Tag: DIY

Posted on

The Pats Pats “Christmas” (2020)

Self Released?
Buy: Bandcamp

When I crash, I crash hard. Christmas 2020 was like a brick wall. After an exhausting 2020, the deluge of songs and records that hit in those last 2-3 days before Christmas was overwhelming. I have so many tabs open that they haunt my dreams. I didn’t know when I was going to feel motivated enough to dip my toes back in, but I’ve been driving my wife’s car the past few days (which has a CD player) and popped in my latest Christmas mix… I really love those songs. So now I need to find good Christmas and Christmas-adjacent tunes once more…

I don’t speak Japanese, but I do speak fun (…sometimes). The Pats Pats are a “girl band from Tokyo” (I don’t believe you need to qualify what the sex of a band is, but they specifically do), and their particular brand of upbeat DIY-pop is an absolute pleasure. I have so little more to say about this perfect little pop nugget, which may be why this song is exactly what I needed to get back to this gig. Zero pressure, all fun.

Bottom Line: Japanese-DIY-pop perfection for anxiety-riddled, demanding jerks like me.

LISTEN

Posted on

The Turtlenecks – The Turtlenecks Do Christmas (2018)

Sea Speak Recordings
Buy: Bandcamp (NYOP)

TELL ME SOMETHING ABOUT THIS BAND! I mean come on! Searching, and searching, and searching. The label is nearly as mysterious as the band, but they at least have a Bandcamp! This little Christmas EP by the elusive The Turtlenecks is a damn pleasant trio of lo-fi indiepop holiday tunes. Catch me on the right day, and one of these simple, synthesizer-driven tunes might just sneak their way onto a mix of mine. From the chill repetition of “With Care,” to the pulsing “Snowblind,” or the boozy fun of “Christmas Bender,” pop on The Turtlenecks Do Christmas, chill out, and let these tunes soothe your DIY-jones.

Bottom Line: Three solid tracks by some band from somewhere, released on a label that might be from Louisville. Occam’s razor would suggest that it must, therefore, have been recorded by me, in my sleep, with no musical training. Enjoy!

I should have contacted them before writing this piece – but I’ll update it if they write me back 🙂

LISTEN