Tag: 2025

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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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Wold Wiggen “Gaver er det meste med jula synes jeg” (2025)

Two guys, one sitting at the piano playing, the other with his hands on the man playing piano's shoulders, head back, eyes closed, singing a song.

Jansen Records
Buy: Bandcamp

It’s been a while since I’ve had a track sung in Norwegian on my mix, but this wonderful song by the Oslo duo Wold Wiggen may very well sneak its way on there. “Gaver er det meste med jula synes jeg,” or “Gifts are the most important thing about Christmas, I think,” tells the story of someone stealing all the presents from under the tree and hiding them away. It begins nicely enough—full stomachs, everyone cozy and warm while it snows outside. But Uncle Erling is a bit drunk, and something snaps. If the gifts are the best part of Christmas… well, let’s open them and take them all.

The orchestration is simple, driven largely by gentle guitar and bass, which—at least for a non-Norwegian speaker like myself—was the hook that initially reeled me in. There’s no chorus, just a beautiful brass melody line in its place. I’m a bit dense sometimes when it comes to identifying instruments—French horn? Whatever it is, it’s gorgeous, and it’s the flavor that makes this song so delicious.

Bottom Line: Norway is running up the score today. 2-for-2 with mixworthy songs. Amazing.

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King Hüsky “December95” (2025)

A cartoon of a man sitting on a circular carpet listening to music.

Hype City Music
Buy: Bandcamp

I honestly had no idea what to expect from “December95” by King Hüsky. You find yourself on his Bandcamp page, and the bio cuts off after “guitarist of the critically acclaimed Norwegian heavy metal band Kvelertak,” so needless to say, I was anticipating something quite different than what I encountered. The song I heard was wonderful, and is by no means the Norwegian metal that I anticipated; I am not into metal – read my submissions page. This song happened to be aimed dead between my eyes. A kill shot.

King Hüsky is the solo work of Vidar Landa, who, besides being a guitarist in a metal band, is also in indie rock/power pop band Beachheads. “December95” sets a beautiful, snowy scene, snug in their home. While the Christmas lights and the VCR don’t work, the scene, the lyrics, and the melody are all uplifting in a way that I was truly touched by. I remain amazed. What an unexpected and extraordinary song.

Bottom Line: Stone-cold mixworthy.

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The Photocopies – A C26 for Christmas (2025)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

If indiepop is a genre that you are down with, read on. Frankly, if this website serves any purpose, it is for me to establish some indiepop credibility when I can’t play an instrument. Yeah, maybe I’ll share a few other songs too, but I have some twee punks to impress. Of note, I have often thought about how indiepop and punk are two sides of the same coin – DIY outsiders making cheap records for their devoted communities. But I digress, Michigan’s The Photocopies have done us a huge flippin’ favor and gathered up all his Christmas songs onto one easy compilation, A C26 for Christmas. We no longer have to search every single record (because often there was one) to grab that Christmas single for your indiepop radio show or mix. Sometimes being so prolific is a double-edged sword – you are always making great Christmas songs, but you’re also always making great Christmas songs. It becomes expected. Thus, it was a nice reminder to see all these great songs together, and it brought me back to 2021, when I first found the wonderful Photocopies.

I was so young then. We all were.

Bottom Line: Are you finding the Photocopies for the first time? Lucky you!

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Silk Daisys “It’s Just Like Xmas” (2025)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

Atlanta’s Silk Daisys have dialed in some indiepop Christmas perfection with “It’s Just Like Christmas.” Those dreamy vocals and shimmering guitars – I feel like this song should be released exclusively on a cassette mixtape. The lyrics are pretty great too, the kind of anti-war, feed the poor, not hating immigrants kind of sentiment I can get behind. I still can’t believe that I opened up Soundcloud and there it was… right there on the top of my feed… waiting for me…

Bottom Line: That is some top-tier indiepop Christmas.

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Roberta Fidora “Christmas Trees” (2025)

Ursinewave
Buy: Bandcamp

This is it. This is the week. This is the week I try to find everything I can, make a good stab at a playlist, and pray for Friday’s releases to screw the mix tracklist all up (and make it great)! Thankfully, we’ve gotten some great releases overnight, with Roberta Fidora‘s “Christmas Trees” most certainly among those notable songs. Synths and sounds jumping out at you at every turn, this anti-Christmas jam that is sure to add some pace to your mix, and perhaps mine too!

Of note, should you not be familiar, Roberta also has some additional Christmas covers on her Bandcamp page under the moniker Curxes. Of particular note is the excellent electronic cover of Greg Lake’s “I Believe in Father Christmas.”

Bottom Line: Roberta delivers an avant-pop delight, and right on time.

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Arthur Satàn – I Don’t Give a S**t About Christmas (2025)

Paradise Records
Buy: Bandcamp (MP3/Vinyl)

Bordeaux’s Arthur Satàn, (The Meatards, J.C. Satàn) has just released a stunning 60’s psych/pop Christmas single, the 2-track I Don’t Give a S**t About Christmas. There’s the spacey psych of the A-side, “Nebula,” which I am honestly having a tough time parsing the lyrics of – I’m picking up “skies ablaze,” “on the brink of madness,” so I’m thinking this is a Christmas + apocalypse song (or maybe just an apocalypse song). However, I don’t have a problem connecting with that fantastic, psychedelic orchestration.

The flip is more obviously Christmas-inspired. “Christmas Might Be Over Soon” begins with a musicbox piano line, but expands into glorious psych-folk as the mantra “I begin to lose control” floats in. The lyrics are less drenched in the grandiose orchestration of “Nebula,” so I was able to get a better grasp on this track. “Too many gifts, for you and me / The others torn (?) in jealousy / No time to waste, we must consume / Christmas might be over soon.” Another dark one it appears…

I loved the description on their Bandcamp, which I happily Google translated for you:

Fresh from their “Journey That Never Was,” Arthur Satàn’s warriors are back on the offensive, but this time it’s a Christmas one!

“I Don’t Give a S**t about Christmas,” the new rallying cry from the Bordeaux-based multi-instrumentalist, features two tracks also tinged with 60s pop influences, making up this collector’s 7″ single, another brick in Arthur Satàn’s sonic and graphic edifice.

These two unreleased songs comprise a limited-edition collector’s 7″ single, whose cover art extends the visual universe of Arthur Satàn, who is also a graphic designer and visual artist: a “Ship of Fools,” populated by warriors piled high in a pyramid, brandishing swords and shields as they aim for the gift descended from heaven.

In the delicate realm of representing the “magic of Christmas,” there’s no doubt: Satàn packs a punch!

The artwork on this baby is something else for sure, which Arthur is also responsible for. And for those who like to hold records in their hands, and maybe even play them… there is a 7″ available. Unfortunately, it carries all the costs of buying records from overseas, so it would be about $35 shipped for that 7″, which I’m just not quite up for after all this Christmas shopping. Blast!

Bottom Line: Some dark Christmas psychedelia!

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Wake Up and Smell the Sun – Icicle Miner Key Yuletide Trilogy (2025)

A puppet sits at a piano in a dimly lit room.

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp (NYOP)

What can one say about Wake Up and Smell the Sun, the music project of Philadelphia’s John Murray? That first review I wrote remains one of the longest and easiest I’ve ever crafted; I had never heard a Christmas record quite like it. Electric Snow knocked me on my ass — a lyrical and sonic mix that was unlike anything I’d encountered before. It felt like one of those videos where a blind kid puts on special glasses and sees for the first time.

So as I tackle this latest release, I come to it with the weight of those earlier impressions, as well as the thoughtful, self-deprecating, optimistic, and generous message John sent along with it. He presents the new release, Icicle Miner Key Yuletide Trilogy, in the context of his feelings about the holiday, the journey of these songs, and the creative energy of the Philadelphia music community that helped bring his vision to life. I’m fighting the urge to share his whole note, because it pulls you into the process in a way that only deepens your appreciation for the music. I connect with John’s work and his motivation in a way that cuts straight to the core — I’m always searching for songs I can love year-round, regardless of the season. That doesn’t mean I don’t care about the content; when someone can tap into something genuine, something human and rooted in the spirit of the season, there’s power in that. So when John writes, “First and foremost, Wake Up And Smell the Sun Christmas songs are songs. They are about Christmas, and all are conceived and birthed in the time and spirit of Christmas, whatever they end up sounding like,” I see the same relationship between craft and spirit that I’m constantly seeking.

Let’s dig into the songs. The first thing you’ll notice is that each track has its own distinct feel. John explains the sequence like this:

For this Trilogy, there are obviously three songs about Christmas. I chose the order too. The songs are stylistically very different. I intended for that to be a good thing. I imagine people being wholly perplexed by the ambitious power and synth-and-drum-driven proclamation of the first song, then making a strange turn into a contemplative indie rock feel for the second song, then finishing into a more traditional reel-to-reel torchlighting of the third song. A sonic quest. My quest for Christmas Music immortality.

I love that last bit — “my quest for Christmas Music immortality.” Every time someone hears a Christmas song they love and makes it a part of themselves, their holiday, their memories, they give that song a kind of immortality. Maybe the synths on “We Cannot Be Too Merry” will make you turn your stereo (go buy a stereo!) or headphones up as the ending washes over you: “We could be good / We could be good for you / We cannot be too merry / We cannot be too merry.”

Or maybe the chorus of “Jolly Good Time Indeed” will make you feel grateful for the warmth the season brings to your everyday life: “It’s a jolly good time indeed… for stories we still believe / and even if they don’t exist / it helps a little bit.”

And then there’s “Icicle Symphony,” whose finale might be the one that gets you. The emotion in the expanding orchestration — perfectly timed with the drums landing right as he sings, “Here come the holidays. Pry ’em wide open.”

John would be the first to tell you how much he owes to the people around him for helping make and share these songs. This record was once again recorded at Miner Street Recording in Philadelphia with Brian and Amy, and features Pat Berkery on drums, Robbie Bennett of The War on Drugs on synths, keys, and piano, and Matt Keppler on bass — his first appearance on a Wake Up and Smell the Sun project.

I don’t think John needs to worry about immortality. These songs — like the ones many of us have loved for years — stick with us. I’ll leave you with his wish for the season, which honestly could be a song itself:

Be well and try to be full of the Christmas spirit well after December. Not for votes, not for likes and follows, not for badges or rewards. Maybe do it for a girl, that would be ok. Or for a boy. That’s ok too. Do it for love, as so many songs say. Be full of the good spirits that spring forth from whatever holiday you celebrate. If you’re feeling triumphant, that is great, but be joyful too. And make some love and give it away. Anyone at all can do that.

Bottom Line: Fucking hell, I got emotional again. What kind of music blog is this? Go listen to some Christmas music, and maybe start with this record. Give it some everlasting life.

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