Tag: experimental

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dj eWi “armadillo dreams of christmas” (2017)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp (FREE)

I’ve got a bunch of bigger stuff coming up… so I thought today was a good day for a curveball. This dj eWi track was recommended to me a while back by my Christmas music friend on the other side of the country (Hi again Larry!), and it has slowly grown on me. First off, I just want to state that my capitalization choices reflect dj eWi’s… so please keep that in mind. This song is truly something. “Armadillo dreams of christmas” is a sonic collage with truly beautiful sentiment, which is in hilarious juxtaposition with some of the imagery. Peruse these lyrics from the back half of the song:

a submarine filled with cocaine
sank on christmas day
somewhere off the coast of texas
the fish are acting very strange

hope can bring us near
we love and never fear
an armadillo dreams of Christmas

The music is a vibe, a swirl of bits of shimmering sound, laid overtop beats, bass, synth, slide guitar (!) and flute (!). I mean… the lyrics are already fascinating, and the instrumentation is equally so. This thing is pretty damn cool.

Bonus content: dj eWi also has a seasonal full-lenth, the aliens save christmas released in 2014.

Bottom Line: Take “armadillo dreams of christmas” and the Jonti track “Christmas Worm’s Quest For Fresh Apples,” and you’re well on your way to a weirdo creature Christmas mix.

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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Zach Malm – The Darkest Time of Year (2017/2020)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

2020 Addition: This COVID/anxiety-riddled/dumpster fire of a year has brought few bright moments. Today is an exception (for the moment), as one of my favorite Christmas records of the past few years is reintroduced to the world on beautiful, red-marbled vinyl. Zach Malm‘s The Darkest time of Year has been released in a limited pressing of 100 copies, and I strongly suggest that one of those copies should be yours. Heck, there is even a bonus song that wasn’t on the original release! This is your chance to have a fantastic private-press Christmas record that future generations of weirdo Christmas music fans will be alllllll about. Let us take a moment to look back upon my 2018 review of this beautiful record that completely floored me.

——————————————————————————————-

December can overwhelm a tired Christmas-music blogger. Often, the casualties of a lack of time and a wealth of music, are the large compilation and the full album. Singles are so much quicker to consume and write about. Seattle’s Zach Malm was a casualty of last year, as he put out a very interesting experimental, electronic pop record that I did not get to, and most certainly deserves our 2018 ears. There are some damn interesting songs on here, many of which are awash in a Novation Bass Station II synth. Zach’s cover of “Walking in the Air” has a fantastic buzzing bassline powered by that synth, as well as these great fluttering melodies interspersed throughout; It is truly beautiful. Zach’s wonderful original “Magical Night,” is much less electro, bringing in guitars while crafting a beautifully sweet song about a child’s anticipation of Christmas. It is simple, poignant and wholly mix-worthy. Zach’s other originals, “Christmastime is Always,” “The Darkest Time of the Year,” and “Half the Fruit” all reflect the album’s title in a way the sweet “Magical Night” did not. They are dark, but with these brilliant moments of light, such as this line in “Half the Fruit:”

If nothing else, we still have Christmas
If nothing else, we still have Jesus
And even though the meaning changes
If nothing else, we still have Christmas

Zach has created a true album – the “Kid Conversation” tracks are great on their own, but not really “songs” – but they work beautifully, stitching together this wonderful collection of largely original, both in content and approach, Christmas tunes. Zach has nailed it with this one, and you should check it out (as well as forgive me for not getting to this fantastic record last year).

Bottom Line: Zach Malm has created a wonderfully cohesive record – a true Christmas album – beautiful to listen to in its entirety.

LISTEN

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Zach Malm – The Darkest Time of Year (2017)

Self Released
Buy: Bandcamp

December can overwhelm a tired Christmas-music blogger. Often, the casualties of a lack of time and a wealth of music, are the large compilation and the full album. Singles are so much quicker to consume and write about. Seattle’s Zach Malm was a casualty of last year, as he put out a very interesting experimental, electronic pop record that I did not get to, and most certainly deserves our 2018 ears. There are some damn interesting songs on here, many of which are awash in a Novation Bass Station II synth. Zach’s cover of “Walking in the Air” has a fantastic buzzing bassline powered by that synth, as well as these great fluttering melodies interspersed throughout; It is truly beautiful. Zach’s wonderful original “Magical Night,” is much less electro, bringing in guitars while crafting a beautifully sweet song about a child’s anticipation of Christmas. It is simple, poignant and wholly mix-worthy. Zach’s other originals, “Christmastime is Always,” “The Darkest Time of the Year,” and “Half the Fruit” all reflect the album’s title in a way the sweet “Magical Night” did not. They are dark, but with these brilliant moments of light, such as this line in “Half the Fruit:”

If nothing else, we still have Christmas
If nothing else, we still have Jesus
And even though the meaning changes
If nothing else, we still have Christmas

Zach has created a true album – the “Kid Conversation” tracks are great on their own, but not really “songs” – but they work beautifully, stitching together this wonderful collection of largely original, both in content and approach, Christmas tunes. Zach has nailed it with this one, and you should check it out (as well as forgive me for not getting to this fantastic record last year).

Bottom Line: Zach Malm has created a wonderfully cohesive record – a true Christmas album – beautiful to listen to in its entirety.

LISTEN

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Said Fantasy “Chorus Noel” (2018)

Plastiq Musiq
Buy: Bandcamp

If you follow me on Twitter, you know this is a tough week for bloggin. So, I’m going to be brief! Said Fantasy is Ronnie Martin, and he knows his way around a MOOG. “Chorus Noel” is a fantastic experimental synth-pop song that I wish could be replicated 5 times on one record… because I’d buy that shit on vinyl. “Chorus Noel” comes as the lead, title track of their 5-track Christmas EP, out now on CDr (100 copies), as well as digital download on Chicago’s Plastiq Musiq. I’m not as down with the traditional covers, but it is totally worth it for that lead track. So… let that be your bit for the day. Best of luck you all in your mixin’ endeavors, and send me stuff you think I’d like – @xmasunderground!

Bottom Line: Some awesome synth-pop for your ear-holes. I do wish you could buy a single track though….

LISTEN

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Mont “Snow in the New Year” (2013)

Mont - Snow in the New Year

Self Released
Buy: Soundcloud

Bath, UK’s Mont have been on my radar ever since randomly searching the term “snow” in the Hype Machine many moons ago. There, I discovered the brilliant, etherial, musical collage that is “Snow in the New Year.” The vocals float in on a breeze of warm beats, leading up to a cacophony of sound that, given the right mood, can give you goosebumps. It is truly a beautiful song. Of particular note, Mont also has a new EP out November 4th, If You Got it Wrong, and after checking out that first track… damn… I love this band.

Bottom Line: “Snow in the New Year” was certainly a highlight from my 2014 mix, Jolly Snow Sculptor Santa, and remains one of my favorite winter-season/new years songs. They just flipped the switch to allow downloads too – so grab it while you can (and buy their new EP too!)

LISTEN