Category: Punk

Stubbys House of Christmas

MATT TRAWINSKI (HANDS ON THE STEREO) - MISS CHRISTMAS

12/31/2010

Northern New Jersey's Hands On The Stereo describe themselves as a "Happy Hardcore Band". Forming, originally, in 2008, it's fair to say they're new to the game, but Hands On The Stereo is growing their popularity rapidly by performing at every opportunity and giving away some music for free through Bandcamp. Check out the group's self-titled EP, in particular the song "Can't Stop Kids Like Us", to get a feel for this melodic pop punk band. "Miss Christmas" is technically credited to drummer and vocalist Matt Trawinski, though it certainly sounds like he brought the rest of the band with him. Get your hands on this one at the Hands On The Stereo Bandcamp page.

THE AFTERBEAT - SANTA CLAUS

12/25/2010

A Canadian Ska band, The Afterbeat answered the call of the holidays with a pair of Christmas songs. First, they polish up Darlene Love's "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)". Then they have a go at the Sonics' "Santa Claus". Both songs get a bit of a punk make-over with "Santa Claus" sounding the more Ska of the two (to me). The Afterbeat is one of the top Indie bands in Canada right now and even scored a Super Bowl commercial last January. Head to PureVolume to download the Christmas tracks free, view the Super Bowl commercial, and get a preview of the group's forthcoming album.

ENERGY - I SAW MOMMY KISSING SANTA CLAUS

12/21/2010

Punks from Massachusetts. My favorite things. The band from Stoughton have been together for a few years, at least. And now they've dipped their toe in the holiday waters, delivering a sweet version of "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" that not only isn't the least bit Punk (to my ears), but actually sounds like what would have happened had Phil Spector been the producer for the Beach Boys. Not the bands regular fare, but a pretty nice song standing on its own. You can listen to Energy on their Facebook or MySpace page. And you can download "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" free at Bandcamp.

VARIOUS - xEASYCOREx PRESENTS: A HOLIDAY COMPILATION

12/20/2010

01 - With Honors - Happy Xmas
02 - Suckerpunch - This December
03 - Three Cent Cinema - Home(sick) For Christmas
04 - All Hands On Deck - Snowflakes & Heartbreaks
05 - Thieves - Lights On All The Housees
06 - Robbing The Vatican - Wonderful Xmastime
07 - Ghost I'm Gone - Of All The Stars On All The Trees
08 - Shelbyville - Leave It To Christians To Ruin A Perfectly Good Holiday
09 - Stick Around - That Time Of Year Again
10 - Talk About It - Not Now Arctic Puffin
11 - From The Top - Hot Chocolate Stains and Candy Canes
12 - Fingers Crossed - Full Moon On Christmas Morning
13 - We Stand Victorious - Three Ho's Are Better Than One

14 - Far From Proper - This Holiday
15 - Same As Sunday - Up On The Housetop
16 - Phantom City - Santa Claustrophobia

DOWNLOAD AT BANDCAMP

Not gonna say too much about this one. xEasycorex is an Internet forum for Hardcore, Punk and Pop Punk bands and the fans who love them. We've already featured a bunch of these tracks on our free list--some of my favorite tracks of the year, in fact. And the new ones, making their appearance for the first time, are every bit as high quality and high energy. Most of the tracks I've listened to from this so far are firmly in the Pop Punk category--so highly accessible Rock music is what we're talking--like the Happy Christmas series without all the religious overtones (not that I have anything against the religious overtones). I recommend you download "xEasycorex Presents: A Holiday Compilation" post haste. It's great stuff. Instant download, by the way. No email address required.

THE INSULTS - CHRISTMAS IN FRESNO

12/20/2010

Maybe it wasn't the intended reaction, but I laughed my ass off during the profanity filled "Die Rudolph Die". The Insults are a Punk Rock band and this is their musical contribution to the season. I try to keep my mixes clean, so I doubt I'll be using "Die Rudolph Die", but "Santa Claus Ain't Comin' To Fresno", done up old school Punk style, is actually profanity free (I think) and an excellent rave. It's a candidate. Anyway, both sides are free through Bandcamp and this one's an instant download; you won't even need your email addy. Can't tell you anything more about The Insults. Don't know if they're from Fresno or not (I suspect they are; otherwise what's the bleedin' point). There was/is a punk band called The Insults out of the UK, but they don't really sound like this.

FROM THE TOP - HOT CHOCOLATE STAINS AND CANDY CANES

12/17/2010

Another Pop Punk entry, this one an original. From The Top are California dudes with a sound that's half Green Day, half MxPx. Something like that. "Hot Chocolate Stains and Candy Canes" will cost you a Tweet or a post on Facebook. You'll find the link on the group's web site.

ROBBING THE VATICAN - WONDERFUL CHRISTMASTIME

12/17/2010

Who knew Connecticut had such authentic punks? Robbing The Vatican give a Wonderful hard core pop punk reading on McCartney's "Wonderful Christmastime". This'll put some punch in your bowl and definitely enliven the office Christmas party. Doing a Punk Xmas mix tape? This just became an essential addition. "Oi! Oi! Oi!" to Robbing The Vatican for a job bloody well done. Visit the band on Facebook or MySpace and download the track through Mediafire, here.

WITH HONORS - HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER)

12/17/2010

Indiana Pop Punks With Honors have covered the John Lennon chestnut "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" in their characteristically energetic style. Visit the band and listen to the song on MySpace or their home web site and download through Mediafire, here.

PARLOVR - MERRY XMAS

12/16/2010

The band Parlovr is known for "sloppy pop", whatever the heck that is. Is that really a genre? I gather it's sort of a chaotic take on Power Pop. Judging from the write-ups, you never really know what this band is going to do or sound like. They start off with perfectly constructed pop/rock songs and then just kind of......go off. So they might be punk one night, or power pop, or D.I.Y., or....I swear I even heard a little Industrial in there. In any case, they've got a two song digital single that you can name your donation for. Donation? Yeah, all proceeds are going to AVAAZ, a non-profit dedicated to trying to narrow the gap between the world we have and the world we want. Good luck with that. The songs are oddly mesmerizing. "I'm Santa" sounds a bit like Lo-Fi Wombats music while "Spike The Eggnog" (which unfortunately for the kiddies contains some profanity) is a remarkable and spellbinding Biz Markie meets the orphans from Annie concoction that works incredibly well--much better than it should, yo. Hats off to these Montreal dudes for whatever it is this is. It's good. Download it direct from Parlovr. Don't forget to give generously for a better world. Ah, who am I kidding? Enter "0" and have at it.

VARIOUS - PURE VOLUME HOLIDAY SAMPLER

12/16/2010

1. Blue Christmas......Lovedrug
2. Christmas Time Again......Amely
3. Maybe This Christmas......For All Those Sleeping
4. O Christmas Tree......The Orphan, The Poet
5. C'Mon It's Christmas......STAY
6. Santa Clause Doesn't Come On Hanukkah......The SpacePimps
7. It Must Be Christmas......The Product
8. I Won't Be Home For Christmas......Doom & Gloom
9. Winter Wonderland......Jamestown Story
10. Wake Me Up (It's Christmas)......Rookie Of The Year
11. O Holy Night......Divided By Friday
12. The Christmas Song......Plug In Stereo
13. We've Got Diggin' Out To Do......You, Me, And Everyone We Know

Okay. How to do this. Hmm. See, only about half this collection is free at the moment, the rest just streams. Still, it was a great opportunity to get rid of a few bookmarked items, now that they're collected in the same place. OK, the free stuff will be bold and linked to the collection page. You got a better idea? Even streaming, this is a nice collection of Rock, Pop, Pop Punk, Power Pop and Indie Rock. My favorite, sadly, is not available for free download (yet). That would be You, Me And Everyone We Know's "We've Got Diggin' Out To Do". It's all pretty good, though. Among the freebies, my favorite would be "O Christmas Tree" from The Orphan & The Poet. Anyway, choose your own favorites at PureVolume and download whatever they'll let you download.