Tag: 4+

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Superchunk – Wintry Mix EP (2026)

A purple and white duotone photgraph of a dog in the snow.

Merge Records
Buy: Bandcamp | Merge Records

This makes so much sense. I don’t know why I haven’t been expecting something like this for years, as Mac McCaughan (solo) and Superchunk (his band) have been dropping holiday singles for years now. So, when I wake up to a note from my buddy Ned about a Superchunk 7″ dropping, it is this weird mix of excitement and “of course they did.”

So what do we have here?? The EP kicks off with a fantastic original, “Shortest Day of the Year,” that comes in 2 flavors – the digital “No Tinsel Mix” and the vinyl-only version, which Mac describes as “more rock / less explicitly ‘Christmas-y’ than the other version.” I’m looking forward to comparing the two.

Superchunk then Superchunks a wonderful selection of modern classics and more obscure selections. Beware – if you are participating in Whamageddon this year, skip the next track – as Superchunk becomes the first band to cover Wham’s classic “Last Christmas.” Don’t fact check me – hehe. The Superchunk paint job makes it a pretty fun version, and a welcome addition for sure.

There are a number of Magnetic Fields Christmasish songs to pick from, and Superchunk dug a bit deeper and picked “The Blizzard of ’78” and “Have You Seen It in the Snow,” both from 2017’s 50 Song Memoir. Curiously, this is one of the later Magnetic Fields records not released on Merge! “The Blizzard of ’78” is kicked into a fast gear, making it nearly unrecognizable from the original – which I always encourage! “Have You Seen It in the Snow” has been suggested as a 9/11 song, where the snow is actually ash – but if you don’t think about it that way, the song is a beautiful ode to New York when it snows. I can attest that beauty is real, and Mac’s voice only adds to the sweetness of this kinder interpretation.

The final song is a cover of Galaxie 500’s “Snowstorm,” which is a song I encourage to be covered more often. Let’s throw “Santa Baby” in the bin, give me more of this. An added bonus? Superchunk’s version shaves 2 minutes off the original run time, making it a lovely bite-sized option for your mix. Or… you could always luxuriate in the five-minute-long original.

Bottom Line: This wonderful record might not last the day – I’d pick it up if you are curious.

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Sjowgren “This Year for Christmas” (2021)

An arm wearing a black sweater is outstretched, holding a festive pinecone ornament on a stark white background.

Long Time Friend Discount
Buy: Bandcamp

Earlier today, I found myself considering messaging the San Francisco duo Sjowgren with a question/request – for them to put their 2021 Christmas song “This Year for Christmas” on Bandcamp. I had found it curious that they hadn’t included it on their latest collection (which I reallllly want), Singles Collection 2015-2021. I got distracted, didn’t send the message, went home and made dinner, only to see a message from Sjowgren that they have posted their Christmas song for the season. Fantastic – it appears my powers are growing.

“This Year for Christmas” is a drowsy indie rock song with a wistful, messy, nostalgic, slightly melancholy, yet confident feel; A kind of complicated mixture of emotion that fits perfectly with the season, and is like a drug for me. This song has been on my Christmas mix short list for years, waiting for the right moment. Perhaps the moment has come for me this year – perhaps it has come for you. Every day is new, and we are complicated creatures…

Bottom Line: Short, beautiful, messy, and stone-cold mixworthy.

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Prince Daddy & The Hyena “If I’m Still Broke By Christmas” (2017)

The image is a drawing of a skeleton wearing a dress annd a hat with horns. Devils fly around the skeleton and flames rise in the background. An alligator and 5 swords litter the ground.

Death Protector Collective
Buy: Bandcamp (NYOP)

Sometimes you want something a bit harder, but you don’t need another song about the apocalypse or how Christmas totally sucks. Luckily, back in 2017, Albany, NY punk band Prince Daddy & The Hyena dropped the deceptively sweet “If I’m Still Broke By Christmas.” Who knew that I’d love a punk rock Christmas song with a line like “I know it takes a while / To snap me out of bitchy fits.” No doubt the first Christmas song with the phrase “bitchy fits” in it; I’m pretty confident about that. The song continues with “But I really like your smile / Regardless of the mood i’m in,” which is pretty fucking heartwarming. Don’t get too cozy though – we’re leading up to lots of screeching guitars, particularly after this last bit…

If I’m still broke by Christmas
I know, it sounds, a little fucked
I think you’ll like the solo coming up
<commence air guitars…… now>

If you’re like me, you’re in agreement with the singer, loving the solo, and have already forgotten this is a Christmas song.

Looks like Prince Daddy & The Hyena are also on tour right now, should you have a few bucks and dig their vibe.

Bottom Line: A mixworthy tune with that perfect juxtaposition of punk rock and true love.

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High Tropics “Got a Message for Santa” (2025)

Young man with messy hair wearing a sant hat and santa suit staring at the camera.

indiemono
Buy: Qobuz (FLAC) | Apple Music | Amazon MP3 | Amazon.uk MP3

The High Tropics threw a new song at us at the end of last season, and unfortunately I often lack the opportunity (or energy) in those busy final days to write about all the deserving new music that gets released. But please, don’t take my laziness as any sort of judgement against a song – an “it’s not you (the song), it’s me” scenario.

I hope you have had a moment to check out the High Tropics’ previous Christmas tunes, as I heaped a good bit of praise on them last year – right before they released this latest song! “Got a Message for Santa” has a distinctly different, non-Strokes-y vibe. Yeah, that Casablancas-esque casual vocal delivery is still there, but those bongos and synthesized backing vocals paint a very different picture from those earlier High Tropics’ seasonal gems. This song is less indie rock, and a bit more pop – but don’t worry, plenty of folks aren’t going to appreciate the lines about “getting high” mixed into their family get-together soundtrack – take that squares! This song may sound sweet, but it has enough bite to keep your badass alternative Christmas cred intact.

Bottom Line: Yet another solid seasonal tune from this Aussie band, who are now 3-for-3 if my calculations are correct. Just got to carry the one…..

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moi Caprice – Advent (2020)

Glorious Records
Buy: Qobuz (FLAC/MP3) | Apple Music | Discogs (CD/Vinyl)

This is a record that’s been bouncing around my playlists for a long time. Many years ago, I got into moi Caprice, a Danish band that was geographically and sonically close enough to my Swedish pop obsession to get swept up in the search. Their song “The Art of Kissing Properly” became a playlist staple. I picked up a few CDs and very much consider myself a fan. How I managed to miss them releasing a Christmas EP in 2020 is beyond me. I’m only half joking when I say I consider this oversight a personal failure.

Yes, moi Caprice released a Christmas EP, Advent, in late December of 2020, and it is absolutely excellent. Four tracks, each of which could make a strong case for being the best song on the record. “Christmas, the Magic Is Back” has a wonderful rolling rhythm, peppered with evocative lines like, “’cause the magic is back / and I can do the whole thing from a child’s view.”

That song, along with the one that follows, “Year of the Rat,” are very much Christmas 2020 songs—COVID Christmas songs. However, neither suffers from being too firmly locked into that moment. Both retain a timeless quality, especially in the coda of “Year of the Rat,” where they repeat, “And our kids fall asleep to the sound of our heart.” It’s just ridiculously gorgeous. (It is also featured on my 2025 Christmas mix, A Bit of Christmas.)

The biggest song on the record, at least by streaming metrics, is the third track, “I’m Dreaming of a Christmas That Isn’t So Extremely White.” The concept is interesting, as it references familiar seasonal cultural touchstones like Home Alone and It’s a Wonderful Life, while hoping for new perspectives. A good song, but it somehow lacks the emotional pull of the other three tracks. We’re all different; this may be your favorite!

The final song, “Merry Christmas,” closes out the EP with a promise to make a Christmas song that “truly has the sound / of a Merry Christmas,” and it absolutely delivers. The melody is gorgeous as it floats along on lead singer Michael Møller’s wonderful voice. This is the bullseye—a song that could land on just about anyone’s Christmas mix, in any year they decide to dip into moi Caprice. It is undeniably delightful.

For those who love physical media, you can still hunt this record down on either 12″ vinyl or CD. And wouldn’t you know it—shipping from Germany isn’t terrible these days. I’m glad I can finally write about this now, as I’d been nervous about covering something I hadn’t yet picked up myself, fearing it might sell out before I could. But now I’ve got a 12″ on the way, thanks to the generosity of you all, after coveting it for nearly a year. Truly, thank you all.

Bottom Line: This entire release can be mined for mixworthy songs. It really is pretty damn spectacular.

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Daphne’s Demise “Just Like Christmas” (2025)

Perpetual Doom
Buy: Bandcamp

Lord knows this song has been covered to death. But there are some songs that I don’t mind hearing cover after cover of… and Low’s “Just Like Christmas” is most certainly in that camp. Heck, Christmas A Gogo has a yearly post gathering the latest covers. So, another cover… what can you find in yet another cover of this song? Perpetual Doom is a label that I love, often releasing singer/songwriters who have a tendency for alt.country, but perhaps a bit more attitude than would suit the mainstream. I admit, I’m predisposed to be excited to hear something from this label, and thus I’m here chatting with you about Daphne’s Demise, and their new cover of “Just Like Christmas.” Daphne’s Demise (aka Zoë S-Bouffard) takes this song, nearly strips it of all adornment, and lets you bask in the simple beauty that is this classic song. This is my ultimate Christmas song… and when someone can find themselves in it… I’m here for it.

Bottom Line: Simple and beautiful.

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High Tropics “All I Need This Christmas” (2023) and “Lonely Christmas” (2021)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp | Apple Music

I have a tough time writing about songs you can’t actually go out and buy. A big part of why this site exists is not only to spread the best Christmas music I can find, but also to point you toward the best place to pay money for the hard work of these talented musicians. Art is work, and work deserves compensation. It really is that simple.

Because of that, I’ve been meaning to write about these two fantastic songs by Australia’s High Tropics for a while, but there’s never really been a place for you to purchase them—until today. I shot the band a note last night and, voilà: Bandcamp. So here we go.

I discovered High Tropics via the excellent Von Pip Musical Express podcast back in 2023 and was immediately smitten. Before diving into the songs, though, I have to address the elephant in the room: yes, these are the best Christmas songs the Strokes could ever wish to write. The similarity is undeniable, but that only serves to highlight the Strokes’ complete lack of original Christmas songs—and High Tropics’ absolute slam dunk in delivering two original seasonal gems.

2023’s “All I Need This Christmas” made my mix last year, thanks to its relaxed, synthy stroll through the well-worn “all I need for Christmas is you” territory. The lyrics are simple, essentially repeating the same verse twice, but even within that limited space, the song finds a way to feel fresh and new. Take the opening stanza:

Everybody’s talking ’bout a brand new year
I’m still playing catch-up with the last one, baby
I don’t wanna tell you how it ought to be
I’m just tryna make it to tomorrow lately

There’s something so laid-back and assured about this song—a calm, effortless cool that’s hard to deny. As the song puts it near the end, “I know I could win you over,” and it absolutely has.

“Lonely Christmas” first appeared on SoundCloud back in 2021, along with a demo version, and it’s only a matter of time before one of those makes its way onto one of my mixes. The lo-fi vocals, the sticky chorus, and—once again—that feeling of effortless cool the Strokes helped reintroduce to rock music in 2001 all come together beautifully here. High Tropics have kept that flame alive and turned it into something genuinely special.

The two songs feel like siblings, sharing a similar structure of repeated verses and a catchy chorus. Somehow, High Tropics manage to make yet another classic Christmas trope feel anything but stale.

Bottom Line: I can’t think of an A/AA single that would be quite as good as these two.

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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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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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