Category: Indie Pop

Stubbys House of Christmas

CHELSEA TERRACE - CHRISTMAS SKY (MIDNIGHT EDITION)

12/24/2015

I honestly don't know a thing about music (oh...you knew that already), but I do know what I like. And this sweet little instrumental from the Japanese brother and sister Indie Dream Pop/Toy Pop duo Chelsea Terrace is something I like. It's a more or less Ambient piece, partially inspired by the film The Polar Express and featuring strains of "Jingle Bells" and "Silent Night". And, if Google translate is to be trusted, it's part of an album the group is working on for next year--"The Electrical 7 Suite". And it's free via Soundcloud.

Now, as if that wasn't cool and Christmasy enough (or, for that matter, Japanese enough), Chelsea Terrace released a Christmas song last year, as well. "Goodbye Christmas" is a vocal tune that appeared on the group's "Telescope Future" CD (which is sold out, so don't bother looking for it). Some people are enchanted by the way French ladies sing (I get it; very sexy), but I love the sound of Christmas music sung by Japanese women. Don't know why, don't understand a word; it just strikes me as so delicate and beautiful. "Goodbye Christmas (Shooting Star Mix)" --with vocals and guitar by Mayumi, I believe--is also a free download from Chelsea Terrace on Soundcloud.

BALLARD C. BOYD - THERE'S NOEL IN CHRISTMAS

12/23/2015

It seems I nearly always forget about Mr. Boyd's annual Christmas treat until well after the holidays. And then I just don't feel like blogging it (though I download them faithfully). Well, not this year, by God.

Ballard C. Boyd is a writer and director (currently working for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, I hear). In his spare time, he likes to do a little Uke Pop (who doesn't). This is another case of someone who really enjoys making Christmas tunes and that joy comes through the speakers and takes up residence in your heart and head. Sometimes we get an original Ballard C. Boyd Christmas tune and sometimes not.

On this year's joy filled platter, "There's Noel In Christmas". we get two tunes we know from the Spector Christmas album and what may well be the first recorded cover of JD McPherson's "Twinkle (Little Christmas Lights)". If Ballard is indeed working on The Late Show, now, "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" seems especially appropriate. Darlene Love used to give us an annual appearance on the show while Letterman was hosting--welcoming in the holiday with her seminal Christmas song. I hear tell Mr. Boyd may have recorded that one in The Ed Sullivan Theater. Good for him. The third song is a whistling version of "Marshmallow World". Three great songs that go great together.

All of Mr. Boyd's previous Christmas EPs remain available and free. And you'll find them all at his website.

GOLAU GLAU - ADAM LAY YBOUNDEN

12/20/2015

Wait. Did I know these folks were from the UK? I don't know if I did. I'm an idiot.

Golau Glau is an anonymous collective of artists, musicians and photographers and they can usually be counted upon to release a Christmas EP of fascinating experimental Electronica.

This year, we get a single tune, bit one that remains "free and festive".

"Adam Lay Ybounden" is an Olde English (technically macaronic English) poem from around 1400 AD. It was discovered centuries later among the poems and songs of a wandering minstrel. Since a wandering minstrel's "job" was to "entertain" (thereby earning tips and whatnot), the songs and poems they carried with them would cover a wide range--everything from deeply religious to depraved and bawdy. Most of their pieces, regardless of their subject matter, were delivered as satire and humor. Macaronic English was sort of a mongrel mix of various languages, including Latin. The term, itself, means "dumpling", a food considered "peasant fare".

"Adam Lay Ybounden" is the minstrel's song of Adam following the fall of the Garden of Eden. Adam was condemned to spend "4000 winters" bound in Limbo from his banishment from the Garden until the crucifixion of Christ. "And all this for an apple", the song relates somewhat disdainfully, with the final verse expressing thanks to Jesus for eventually freeing Adam from bondage. At a time when the world was ruled by Kings who did pretty much as they pleased when they pleased--usually at the expense of the serfs and peasants--the tone of the piece was intended for them to relate...in essence: "look how unfair the punishment for the mere theft of a mere apple; praise Jesus for freeing him."

And now that you are asleep from this dissertation of mine, enjoy "Adam Lay Ybounden" from Golau Glau. It's free on Bandcamp.

BULLETTE - CHRISTMAS LIGHTS (I ONLY LIGHT UP WHEN YOU'RE AROUND)

12/19/2015

So I got an email from Monika Bullette a few days back, alerting me to her new Christmas song, "Christmas Lights (I Only Light Up When You're Around)". And I'm thinking, "I know that name."

Way, way, waaaayyy back....when the Internets were young.....in the dark ages.......you know, like around 2004, Monika had a free Christmas song on her site that she'd done with Hangnail Phillips. The song was "The Finest Gifts" and I thought it was just about the most beautiful and perfect Christmas song I'd ever heard. I didn't really start trolling the Internet for free downloads until 2005, so Monika was one of, if not my very first. You always remember your first.

Thereafter, Monika Bullette's site was one of my first destinations in the annual Christmas music hunt. And she usually had something new to offer for the season. After that, she hooked up with the Sky Drops. And the Sky Drops dropped "Christmas Feels Like Halloween" in 2010 or 2011 and "Christmas Time Is Here" in 2012 (both still free on the Sky Drops web site, btw). And then my Mom got sick and I didn't hear anything about or from Monika until that email the other day.

Monika Bullette's new Christmas song for 2015 is a demo, so it's got a bit of a raw feel to it. Nothing wrong with that; I dig raw. But Monika was also kind enough to post several other Christmas songs--all available to download free on Soundcloud--filling in those missing years for me. AND she posted "The Finest Gifts" again. Ah, Monika, you remembered. That was our song (sorry, was that too stalkerish?). And, if you never have before, cats and kittens, you have to hear this one.

SASHA BROWN - CHRISTMAS MORNING

12/19/2015

London based singer/songwriter Sasha Brown is known for producing delicious Electro Pop that is not just candy to the ears and fuel for dancing feet, but also has some emotional depth via generally excellent lyrics. Last year, Sasha gave us a video of "Santa Baby" which was't all that different or memorable. Of course, covering "Santa Baby" these days is a bad idea from the outset. Just sayin'. This year, Sasha delivers her own "Christmas Morning" and what a difference a year makes. This is the kind of Christmas tune you can live with for a while--the kind of tune that says we'll be hearing from Sasha for many years to come. The song's original title was "Sunday Morning", but Sasha decided to re-title and rework it and that turned out to be a great move. There's a video coming soon, but the free download is already here via Soundcloud.

DENMARK + WINTER - AND IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME AGAIN

12/18/2015

I give up. Denmark + Winter is a ghost. There is not one useful piece of information about them on the Internet. Nothing. They might be from Denmark, or at least they post a lot of pictures of Denmark on Facebook. Or perhaps their names are Denmark and Winter. For all I can tell, they could be Abbott & Costello from Patterson, New Jersey. They've had a lot of songs--usually re-imagined versions of popular hits--placed in television shows. Facebook tells you nothing. Soundcloud tells you nothing. Their official website doesn't have any information of any kind. Their label has even less information about them, as if that could be possible. And any review appearing anywhere begins, "I can't find out a single thing about this band, but...." I could swear that we'd featured them here before, but I can't find that either. I give up. I want to go hang myself, now, for an entire day wasted.

Ah, but then I hear the beautiful music and I can't step away. Truly, if there is something worth living for, it must be this glorious sound. It's rich and lush, with vocals that are of the angels. All is forgiven, whoever you are.

Denmark + Winter has an entire Christmas album out, which completely escaped my attention until I came across this free download on Souncloud tonight. "The Holiday Collection" is 13 tracks long, with re-imaginings of your holiday favorites and a few new songs (I highly recommend their version of Have Yourself A "Merry Little Christmas"). "And It's Christmas Time Again" is another song about missing loved ones who are gone. Either its a popular theme this year or its just kinda close to home for me these days. You can download "And It's Christmas Time Again" on Soundcloud. But, let's be honest. You really are going to need this whole album in your arsenal. Find it at Amazon and iTunes.

ELLIE GOULDING - O HOLY NIGHT

12/18/2015

If there's a thing as an Indie Pop superstar, that would be Ellie Goulding. She's topped the British charts and gotten as high as #2 on the US charts more than once and she's sold millions upon millions of records. The British magazine, The Fly, praised Ellie in 2010 for her "sparkling pop with a folky heart and an electronic edge". So when Ellie offers up a free Christmas tune, I sit up and take notice. There's nothing particularly folky or electronic about "O Holy Night"--it's just a beautiful traditional rendition. To get the free download of "O Holy Night", you will have to register here, but that basically means you surrender your email address which we Christmas Music hounds do all the time anyway.

LEGENDS OF COUNTRY - FROM ST GEORGE TO SNOWFLAKE

12/17/2015

We featured this song from Legends of Country last year as the flip of the Christmas single, "It's A Long Way Back From A Dream". But then it wasn't free and now it is. Legends of Country is the side project of Jof Owen of The Boy Least Likely To. It's not quite Indie Pop and not quite Americana. Alt Country? Anyway, "From St. George To Snowflake" tells the tale of an all night drive from St. George Utah to Snowflake Arizona. Whether or not the sound qualifies as Americana, the subject matter certainly does. Nothing more American than small towns with evocative names. Nice tempo, nice lyrics on this one, though I preferred the A-side (which was actually a New Years tune). Grab the tune free at Bandcamp or Soundcloud.

GINGER COYLE - IT FEELS LIKE CHRISTMAS

12/17/2015

Gone are the days when WXPN's The Key would give us an entire album's worth of Christmas tunes (one a day, sometimes more), or so it seems. But they'll still drop one or two seasonal songs from Philly's best Indie acts--usually in the day or two around Christmas. "It Feels Like Christmas" is a sweet Jazzy shuffle from Ginger Coyle that The Key posted last December 26th. Chances are you weren't hunting down Christmas tunes the day after Christmas. So, if you missed it--as we did--you can still grab it free from WXPN's The Key.

VARIOUS - A VERY RELEVANT CHRISTMAS

12/17/2015

1. Sugar and the Hi-Lows, "Jingle Bells"
2. Ellie Holcomb, "Christmas For You And Me"
3. Citizen Shade, "Go Tell It On The Mountain"
4. Evan Wickham, "End Of Exile"
5. Hoyle, "Long Winters"
6. Ben & Nolle, "Angels We Have Heard On High"
7. Citizens & Saints, "Come And Stand Amazed"
8. Kings Kaleidoscope, "O Come All Ye Faithful"
9. Fleurie, "Wake Up (O Night Divine)"
10. Kids, "The Bleak Midwinter"
11. The Modern Post, "What Child Is This (feat. Dustin Kensrue)"
12. The Brilliance, "Christ The Lord Is Born"

1. Sleeping At Last, "I Heard The Bells"
2. Kyle Cox, "Don't Make My Christmas Blue"
3. John Mark McMillan, "Joy To The World"
4. Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors, "Hark The Herald Angels Sing"
5. Gungor, "Oh Light (feat. All Sons & Daughters)"
6. Tow'rs, "Auld Lang Syne"
7. Found Wandering, "Lo How A Rose E're Blooming"
8. Andy Squyres, "Here Is Wisdom"
9. Jeremiah Daly, "Away In A Manger"
10. Josh Hoke, "Peace On Earth"
11. Branches, "O Come O Come Emmanuel"
12. The Oh Hellos, Mvmt III, "Silent Night, Holy Night"

If you want to sample a wide swath of CCM--or just listen to a ready-made CCM mixtape, there's the annual collection from the on-line Relevant magazine. They're up to Volume 5, this year, of "A Very Relevant Christmas". It was released in two parts, but its all together now. This is one of those sites where you have to register and then verify your email (or you can "connect with Facebook", which I recommend you never do; Facebook is far too free with the sharing of far too much information for my taste).

"A Very Relevant Christmas, Vol. 5" features lots of artists we've featured before--Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors, Sleeping At Last, Sugar & The Hi-Lows, The Oh Hellos, and Found Wandering, to name a few--as well as bands and artists that were new to me and may be to you as well. A couple of bands that were new to me (probably...I go through so much Christmas music, its hard to remember everybody) that I very much enjoyed were Ben & Noile, who provided a splendid up-beat New Wavey Electro Pop take on "Angels We Have Heard On High" and Fleurie, a Nashville based Folk Pop artist/band whose "Wake Up (O Night Devine)" recalled for me the best of that genre (I'd throw out names like A Fine Frenzy or Tori Amos, but my head's a little crowded right now and I'm not sure those are the right names).

Anyway, some good stuff and free (for an email addy). "A Relevant Christmas, Volume 4" is still available, as are some non-Christmas collections. Register at Relevant.