, and as a result, the length shortens enough to leave you wanting more. I do hear the country twang, but I don’t know if I’d call this “country pop.” I would call it an “alt.country power pop ballad.” Gotta complicate things!

Bottom Line: This song’s arrangement feels like it has found its forever home.

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Flunk – Xmas EP (2025)

Beatservice Records
Buy: Bandcamp

Norwegian electropop band Flunk has just dropped Xmas EP, a very chill new five-song release that gathers four beautiful, sparse covers (all of which have appeared in some form before) alongside one reworking of a previous song, “Sanctuary,” reimagined as a stripped-down Christmas version.

I’ll touch briefly on the covers, if only to point out that while Flunk is commonly known as an electronic band, three of the four tracks are accompanied only by solo acoustic guitar, with the remaining track featuring a lone electric guitar. The guitars exist mainly to frame the true centerpiece of these songs: vocalist Anja Øyen Vister’s beautiful—and yes, I have to say it—Björk-esque vocals.

“Sanctuary,” in its original form, is a lovely, chilled electropop track. Here, it’s pulled apart and rebuilt with gentle bells and subtle textures, the drums removed entirely, creating something far more ethereal than the original. I can easily imagine this track closing out someone’s holiday mix.

Bottom Line: Some gorgeous stuff here – surprised I hadn’t sniffed it out before!

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PAL – Christmas Majic 2 (2025)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

As the year winds down, I find my reviews get less introspective, less thoughtful, and frankly, shittier. Why mess with the formula! Here’s a crap review of a great little EP by Cleveland egg punks PAL.

Christmas Majic 2 is obviously the follow-up to their first Christmas release back in 2023. I have it in my “likes” in Bandcamp, which likely suggests that it came out when EVERYTHING was coming out, and I was frantically marking things to come back to. Thankfully, I’m not coming back to this second release and actually telling someone about it! This is the first time that PAL has written an original song, the leadoff track “One Starry Night,” and it is rawkus, synthy screed against Santa’s gift-giving fuckup. The interplay of the talk-singing and background screams is perfection. It is on my mix shortlist right now.

The next two tracks are covers, with the accordion-heavy “Must Be Santa Claus,” which I would normally dismiss as a kids’ song… but they somehow pull it out of that black hole. The attitude they bring to the track, along with choosing Bob Dylan’s version as the inspiration (the ending!), has me sitting here thinking, this might be the only version I’d listen to at a party.

The final track is notoriously my least favorite song. “Little Drummer Boy” is terrible. However….. PAL’s “Little Drummer Pal,” I rather enjoyed. This is their cover of the Red Aunts “Little Drummer Bitch,” which I am unfamiliar with, but perhaps I need to check out. Perhaps another day though… I have precious time, and seeking out more versions of “Little Drummer Boy” is just not at the top of my priorities for today.

You can also pick up a glittery cassette of both volumes of PAL’s Christmas Majic, with $5 from each cassette going to the Cleveland Area Food Bank. Solid!

Bottom Line: I think I need more egg punk in my life, and some more PAL. Also… that was kind of a long one for me right now. Wasn’t expecting to talk about all 3 songs when I started… but here we are.

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ANDEMIC – The Sick Christmas EP (2025)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

When you get a hot tip from Jon Solomon, of the 25-Hour Holiday Radio Show fame, you press play. What was in store for me was extremely appropriate for my past week of sickness, a Christmas EP by Philly native (but LA-based) Andy Williams titled The Sick Christmas EP.

Woof. Hitting close to home.

Let me give you a bit more background on this Andy Williams fellow. First, it is not THAT Andy Williams – he died in 2012! This Andy was the guitarist and vocalist of the Philadelphia indie rock band Lefty’s Deceiver, and recently he’s been recording from his attic in LA under the name ANDEMIC. He’s released a few Christmas singles, which I have missed, over the past few years, and has gathered them along with five new ones on his new The Sick Christmas EP.

The Sick Christmas EP is full of originals, ranging from the driving indie rock of “Everyone is Always Sick Every Single Christmas” to the stellar Get Up Kids-esque “Massapequa Park,” but look out for the almost unrecognizable glory of battling guitars and synths that is “Jingle Bells.” This record is something else.

Thanks Jon, and howdy Andy. Nice to meet you.

Bottom Line: An indie rock highlight of the season.

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sit stay – a very merry… (2025)

A blurr photograph of a small christmas tree.

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp (NYOP)

Well, I’m officially sick. That means I’m home and can work on finishing my Christmas mix, but will I feel motivated? I certainly didn’t last night. Luckily, LA-based bedroom pop project sit stay have at least made my blog obligation easy with a wonderful 2-track Christmas release, a very merry. They are delicate and warm, full of the nostalgia of the young – going back home for Christmas, wondering if the carpet is the same in the friend’s home, watching VHS movies. You can almost smell the musty basement, the slippery diner floor. Pretty great bedroom pop Christmas for those who partake.

Now back to the grind. For now.

Bottom Line: Nostalgic bedroom pop that is going to be someone’s favorite release.

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ctznshp “Holiday Lights” (2013/2025)

A dreamy photo of a water tower on top of a building

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

Montreal post-rock band ctznship have just released a record of rare tracks titled Lost Loves (A Collection of Rarities). A mix of studio tracks, live recordings, demos and such, there are two songs on here of note to a dealer of Christmas tunes, “Holiday Lights” and “The New Year.” They may have been released yeaaars ago, as “Holiday Lights” was a b-side from their first record in 2013, which has since been extended to include “Holiday Lights.” Thus, I’m conflicted. I equally love discovering songs I missed, as well as hate that the song snuck by me for so long.

Christmas A Gogo and I have both been talking a big game about this whole shoegaze/dreampop Christmas genre that has exploded, and we may have found a (nearly) patient zero with “Holiday Lights.” Reading about the band, and this specific era of the band, they suggest that they were influence by Robyn, The Knife or Röyksopp as much as any rock band at this time. I hear that wall of sound and am left with… “really?” I certainly need to listen to the non-holiday material, but I’m on a time-crunch here. This song f*ing rocks though.

As for “The New Year,” we’ll see how burned out I am after Christmas as to whether I write about that one. But it’s pretty good too.

Bottom Line: Some more wonderful shoegaze Christmas for those of us who partake.

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Besphrenz “for christmas” (2025)

red background, green writing: the text "for christmas" makes the shape of a christmas tree

Late Work Records
Buy: Bandcamp | Apple Music | Amazon MP3

Philly’s Besphrenz have knocked out one of the most upbeat and fun “bring my baby back for Christmas” songs of recent memory with the stellar “for christmas.” This is the perfect gift of indie rock Christmas fun. It has me thinking of those stellar Crocodiles Christmas songs of the past – which is high praise in my book. This is their first Christmas song – go buy it so they make another.

Bottom Line: Stone-cold mixworthy

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Aux Caroling – December/Headphones (2025)

An impressionist painting of the sky with a moon in it.

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

Aux Caroling, the recording project of North Carolina’s Scott Deaver, is always singing about something he’s not singing about. From the amazing “Bulls vs. Lakers, Christmas 2011,” which framed complex familial relationships and the uncertainty of fate within the guise of talking about a basketball game on TV, to his most recent, and equally gorgeous, December/Headphones.

The first track, the A-side for those who wish to imagine this is a beautiful 7-inch record you are about to drop a needle to, was initially titled “A Long December to Remember Sales Event.” Just seeing that title made me kinda snort and smile. Now off he goes, singing about striking a luxury automotive deal. Then he slips into the chorus, which will subtly change through the song.

“Everything happens at once / that’s how you know it happened / nothing really feels that long / till your memories…”

Just gorgeous. But he dips back into those lines that are about “buying a car:”

“And it’s been a rough year / I think it’s safe to say / have not had one minute / to choose between nebula and cloudburst gray.”

There I go again with a snort, of sorts.

Scott excels in a kind of cheeky depth. He makes jokes that make it feel safe to contemplate your inner feelings of helplessness or inadequacy, or explore your family dynamic, or deal with the unknown.

The B-side is “Headphones,” a track that Scott initially intended to premiere on Jon Solomon’s 2024 25-Hour Holiday Marathon, and to never be played again. He meant for it to be heard in that one moment in time, and that was all. Thankfully, he’s reconsidered. This is simply a beautiful, touching love song. I don’t sense any subtext here; there is just a profound grateful love that the luckiest of us can relate to, in one way or another. “Found out I love you a lot / don’t think it will ever stop / don’t think it will ever stop / don’t think it will ever stop…………”

There are some bands that I like to celebrate here whose unique voice is unmistakable, and I count Aux Caroling among these. He has my ear, from now until he starts inevitably doing those stream-of-consciousness Mark Kozelek-type records. Then, I’m out.

(I couldn’t get too mushy there… Scott would have thrown in a line to take the edge off, and that was my feeble attempt to do the same.)

Bottom Line: Aux Caroling is essential Christmas listening.

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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.

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Home Counties “Better Last Year (Home Counties for Christmas)” (2025)

a group of people sitting at what appears to be a table at a pub, wearing santa hats and throwing their arms around each others' shoulders.

Submarine Cat Records
Buy: Juno Download (WAV/FLAC/AIFF/MP3) | Apple Music | Amazon.uk MP3

Well. Of course, I’m not the first to post about this, but at the very least I didn’t learn about this song from NME, and found it the old-fashioned way – I follow Home Counties on Soundcloud! But I’ll at the very least benefit from the background on the song provided. Turns out “Better Last Year (Home Counties for Christmas)” debuted at their gig at Scala last night, and is slowly becoming available on digital platforms today. Hopefully it’ll find its way to Bandcamp… we’ll see.

Enough about how and where to find the song – what is this song about?? Well, I again refer to that darn NME article, as they obviously got a ton of background, and I’m not going to be better about explaining this song than the band will. Quote below:

“Inspired by the dual voices and anti-Christmas sentiments of ‘Fairytale’, the song is split between two narratives voiced by Will [Harrison] and Lois [Kelly],” the band said. “Lois sings about bumping into people you went to school with who have since done terrible things (a common theme from our school). Will sings specifically about Christmas Eve itself, with a feeling that with every year it gets a bit shitter, and everyone a bit less joyous.”

“Together, they shape a story of growing older and how you feel it at this time of year,” they added. “It’s also a plea for everyone to try and regain some of their lost ‘Christmas spirit’, in a slightly problematic boozy call to arms.”

Well, I barely actually wrote anything about a song I actually quite like. I wonder what I would have said had I not found that NME article that kinda ruined my momentum…

Bottom Line: This is certainly going to make some mixes… maybe even mine!

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