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Yeah, I’m sneaking away from the TV-watching family to post some music for you, my dear readers! Holidays are a mellow affair by me… some chit chat, go to the movies, eat a bunch of food that’s really bad for you, play with the dog. But there’s NO MUSIC, aaack! So I’m getting my fix and giving you one too, xoxo
These all came in my inbox in the past week or so:
Yeah, this is just gorgeous and I regret that I couldn’t get to it until now! You all know how I love Samantha Crain, well she’s done up this John Denver tune, “Cowboy Christmas” and it’s wonderful, I love it! You will too. Banjo, guitar, her voice, all in her unmistakable and original style, this tune has it all.
Christmas For Cowboys mp3
Also this pretty song, the result of a collaboration by Mascot and Gramercy Arms and makes a great B side to “Cowboy Christmas”
This Christmas Time mp3
And from Serious Business Records, we have Higgins, a sextet from NYC with a great funky sound! They have two albums out, the latest, just out this year is Zs (click on the album name to get the purchase link)
Get Your Christmas On! mp3
And here’s a lovely song by Ron Sexsmith of Manchester, “Maybe This Christmas” sent to me by the lovely folk at Stay Loose
Blue Christmas mp3 The Housewives It’ll Be Filthy This Christmas
Candy Cane Withdrawal mp3 Paris Street It’ll Be Filthy This Christmas
Have Yourself A Filthy Little Christmas mp3 And What Will Be Left Of Them? Have Yourself A Filthy Little Christmas
Christmas is Canceled mp3 The Vichy Government Have Yourself A Filthy Little Christmas
Silent Night mp3 Fridge Noises ‘Tis The Season To Be Filthy ….. I have to say, this is maybe my favorite version of this xmas song. It’s just plain WEIRD and WONDERFUL. No, most of you won’t like it at all, and I’m totally ok with that. But that’s why I love it so much. It just puts a smile on my face every time I hear it. It’s kinda like a tripped out donkey or a really good saw player or something, I love the sound of this thing… enjoy!
Well, I’ve arrived back in my hometown and it’s always a sort of head trip to come here… family is kinda cool, especially when I’ve not seen them in so long! We’re all grown up now and joke around a lot and for some reason this year decided to tell naughty secrets to each other, hahah! So I think we’ve all got something juicy on each other (us kids that is) and the missus and I have only been here half a day so far. Well fucking done, I say!
I got into this xxxmas song thing last year because I happened upon this great site, Filthy Little Angels. Well also because I’m a pervy kinda girl, which is no news to you, my darlings. But since certain family members might be new readers of this here blog, I guess I’d better watch it from here on out… uh yeah right. But Filthy Little Angels has been very good to me over the past year and has sent me all sorts of goodies. And what they are perhaps most known for are their fantastic xmas albums. And they’re all for download, for free. So get your cute little patooties over there and check them out. You can download one or two mp3s or a zip file of the whole damn album if that turns you on. Tonight’s selections have come from there.
And well, Merry Christmas Eve if that’s what you celebrate and drink some egg nog for me, eh? And if you’re all by yourself tonight, go find a buddy online, play some raucous xxxmas music and get busy already xoxo
Here’s a few more xmas goodies to tide you over while I feverishly write more reviews in anticipation of my year-end list of favorite albums of 2009! Enjoy xoxo
First up is a nice twangy xmas number by Jessie Baylin who has recently wed Kings of Leon drummer Nate Followill. She’s based in Nashville and it shows quite nicely. The lady on her album cover there is actually her aunt!
And you’ll recognize this next song if you caught yesterday’s post. It’s the mp3 of the track by Jon Yeager, “There’s Love And Joy For You” which you can see the video for back here.
Away In A Manger mp3 The Very Most Winter… (click on that album title and you’ll go to Indiecater’s site where you can stream the whole album before buying it, very cool!)
I don’t usually offer up religious xmas songs, being a nasty little commie, atheist and all,… but this one by The Very Most is awfuly cute and put out by a blogger friend, Kevin over at Indiecater Records. So please do have a listen to it and pop over and fork out some cash for his very good music over there.
This first video was sent to me from Carolyn Sills, a singer/songwriter who also is a Patsy Cline fan of huge proportions. You gotta love a girl that can sing like Patsy Cline! This song, however, is based on the Christmas movie, It’s a Wonderful Life; if you’ve seen the film (I’ve seen it a thousand times) you’ll recognize the opening bit here. Carolyn is quirky, and yet beautiful with a voice that is versatile and a songwriting style which captures your imagination, especially at the holiday season. Get this single here for only $0.99
Do you remember Jon Yeager? I featured him a few months ago when he brought out his EP The Black Magic Mass (it doesn’t look like my video link works anymore but go to the amazon link and hear a snippet at least) Well, he’s got a beautiful xmas song out, hear it below. I’m working on getting you a purchase link. Also check out his site, it’s gorgeous.
…afterall it’s a christmas song! Yeah, I know all those Scottish blogs have already had their go at it, nasty, hasty buggers! But hey! I get my turn.
Dan writes: “It’s a brand new song called ‘Its a Wonderful Lie’ and this was
recorded last week by Benni Hemm Hemm in my kitchen, with help from Rory from Broken Records and Chris Bryant of Meursault I hope you can learn to enjoy it, if you know someone who would enjoy it, please put it their way.”
And I say: it’s as usual, lovely and thought-provoking, and sad, and makes me nostalgic for a past I don’t ever want to go back to. That’s the magic that Dan Willson weaves in his music.
Oh darlings, there’s so many great blogs out there who are giving out xmas music this year! I’ve got friends everywhere doing such great mixtapes, festive fifties, playlists and Christmas series. It’s about time I’ve given them a shoutout, many of them have been very kind to link to me and to even send me some cool music. So without further ado, here’s some wonderful bloggers you should know: (update: added Songs: Illinois, who has a great playlist, scroll down for details)
17 Seconds is doing a fine job of celebrating the season in Scottish style! Ed always has some great stuff to offer in the way of new music on his blog and his label, and it’s lovely to see him digging into his collection of older tunes, as I am, for the holidays. Go argue with him about why Joni Mitchell’s “River” is definitely not a Christmas song!
Across The Kitchen Table, hailing from Scotland, has succumbed to the Christmas spirit finally and given us a post. His blog is a rich resource for Northern Soul, and if you don’t know what that is, you’d better google it because you’re really missing out on a genre that is truly inspiring!
Jim, my blogger friend who lives in Paisley, and writes over at Ayetunes, has a gorgeous Christmas series on. He’s recently been viciously attacked by a pack of wolves,a 13 year old troll, a nasty blog critic, so go pop over and tell him how fantastic his blog is (it IS by the way!)
Can You See The Sunset From The Southside, a fellow Chicagoan, has a 12 Days of Christmas Songs series running and it’s fantastic! The latest entry is punk songs, yay!! Eric knows his shit when it comes to punk and pop-punk music and he’s an awesome guy as well.
Chromewaves, our favorite Toronto blogger, has a great post up on a new Peanuts Christmas album that’s just hit the airwaves. It’s “a tribute album that features a wide cross-section of Canadian artists re-interpreting the Guaraldi record” and done for charity, all proceeds going to the Daily Bread Food Bank. Please go get immersed in Frank’s blog. It is, by far, the best written music blog on the net; not only because I love the music he picks but because he inspires me to write about music intelligently as well as emotionally.
Earfarm has a holiday charity album, Do you EAR what I EAR?, out on it’s label, to benefit Assoiation to Benefit Children Please consider popping over there and spending your $5 to help some kids out and to get some pretty cool tunes, from the Tom Tom Club, Asobi Seksu, Sean Bones, Sharon Van Etten, and many more, including the one I’ve posted above.
Agnes, of It All Started With Carbon Monoxide, out of Brisbane (? oh no, I should really know this!) oh it’s somewhere in Australia, has a Christmas mixtape up, labeled #1 which I assume means she just might have another one coming out soon. She’s a lovely lady with a quick wit and a cool blog and who has wonderful taste in music. Oh and she loves Withered Hand as much as I do, xo
mp3hugger, out of Dublin, has his annual Indiecater Christmas compilation album out and it is just lovely this year. I’ve reviewed a track off it last week, by Boca Chica, remember? Do go buy it from his site, it’s well worth the small payment. And you can stream it entirely before buying. Kevin is a real gem, his musical taste is wide and generous and I’ve found much good music on his site.
Slowcoustic, from Calgary, is a great blogger who features a lot of cool folk music. He’s got a nice playlist up for the season, check it out. Give his site some patience, I know he’s had some web hosting issues lately. And check over there for a guest post from yours truly in the coming week
The Blue Walrus, from London, is written by Tim, (a wonderful flirt) and Lauren (who I’m just getting to know through her lovely reviews), Hamish and Tom (who I’ve not got the slightest about, sorry) and let me say, this site is a beauty! Tim has a lovely Christmas playlist up here. Get over there and explore right away!
Brian, over at Raised On Indie, from Vancouver, BC (now joined by Lana, from Calgary, Alberta) has a nice Christmas post, look for more over there too, I’m guessing. ROI is a fantastic Canadian site that features all sorts of indie music and interviews with an emphasis on Canadian artists.
Songs Illinois, from just outside Chicago, has a very nice and huge Christmas playlist which he updates occasionally over on his site. Please go get comfy over there, you’ll spend days finding all sorts of americana, and indie music.
And finally… I’ve no idea who this blogger is, but they have been linking to me, and daily compile a whole slew of Christmas songs from friends of mine and blogs of great quality. So if you’re in the market for good Christmas music, go see Santas Working Overtime! And if you are that blogger then please do leave a comment so I can get to know you, xoxo
(I know I’ve forgotten people here…. let me know in the comments and I’ll add them later today)
Matthew, over at Song, by Toad sent me this lovely little cover, done by the Savings and Loan, of a Palace song. Who’s this Palace group, you say? I did some digging and it’s none other than Will Oldham, a.k.a. Bonnie “Prince” Billy. Their (it’s Oldham and his brother and a few more folks, as far as I can tell) christmas album, Hope from 1995 is a favorite of many of you hipsters out there. I am loving The Savings and Loan’s version a whole lot more, I must admit. And I hear that their album might be out as early as this summer. Let me know what you think, xox
Oh my are we getting snow here or what? Lots of it is falling, more on the way and I’m out in it all day today, ugh. So, comfort yourselves in the knowledge that you work in cozy little office cubicles or at home, you lucky little drones. I’ve been slaving away on a mixtape which you will soon find over on the pages of Slowcoustic, a fantastic blog by the wonderful Sandy! So, I’m exhausted and not entirely ready for all this nasty weather, but I’m still thinking of you, darlings and thank you for stopping by! And enjoy this grab bag of SNOW tunes, with love, from the Tart, it’s not often I dig into my crazy and vast music collection for you, xoxo ….
(click on the album titles to purchase them and support these artists!)
Let It Snow (Bit Shifter on Gameboy) mp3 by the 8bitpeoples from 8bits of Christmas it’s free! I love, love, love chiptune, blip blop, whatever you want to call it and this little gem is from a few years ago. I was ecstatic to see that they have performed with one of my favorite bands, The Depreciation Guild who use the Famicom in their music to great effect.
Snowmen Have Hearts mp3 Provo/Howl, from Suburban Sprawl Xmas #5, their free holiday compilation! This is by Provo/Howl, which as far as I can tell isn’t a band as much as it is Julian from Javelins, an indie band out of Detroit. I love this experimental/noise/ambient song.
Its Christmas Time (Sufjan Stevens’ Cover) mp3 Snow mp3
This is a really nice cover of Sufjan Stevens’ song featuring Carrie Peters and a thoughtful track, “Snow” that reminds me a bit of Elliot Smith. I am absolutely loving my little Soundcloud drop box over there on the left sidebar. All sorts of random things end up in it and I hear some wonderful little treasures on almost a daily basis. Today I discovered these two gems from a project by a guy who calls himself Hans V. His “band” is The Standalone and it consists of him in the studio layering sound upon sound in some very beautiful ways. When he plays live he’s joined by a rotating band which includes Tyson Kingrey (guitar/vocals), Scott Funkhouser (bass/keys/vocals), Todd Dahlhoff (bass/keys/vocals), and Harrison Edwards (drums). Based in Portland, Hans has put out an EP, titled One and you can buy it on Amazon here.
No Christmas While I’m Talking mp3The Walkmen from Bows + Arrows And really, I’m not sure what to make of this one either, but the more I listen to it, the more I love it. But, I’m weird like that, you know. It’s not a Christmas song in any way, shape or form. It’s actually a horribly painful song to hear once you know the lyrics. If you really must know, click here. I appreciate the Walkmen more than I did before I heard this track, I’ll say that much. (click on the album name to buy it on Amazon)
These two I received in my inbox this week: Listen To The Choir Sing mp3 from Ian McGlynn, a sweet little song (a one-off, but click on his name to go to his site to purchase it) that evokes some real Christmas feelings. Please go check his website out, you can listen to his album This is the Sound there, it’s beautiful singer/songwriter, piano-heavy music and features that angelic voice.
Snow Angels mp3 from Boca Chica. I had this all ready to post, and then realized that it was from the ever-so-wonderful 2009 Indiecater Christmas record! You really must go over to Kevin’s site and hear the wonderful album he’s compiled … yes, you can stream the whole thing and then purchase it for only 6 Euros, that’s not much, my American friends!
An Indiecater Christmas
1) The Garlands – Christmas Song (Carving Ice Sculptures In Stockholm)
2) Candy Claws – Snowdrift Wish (Writing Gift Lists In Fort Collins)
3) Loxsly – Mrs. Kris Kringle (Overdoing The Outdoor Lights In Austin)
4) Adam and Darcie – It Came Upon A Midnight Clear (Calling Round To Neighbours In Provo)
5) Allo Darlin’ – Baby, It’s Cold Outside (Buying More Stamps In London)
6) Woodpigeon – Little Nemo (Winter Lullabye) (Making Festive Mixtapes In Calgary)
7) Boca Chica – Snow Angels (Humming Stop The Cavalry In Pittsburgh)
8 ) Oldfolks Home – We Don’t Cry At Christmas (Suffering Indigestion In Winnipeg)
9) Betty & The Cavaleros – Hey! I’m Your Gift Today (Googling Eggnog In Fredrikstad)
10) Standard Fare – Tinsel Politics (Taping Good TV In Sheffield)
11) Sunset – New York Love (Making Snow Angels In Austin)
12) I Hate You Just Kidding – It’s Fun To Do Bad Things (Cleaning The Chimney In Costa Mesa)
13) Sweet Jane – Silent Night (Downing Hot Toddy’s In Dublin)
Yeah, I’m sneaking away from the TV-watching family to post some music for you, my dear readers! Holidays are a mellow affair by me… some chit chat, go to the movies, eat a bunch of food that’s really bad for you, play with the dog. But there’s NO MUSIC, aaack! So I’m getting my fix and giving you one too, xoxo
xoxo
It’s A Wonderful Lie mp3
Christmastime In The Mountains mp3
(click album title to purchase at Amazon)
Disc 2, from these originators and masters of industrial music.
2008, a gorgeous new tune.
2000, this will depress the fuck out of you, but what else do we expect from John Darnielle? It’s dark and interesting.
This track is so haunting… it’s almost too creepy to be a real Christmas song. (click on the album name to buy it on Amazon)
And really, I’m not sure what to make of this one either, but the more I listen to it, the more I love it. But, I’m weird like that, you know. It’s not a Christmas song in any way, shape or form. It’s actually a horribly painful song to hear once you know the lyrics. If you really must know, click 
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