Listen With Monger never shirks the festive responsibility of
getting you a round up of the latest Christmas songs but to save you the hassle
of trawling through a whole bunch of reviews I’ve compiled them all below. You’re
welcome….and merry Christmas.
NUMB FEAT. SOUND OF THE SIRENS, HANNAH JOHNS & THE
COMMUNICATORS –
The Westcountry version of Band
Aid is finally here (I know, about time, right?) brought to us by a collective
of superb musicians. ‘Christmas Time’ is a joyously upbeat number led by the
alt hip-hop flow of NUMB laid out over the top of a jaunty folk melody. They then
weave in the legendary vocal harmonies of Sound of the Sirens and the whole
thing just makes you want to dance around the Christmas tree, down a pint of
Baileys and eat until sprouts come out of your ears. Sure, there is a whole
lot of stuff to think about at Christmas and it can be a miserable time for
many people but if you can’t enjoy a song like this at Christmas time then when
can you?
More information: https://www.facebook.com/neverunderestimatemusicalbelief/
Watch the Video: https://www.facebook.com/neverunderestimatemusicalbelief/videos/2232329853726477/?t=0
NUELA CHARLES – I DON’T NEED SANTA
Canada artist Nuela Charles has
one of the most naturally soulful and inviting voices currently being committed
to record at the moment so it was only a matter of time before she turned this
talent to a festive treat. ‘I Don’t Need Santa’ is a smooth slow jam of a
Christmas song that rejects the commercialism of the festive season and instead
focuses on the gift of love. This is the natural successor to Mariah’s ‘All I
Want For Christmas’ and Charles has both the voice and the melodies to carry it
off.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/nuelacharles/
ASHTON LANE – YOU CAME ANYWAY
This is a bold take on the
Christmas song oeuvre as it is not overtly festive and takes on the birth of
baby Jesus as a lyrical theme. But, do you know what, Ashton Lane pull it off.
The husband and wife pair of Ashton Lane hail from Glasgow but could easily fit
in on the stages of Nashville as their brand of gentle Country is superbly poised
and sweetly performed on ‘You Came Anyway’. This is a heartfelt track that
tells the nativity story from the angle of Jesus’ persistence to arrive in the
world despite the lack of welcome. If only people had paid more attention in
school and remembered that message these days….
More information: https://www.facebook.com/ashtonlanemusic/
ROBB MURPHY – PALE WHITE
This piano based track from Belfast
based Robb Murphy has a real feel of wintriness about it rather than festivity
but that still counts at this time of year. ‘Pale White’ undulates and gently
swells as drums and atmospherics join the piano melody and Murphy’s soft,
soothing vocal leads you home through the snow like the beckoning glow of a
fire lit window in the distance. The addition of a trumpet towards the end is
topped only by the seasonal bell chimes which all come together like the
triumphant scene of a Christmas rom-com.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/TheRobbMurphy/
RYAN BRAHMS – CHRISTMAS MORNING
New Yorker Ryan Brahms has
inadvertently created the theme song for an as-yet unwritten Disney Christmas
film called ‘Christmas Morning’. Brahms’ smooth vocal is the American take on
Ed Sheeran mixed with a bit of Maroon 5 in the music department and it’s all
stitched together with the kind of key changes that are designed to bring a
lump to your through and a sting to the back of the eye. The production is
wonderfully simple and that adds to sparse, quiet Christmas morning vibe which
perfectly fits the song.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/ryanbrahms/
WHEN ‘AIRY MET FAIRY – BLANKET OF SORROW
There aren’t many half Icelandic
and half Luxembourgian duos around so When ‘Airy Met Fairy might just be the
ultimate Icelourgian musical pair. Their festive release, ‘Blanket of Sorrow’, is
stunningly bleak as a barely played piano melody is coupled with soft,
confessional vocals that even feature the lip smacks and breaths. Some organs and
a bassline pulse join in to add some much-needed warmth to proceedings while
the duo and their friends act out some kind of 70s domestic dystopia in the
video. It’s not going to get your Christmas party swinging but add this to your
playlist for the drunken bus ride home at the end of the night.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/WAMFmusic/
Watch the Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDJI03TBDWE
SCHOOLYARD CHAMPIONS – CHRISTMAS ISN’T CHRISTMAS WITHOUT YOU
Along with Irish compatriot Niamh
Langan, County Mayo duo Schoolyard Champions have created ‘Christmas isn’t
Christmas Without You’ which is potentially the first song to feature the word
Christmas twice. As seems to be in fashion this year, the piano is the chosen
instrument and a gentle if slightly forlorn melody unfolds before Langan’s
sumptuous voice joins in with warmth, passion and no shortage of depth. As
strings and light percussion help this one to swell you really get a sense that
there is sadness behind the song, but it’s also sprinkled with hope like lights
on a Christmas tree and hope is crucial to Christmas spirit. Well played,
Schoolyard Champions, well played.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/Schoolyardchampions/
Watch the Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsU89p0sKyQ
LYRA COLE – WHEN A CHILD IS BORN
I normally try to be pretty
honest and constructive with any criticism on this blog but when a 6-year-old
girl with a brain tumour releases a Christmas song to raise money for the
disease she was born with, well, objectivity doesn’t really get a look in. Cole
has recorded a version of the Johnny Mathis classic ‘When A Child Is Born’ and
it is heartstring tuggingly lovely. The simple melody is essentially irrelevant
when you hear Cole’s voice full of honesty, innocence, hope and the Christmas
spirit shining through. Cole can also hold a melody without overdoing it and the
producer has been wise enough to let the clarity of her voice shine through,
distilling the essence and purity of the song.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/LyraMayCole/
Stream Here: https://open.spotify.com/track/6xtp4vsB9OpcZmI8mX0Wck?si=twM7Fv-oS9il5dRGE2VqHw
THE DIRTY NIL – CHRISTMAS AT MY HOUSE
Canadian rockers (and LWM
favourites) the Dirty Nil have only gone and roasted their turkey in Jack Daniels
before blasting out this festive ditty. ‘Christmas at my House’ falls somewhere
between Jet’s ‘Backdoor Santa’ and Reuben’s ‘Christmas is Awesome’ with furious
sleigh bell jingling and the kind of riff that would work at any time of year
but just makes you want to lose your festive shit. So, don your Star Wars
themed Christmas jumper, rip into the eggnog and let’s rock Santa a new one.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/thedirtynil/
Watch the Video: https://youtu.be/wsRn7jSQZBg
LADBABY – I LOVE SAUSAGE ROLLS
Remember that sausage roll based
Christmas song that raised a whole bunch of money for the Trussell Trust? Yeah,
well it’s back but with a new sausage-based theme. LadBaby (aka Mark and
Roxanne) are releasing ‘I Love Sausage Rolls’ (based on the Joan Jett classic ‘I
Love Rock’n’Roll’) and once again it’s all to raise money for the Trussell
Trust – aiming to end the need for food banks (aka Tory troughs). The video
features the pair breaking into Abbey Road to record their single and,
musically speaking, it’s no, well, ‘Abbey Road’, but it’s a whole lot of fun. A
timeless riff, lyrics about meat based baked goods, thinly veiled double
entendres and a family dressed in matching pastry patterned track suits make for
exactly the kind of feel good vibe we all need at Christmas. And let’s face it,
whether you like it or not, it is for an extremely good cause so you’d be a
dick not to get involved.
More information:
The Trussell Trust - https://www.trusselltrust.org/
Watch the Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-WCAEwMJhI&feature=youtu.be
JOLLYROGER – I AUDITIONED TO BE SANTA
Piratical Westcountry folk-punks
JollyRoger have committed their take on the Christmas song to, well, the internet
(nobody commits anything to tape anymore) and it is both delightful and
sinister at the same time. ‘I Auditioned to be Santa’ has verses that would fit
in on a Pogues track but the chorus is more melodic in the vein of Sound of the
Sirens as the acoustic strumming and mandolin plucking combine to make
something perfect for warming your cockles when you’ve been out Christmas
shopping and you need to stop in for a quick pint on the way home.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/JollyRogerBandUK/
Watch the Video: https://www.facebook.com/JollyRogerBandUK/videos/483209122323399/
COCO REILLY – CHRISTMAS WITH YOU
If you’re in need of a gently
woozy Christmas song then look no further than this little ditty from Nashville’s
Coco Reilly. ‘Christmas With You’ ticks all the boxes, lyrically speaking,
mentioning silver bells, Christmas trees and a forlorn longing for a lover.
Musically, this sits (nay lounges) comfortably alongside Tennis, Best Coast and
First Aid Kit which, let’s face it, is just where you want to be as we wind
down into the festive season. Oh, and if you need a bow on this particular gift
then just listen to Reilly’s dusky and soothing voice. Merry Christmas.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/cocoreillymusic/
Watch the Video: https://youtu.be/TKREXN3lKfc
JARVIS COCKER – RUNNING THE WORLD (ROUGH TRADE RECORDS)
It wouldn’t be Christmas in the
UK without the annual race to have the number one song at the moment Santa
comes down the chim-chimerney and one of the horses in that race had better be
a protest song or I’m taking my ball home. This year, that protest comes from
everyone’s favourite Steel City dandy, Jarvis Cocker with the superbly title “(Cunts
are Still) Running the World’ and it is beautiful. This is the grown up brother
of ‘Common People’ with a lo-fi alt-pop melody and Cocker’s unmistakably
laconic vocal delivers some intensely spot on lyrics like “Feed your children
on crayfish and lobster tails, find a school near the top of the league, in
theory I respect your right to exist but I’ll kill you if you move in next to
me”. It’s a musical two fingers (on two separate hands) to the ruling and
entitled classes which you can support by getting it to number one and raising
money for Shelter in the process (all proceeds go to the charity supporting homeless
people). Or you can fuck off and vote Tory before never, ever darkening my blog
again.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/groups/618955365312116/
PEAT & DIESEL – FAIRYTALE OF STORNAWAY
Scottish outfit Peat & Diesel
have released their own twist on the Pogues Christmas classic with an accordion
fuelled ‘Fairytale of Stornaway’ switching between English and Gaelic with
effortless ease. This version has more punch and edge than the original whilst
retaining the male-female vocal interplay and a certain roguish charm that this
song just wouldn’t work without. This is a stunning and brave take on a firm
seasonal favourite and will confuse the hell out of all your guests when they
start trying to sing along….unless they speak Gaelic.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/PEATANDDIESEL/