Category: Progressive

GOOD GOLLY, IT'S MOLLY

9/18/2019

If there's one modern artist out there who was, to my ears, born to make a Christmas album, it's Molly Burch. The Austin vocalist is absolutely intoxicating...a delicate brew of 40s noir nightclub Jazz singer, 50s Soul, 60s girl groups, exotic Filles Sourires Pop, modern Indie, haunting Americana and Twin Peaks (yes, the TV show). Certain artists are simply transcendent. Molly Burch is such an artist. Her music transports you to a time and place beyond time and space. She reaches in, grabs ahold of your deepest heartbreak and squeezes all of the pain out of it until all that's left is euphoria. Or, in straight forward terms that anyone can appreciate...damn, that girl can sing!

As if a prayer answered, "The Molly Burch Christmas Album" has appeared on the release schedule for November 15. (And the crowd goes wild.) "The Molly Burch Christmas Album" track list shows us a nicely balanced program of standards, uncommon covers, and a pair of Molly Burch originals which are bound to be something special.

1. The Secret of Christmas
2. Hard Candy Christmas
3. Snowqueen of Texas
4. Holiday Dreaming
5. Last Christmas Ft. John Early & Kate Berlant
6. I'll Be Home for Christmas
7. The Coldest Night of the Year Ft. Jesse Woods
8. What Do the Lonely Do at Christmas?
9. New Year Love
10. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
11. Happy New Year
12. Auld Lang Syne

But it's Molly's Romantic Pop sound that has me drooling two months out. Her sound was ready-made for a Christmas album. I'd expect this record to be completely unique and original--one of a kind--and yet perfectly classic and timeless. "The Molly Burch Christmas Album" just skyrocketed to the top of my holiday shopping list. Listen to me on this. You know I loves me some Keb Mo and, in terms of my sheer desire, Molly's album just left Keb Mo in the dust (no biggie; I can buy them both).

While I don't have any Molly Burch Christmas music to offer you, listen to almost anything she's recorded to date and I think you'll be just as excited as I am. Here, try this one.

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WHOLE LOTTA CHRISTMAS GOIN' ON

8/23/2019

2 Comments

If I were still on top of my game, I'd have already posted most of these. But I'm not and I haven't...so...so...sew yer buttons (as my ex-girlfriend used to say). Basically, if your question is "When were you going to tell me about this?" the answer is "I'm telling you now." And, hey, it's still just August, ya know.

I like a band whose sound can't be summed up in a single word and Los Lobos is just such a band. Chicano Rock, Brown-eyed Soul, Tex-Mex, Cowpunk, Americana, and many other descriptions have been applied to the group. They've played around with Christmas music before, recording "Rudolph The Manic Reindeer" for the promotional "Winter Warnerland" record. They followed that with a couple of Christmas tunes on a promotional CD single in 1993. Then there's their Holiday House Party from 1992, which you can still listen to on the web.

But the band has never before released a commercially available full Christmas album. Well, let's take care of that right now with "Llego Navidad", coming this October 4 on Rhino Records. The product info tells us the band researched over 150 songs before choosing the playlist for the album. And they've included one original, "Christmas And You".

You can currently pre-order the album on CD, and it is expected that there will be vinyl before Christmas, as well.

1. La Rama
2. Reluciente Sol
3. It's Christmas Time In Texas
4. Amarga Navidad
5. Arbolito de Navidad
6. ¿Dónde Está Santa Claus?
7. Llegó Navidad
8. Las Mañanitas
9. La Murga
10. Christmas And You
11. Regalo de Reyes
12. Feliz Navidad

LOS LOBOS WEB SITE
PRE-ORDER FROM AMAZON

OK, maybe you've got what you think is enough holiday music from the band Chicago already. But consider this. The previous Christmas albums from Chicago focused on covering well known songs of the season. "Chicago 37" is all about original Christmas music. There are only 3 covers among the 11 tracks. "Chicago 37" includes new songs like "I'm Your Santa Claus", "All Over The World", and "Merry Christmas, I Love You" (written by Chicago's Lee Loughnane and John Durrill of The Ventures). "Chicago 37" will be available in both CD and vinyl formats. CDs arrive October 4. Vinyl will follow on November 22.

1. (Because) It's Christmastime
  2. All Over the World
  3. Bring My Baby Back
  4. Merry Christmas, I Love You (R&B Version)
  5. What the World Needs Now Is Love
  6. All Is Right
  7. Sleigh Ride 2019
  8. I'd Do It All Again (Christmas Moon)
  9. I'm your Santa Claus
  10. Here We Come a Caroling
  11. Merry Christmas, I Love You (Ballad Version)

CHICAGO WEB SITE
PRE-ORDER CD FROM AMAZON
PRE-ORDER VINYL FROM AMAZON

You know how much we love "different" here at Stubby's. And, as hard as it is to believe something inspired by ancient sounds could be both new and "different", Leah has done just that. Most known for her Symphonic Metal stylings that feature a mix of Celtic, Folk, Classical and Rock elements, Leah has mostly foregone the Metal elements for "Ancient Winter". And yet it still contains enough Rock to sound contemporary, while (naturally) sounding "ancient". The album contains 3 old Christmas carols and five originals. And Leah is joined by an all-star guest cast that includes Troy Donockley (Nightwish) Anna Murphy (Cellar Darling) Shir-Ran Yinon (Eluveitie) Oliver Philipps (Everon, Phantasma) and Rupert Gillett. Expect the official release in mid-to-late September. Leah is an independent artist and, as such, you can pre-order direct from her as part of her crowdfunding campaign. I'm looking forward to hearing Leah's take on "Noel Nouvelet" ("Sing We Now of Christmas"), but we get our first taste with the lead single, "Redemption".

The Whole World Summons
Light of the World
Upon Your Destiny
Redemption
The Messenger
Gaudete
Puer Natus
Noel Nouvelet

LEAH'S WEB SITE
CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN

R&B artist Ne-Yo is getting ready his reindeer and his Gogo sleigh for a Yuletide record, expected to arrive October 11. Though we haven't yet learned the title or track list, Ne-Yo has previously stated that Donny Hathaway's "This Christmas" is a must and that he'd like to include a version of "Silent Night" based upon the Temptations' arrangement. The album will also include the original "Just Ain't Christmas".

Ne-Yo has previously appeared on The "Motown Christmas" album, performing a duet of "The Christmas Song" with Tasha Cobbs, and covered Marvin Gaye's "I Want To Come Home For Christmas" for "The Best Man Holiday" soundtrack.

R&B/Jazz fusion guitarist Jonathan Butler will release his second Christmas album on October 4. "Christmas Together" features assistance from Smooth Jazz all-stars like Dave Koz, Gerald Albright, Keiko Matsui and Rick Braun and artwork from the students of South Africa's Lalela Foundation. Butler grew up in South Africa when Apartheid was in full force. Butler's first Christmas album, "Merry Christmas To You", was released in 2013. Dave Koz, by the way, is featured on several new Christmas releases this year, as well as releasing one of his own, "The Gifts of the Season" (no further details on that one yet).

1. Winter Wonderland
2. Mary Did You Know? (feat. Sheléa)
3. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (feat. Keiko Matsui)
4. Joy To The World (feat. Dave Koz)
5. Deck The Halls (feat. Gerald Albright)
6. We Three Kings (feat. Rick Braun)
7. Love Is (feat. Sheléa)
8. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
9. Away In A Manger (feat. Dave Koz)
10. Jingle Bells (feat. Kirk Whalum)

JONATHAN BUTLER WEB SITE
PRE-ORDER FROM AMAZON

Yes, Mannheim Steamroller have milked every last drop out of the cash cow they created in 1984, but that first album, "Mannheim Steamroller Christmas", still slaps (in the vernacular of the Twitterverse). It's been 35 years since that wonderful piece of vinyl was released, so of course we're getting a new vinyl release of that seminal seasonal this year. It's described as a "Limited Edition Edition", though I have no idea what that means as yet. It's due October 18. It's not yet available for pre-order at Amazon or anywhere else but, when it is, you'll find it here.

The Country group BlackHawk had hoped to release their Christmas album last year, but you know how these things go. Fret not, for BlackHawk's "The Spirit of Christmas" will officially drop October 18. All of the songs on the album are traditional songs of the season. But, considering the stellar job the group did with "We Three Kings" in 1996, that's a feature and not a bug. And you gotta dig that cover art.

1. Joy To The World
2. We Three Kings
3. Silent Night
4. Away In A Manger
5. Oh Holy Night
6. Oh Little Town Of Bethlehem
7. The First Noel
8. Oh Come All Ye Faithful
9. Hark The Herald Angels Sing
10. What Child Is This

BLACKHAWK WEB SITE
PRE-ORDER FROM AMAZON

Charlie Daniels has been making music for over 50 years, now, and, as the year's have gone on, he's added many a Christmas song and album to the holiday cannon. The Carolina Cowboy's first Christmas tune was "Carolina (I Remember You)" which appeared on 1980's "Full Moon". He released a full Yuletide set, "Christmas Time Down South", in 1990. Later would come "A Merry Christmas To All" (2002), "Joy To The World" (2009), "Hallelujah, It's Christmas Time Again" (2012), and a special reading of "Twas The Night Before Christmas" in 2013.

Coming October 18, Charlie Daniels will release "Christmas Classics", a single album collecting up some of the best of Charlie's music of Christmas past. The album focuses on the traditional songs of the season, from "O Little Town of Bethlehem" to "Frosty The Snowman", and includes his readings of "Twas The Night Before Christmas" and "The Christmas Story From The Book of Luke". As Charlie has recorded some of these songs more than once, we can't yet tell you which versions he'll be including, but here's the track list.

1. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
2. The Christmas Song
3. O Little Town Of Bethlehem
4. Blue Christmas
5. Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer
6. Frosty The Snowman
7. White Christmas
8. Hallelujah
9. Joy To The World
10. The Christmas Story From The Book Of Luke (Luke 2:1-11)
11. Twas The Night Before Christmas

CHARLIE DANIELS WEB SITE
PRE-ORDER FROM AMAZON

Speaking of Country music, those folks at NOW Records (Now That's What I Call...) have a new compilation of Christmas Country music comin'. "NOW Country Christmas" is due to drop October 4.

Amy Grant fans can look forward to a very limited (and expensive) vinyl collection featuring "A Christmas Album", "Home For Christmas" and "A Christmas To Remember". Those last two have never been issued on vinyl before. PLUS "Amy Grant Christmas" will include a 7" single featuring two Christmas songs (TBA) exclusive to this collection. One would like to presume, given the price, that we're talking collector's grade vinyl, but the listing doesn't say that. It does say that this collection is strictly limited to 1000. Anticipated release date is October 11. For those of us living on the poor side of town, "Home For Christmas" will see a stand-alone vinyl release, also on October 11.

Southern Gospel's Ernie Haase & Signature Sound will release "Jazzy Little Christmas" on October 11. The release is said to take us back to the days of The Four Freshmen, with a three-piece Jazz band and intricate vocal harmonies.

Gospel trio The 11th Hour have a digital set due October 11th. "The Greatest Gift" can be pre-ordered at iTunes and Google Play. There's more Gospel coming from Master's Voice and Down East Boys.

Luke Evans, Gaston in the live-action "Beauty And The Beast" and Owen Shaw in the "Fast And Furious" series of films, is in the process of recording a Christmas album. And he promises it will not be an album of "show tunes".

Bluegrass fans, Santa's got something for you as well as Red River releases two collections drawn from the popular Christmas Grass series. One is nothing but "The Instrumentals" while the other features "The Best of Christmas Grass". Both albums drop on October 4.

Larry Stewart is one of the lead vocalists for Restless Heart. Even as that group continues to add to their story, Larry also does some solo work and, this year, he's planning on releasing a solo Christmas album. Go to his web site and you'll be greeted by an invitation to pre-order (though, if you click on it, it just takes down your name and email; whether he then sends you details via email, I can not say). If Larry Stewart does release a Christmas album this fall, you can bet that last year's single, "Don't Save It All For Christmas Day", will be included.

Who's up for a new Christmas album from keyboard wizard Rick Wakeman? You know Rick from Yes, you know him from Strawbs, and you know him from his "Journey To The Center of The Earth". Look for a new Christmas album from Rick, "Christmas Portraits", in late November. Of late, Rick Wakeman has been releasing a series of solo piano Classical recordings of Rock and Pop songs, beginning with "Piano Portraits". "Piano Portraits" was quite successful, spawning the followup "Live Portraits". More recently, he released "Piano Odyssey" which is along the same lines but with strings and choir. Given that the Christmas set is titled "Christmas Portraits", I'm anticipating a solo piano effort (yep, Rick says that's what it is...just piano). Song selection could be interesting. Given the nature of the series, I'd expect more "Merry Christmas Everybody", "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" and "Step Into Christmas" than "O Holy Night" or "Sleigh Ride". Rick previously released a Christmas album in 2010. If you're looking for his take on traditional Christmas music, "Christmas Variations" is already out there.

If you've been collecting as long as I have, there's probably nothing on this latest release from Jasmine you don't already have. However, not everybody has been collecting as long as I have, it's nice to have all of these on one disc, and, mostly, I didn't want folks who love Christmas Blues to be left out in this avalanche of coming releases. "Let's Make Every Day A Christmas Day" is set to arrive at Amazon on September 12. So get those pre-orders in if you want it right away.

1. Christmas In Heaven – Charles Brown
2. Christmas Spirits – Julia Lee And Her Boy Friends
3. Blue Holiday – Aretha Franklin
4. Dig That Crazy Santa Claus – Oscar Mclollie
5. Merry Christmas, Baby – Lionel Hampton
6. Christmas Comes But Once A Year – Charles Brown
7. Boogie Woogie Santa Claus – Mabel Scott
8. Christmas In The Congo – The Marquees
9. Silent Night – Huey Piano Smith And The Clowns
10. Christmas Tears – Freddie King
11. Christmas Questions – Charles Brown
12. Christmas Letter – Johnny Moore’s Three Blazers
13. Christmas Blues – Jimmy Witherspoon
14. This Time Of The Year – Brook Benton
15. Just A Lonely Christmas – The Moonglows
16. It’s Christmas Time – Charles Brown
17. I’ll Be Home For Christmas – Bull Moose Jackson
18. Christmas Boogie – Sugar “Chile” Robinson
19. I Want My Baby For Christmas – Smokey Hogg
20. Sonny Boy’s Christmas Blues – Sonny Boy Williamson
21. Let’s Make Every Day A Christmas Day – Charles Brown
22. Blues For Christmas – John Lee Hooker
23. Merry Xmas – “Little Willie” Littlefield
24. I Hear Jingle Bells – Freddie King

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And, finally, Australia's Rachel Leahcar is finishing up the mixing of her coming Christmas album. Rachel sings Soul, Pop and Classical and placed third in the inaugural season of Australia's version of The Voice in 2012. She's also been a popular favorite at the Myer Music Bowl Carols By Candlelight program, where she's performed Mariah's "All I Want For Christmas Is You", among other fare. Rachel's as yet untitled Christmas set will be a mix of classics and more recent music (though no originals), and will feature 6 languages and 4 duets. I suspect she'll include last year's single, an "Ave Maria" duet featuring Lara Nakhle. So let's close with that.

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AULD LANG SYNE

12/31/2018

1 Comment

Just a quick reminder that you've got a week left to get "A Stubby's House Christmas 2018" before it melts away forever. And it does contain a pair of great New Year's tracks...Sofia Talvik's "Poem At Year's End" and Emma Rowley's rendition of the classic "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?". Now on to some songs for New Year's.

Everything else in this post will be new (or newly discovered) and free, but we open with a nice bit of Funk that you may have missed which is neither. Recorded for the Sounds of Memphis label by Kannon somewhere between 1975 and 1985, "New Lang Syne" was unreleased until 2015, when this collection, "Groove With A Feeling" came out. If you want your New Year to be funky, this one's a good start. You can find it on Amazon.

One song available for free download that I didn't get to before Christmas (and even forgot to include in our Boxing Day post) is "Leaving The Party" from the Synth Folk group from Glasgow, The Paperback Throne. But, you know, it almost feels more appropriate for New Years. We remember The Paperback Throne from their lovely 2015 Christmas set "All Best Intentions" (which, by the way, includes the track "Resolution"). "No Mean Christmas" is still one of the best tracks I've heard since opening shop at Stubby's; if I ever did a "Best of", that would be on it. So it's good to see The Paperback Throne back in the seasonal music game. "Leaving The Party" is name-you-price at Bandcamp.

Every year since 2007, DJ Earworm (Jordan Roseman) has condensed the most popular music of the year into one bright and glorious Mash-Up. This year's mix is "Turnin' It Up" and features Ariana Grande, Drake, Cardi B., Post Malone, Maroon 5, Halsey and a whole bunch more. To tell you the truth, the Mash-up, itself, is pretty amazing, but I can't imagine the skills necessary to Mash-up a video of the same. Cool stuff, as always. And you'll find a free download at Soundcloud.

Speaking of Mashups, I went looking for some good new New Year's Mashups and didn't really find any. But I did find this one, which more than works, "I Love Celebrations" produced by Don Hector and included on the latest "Best of Bootie" collection. You can get this one at Soundcloud or Sowndhaus, or just download the entire "Best of Bootie" collection (assuming you don't mind non-holiday Mashups, and why would you?).

Christmas A Go Go found some of this year's best free New Year's songs, including The Greyhound Factory's "New Year's Eve" and this Sugarbabes' cover of "New Year" from Darling Buds, which is only available until January 2 at Bandcamp.

Gotta have at least one Folk tune included, even if Tim Marrison's "New Year" is a bit Emo for my taste. Marrison recalls that the song reflects a New Year's Eve where, rather than going out to celebrate, he elected to stay home and get drunk. "A lot of good songs come out of being morbidly drunk," Tim says. "The trick is to remember them in the morning!" "New Year" by Tim Morrison is free at Soundcloud.

New York Punk band Cash Registers found the proper New Year's spirit in 2016, but I can't recall having heard "60 Seconds to Midnight" before now. It's true. We make a big deal out of New Year's, in spite of the fact that most of us don't really give a crap. Meet the New Year, same as the old year. "60 seconds to Midnight. No one even cares. Goodbye old New Year." Name-your-price at Bandcamp.

And, now, back where we started...with assorted versions of "Auld Lang Syne".

Katherine Etzel is best known as a member of the Americana group Bobtown, but when she does something solo, she goes by The Existential Bell. There are no instruments on this version of "Auld Lang Syne"--every sound you hear is being made by Katherine's voice. The result is a very Ambient, somewhat Dream Pop version of the song which seems to carry with it much of the sadness of the year gone by (or maybe that's just me). It's free at Soundcloud.

How 'bout a Jazz version, this one from Wisconsin's Reegan Van Camp. It's just one song on a "name your price" EP of "Holiday Sketches" at Bandcamp.

Here's an excellent instrumental version of "Auld Lang Syne" from members of the Minnesota Indie Rock band Breakthrough, led by brothers PJ & Drew Medin. It starts with a single guitar before breaking into a Rock anthem that's somewhere between TSO and Boston (excellent guitar work on this). Also free from Soundcloud.

The Australian group Paisley Sky take the old song even further, going all Jimi Hendrix on "Auld Lang Psych". Also free on Soundcloud.

Of course, you might prefer your "Auld Lang Syne" more traditional. And it doesn't get more traditional than bagpipes. Jimmy Armstrong's cover starts with the bagpipes, then switches over to a full orchestral arrangement (with a few words from Jimmy) before closing with the bagpipes again. Quite dramatic and quite affecting...and free for the download at Soundcloud. Happy New Year, everybody.

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ON THE SEVENTH NIGHT OF HANUKKAH 2018......

12/8/2018

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Tonight's HanuKat reminds me of my poor, dear departed Mrs. Katz (not her real name).

Night Seven. I may actually survive this. Probably not. It takes me about 4 hours to go through my email every day. Sure, there's spam, but I have more people asking me to feature their new Christmas song than I have readers. And I clearly can't answer all of it, so I pretty much answer none of it. Oy vey, I'm tired. My oil ran out months ago. Ain't no miracles happenin' here. I just want to watch a movie or something, y'know? Speaking of which, did you hear Hallmark is working on some Hanukkah movies for next year? True story.

Pfft. I do feel like I'm the only one who cares about Hanukkah music, sometimes. But somebody in the Christmas music community should. And, just a head's up, I do have something y'all will probably enjoy for tomorrow. Welp! Whatever. Another plate of NEW Hanukkah music, tonight.

We've talked about Lenny Solomon and his group Shlock Rock (which I tend to misspell) before. Lenny's been making music--both original and parody--that speaks to Jewish culture since 1984. So even though he's not an annual Hanukkah single guy, it's fair to say he's done his share and then some. His latest Hanukkah track is "Judah Maccabee" (done to the tune of Walk The Moon's "Shut Up And Dance"). Looks like it was released last year, but everybody else is treating it like its brand new, so I will as well. "Judah Maccabee" is part of The Four Corners Project and the only place I've found this Shlock Rock single for sale, so far, is from Lenny himself (scroll down to the purchase link).

The New York Boys Choir, under the direction of producer Yitzy Bald, are usually good for an uptempo rockin' vaguely Metal Hanukkah single, year to year. They're usually quite popular, if YouTube views are any indication. If nothing else, they're joyous...which I like (though, admittedly, they've yet to crack my personal Hanukkah mixes). This year's single is "Spin That Dreidel", which is quite snappy. I'm still debating whether I like or dislike that they added a syllable to "latke" (lat-ah-kuh) so it would rhyme with "Hanukkah", but I guess all's fair in love, war, and holiday music. You can get "Spin That Dreidel" from The New York Boys Choir on most major digital platforms including Amazon.

"Al Hanisim" is a traditional Jewish prayer, with different versions for Hanukkah and Purim. "Al Hanisim", itself, translates roughly to "on the miracles". There is a traditional "Al Hanisim" melody, that I'm very fond of (when it's not presented like a funeral dirge...I mean, I understand it's a prayer, but prayer can be joyous). I still think the best arrangement I've heard of the traditional "Al Hanisim" melody is the one by Yom Hadash on the "Celebrate Hanukkah" collection. That one's sort of Pop Rock.

But this "Al Hanisim" is an original composition of Yechiel Lazarus. The elements of the prayer and the story of Hanukkah are in there (even though I don't speak the language, I've heard "Al Hanisim" enough to recognize words and phrases), but the music is all his. Lazurus is, himself, a fairly new artist. Though he's had a song here and a video there over the last two years, his official debut is considered the single "Hodu Lashem" which was released earlier this year. "Al Hanisim" by Yechiel Lazurus (ft. DJ YLK) is available at Amazon.

We haven't had much Hanukkah music to celebrate from what I call the "off genres", this year. That would be Jazz, Blues, Bluegrass...stuff like that. So let me introduce you to The Panorama Jazz Band. The Panorama Jazz Band are kinda like the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, except that they're Jewish and incorporate Klezmer influence in their Jazz. They are from New Orleans, so you still get that gumbo of other influences. The Panorama Jazz Band have been around for quire some time and they'll usually provide an annual holiday single. Some year's it's Christmas. Some year's it's Hanukkah. Some years, they'll do both.

This year's holiday single from The Panorama Jazz Band is "Spin The Dreidel" and features Mark Rubin, the Jew of Oklahoma (as he bills himself). "Spin The Dreidel" is part of the Song-of-the-Month Club. For $3 a month, you get all kinds of free stuff and access, including a guaranteed song on the first of every month. Or you can pick up the single a la carte from Amazon (I could swear it was up on Amazon a week ago, but it doesn't seem to be there, now; it should be, again or for the first time, eventually). Be sure to check out their back catalog of holiday tunes. They've done quite a few.

There's some debate about whether the song "Lights On" by LA trio Distant Cousins qualifies as a Hanukkah song. There's no doubting the heritage of the group, which includes one of the founding members of Moshav. And the Indie Folk Rock band is proud of their Jewish heritage and doesn't try to hide it. In fact, that's what they say "Lights On" is about. Hanukkah, they say, isn't just about the miracle of the oil lasting for 8 nights, but also about not hiding who you are in the darkness. When the Greeks invaded Judea, some Jews at the time argued that they should assimilate rather than fight. But Judah Maccabee and others were unwilling to submit to the proclamations of Antiochus forbidding the practice of their religion. "Lights On" is a more general view of that idea. In short, be proud of who you are and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Works for me. Catch this one on Distant Cousins' latest album, "Next of Kin".

I want to quickly mention a new album I haven't mentioned because there's no audio that I can embed. You can probably stream on Spotify or Deezer, neither of which my computer wants anything to do with. The album is "Shimmering Lights" by Yale Strom's Broken Consort. We like different at Stubby's at "Shimmering Lights" is nothing if not different. Based on this album, I'd call Yale Strom a Jazz artist. But what I know about him is that he's a student of Klezmer. "Student" doesn't really do it justice. Strom has sought out Klezmer sounds and variations throughout the world, to preserve, to perform, to appreciate and spread the appreciation. He may be the world's foremost expert on the subject. The music on "Shimmering Lights" is a mix of Klezmer, Jazz, Middle Eastern, Bluegrass, Classical, Folk, and a bunch of stuff I'd never be able to identify, I'm sure. Which makes it fascinating to me. If you're a serious Hanukkah hound, you'll want to add "Shimmering Lights" to your collection, even though it may not be all that mixtape friendly (for one thing, the tracks tend to be very long). I do think the original "The Fool Over Yonder" could find a home, somewhere. "Shimmering Lights" is available from Amazon or from the artist.

We'll close out Night Seven with a fairly goofy song and video. But it is new. The Jew Crew (what was your first clue it would be a goofy song) is the duo of Keith and Laura Nicole Harrison and their Hanukkah single is "Yah, Brah, It's Hanukkah". I'm sure others will like the song more than I do...but the video is fun. Find it at Amazon.

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NICHOLAS BURGESS - XMAS GOLD (REVIEW)

11/24/2018

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Nicholas Burgess' digital footprint is extremely light. Other than his Bandcamp site, which tells us he's from Boston, there's really nothing. Well, he is or was one half of the band Hex Map, but that doesn't tell you much either. But his name is Nicholas so, if you're playing the Hallmark Movie Drinking Game, feel free to toss one back right now.

If Walter Carlos and Daft Punk had a baby, he might make music a lot like Nicholas Burgess. At least on "Xmas Gold". Nicholas' earlier work is a lot more Indie Rock oriented than this Electro Pop Yuletide set. But strip away all the weirdness on "Xmas Gold" and what you're left with are well crafted Pop songs with tasty hooks and inspired lyrics. Well, to be honest, some of the weirdness can't be stripped away--so those tracks would be well crafted weird Pop songs with tasty hooks and inspired lyrics--but we'll get to that.

"Xmas Gold" smartly opens with the most identifiably Pop song, "Love Love Love (On Xmas)". With it's opening Beach Boys vocals and Mariah Carey tempo, this is what I suspect it would sound like if Phil Spector decided to do a 2018 Indie version of "A Christmas Gift For You". You could easily hear a Pop Rock band or a retro Girl Group covering "Love Love Love (On Xmas)".

We move decisively to the dance floor for "Greedy Little Boy". And irresistible and danceable beats are definitely one of the things for which Electro Pop is famous. One part "Monster In My Pants", one part Willy Wonka, and one part "Bridge of the Naughty Children", "Greedy Little Boy" is a little more menacing than festive, but then "The Nightmare Before Christmas" enchants everyone, so that's likely a feature and not a bug. The subject matter is what it sounds like (except that the "Greedy Little Boy" is clearly a full grown man). "Dear, Santa, I'm still rotten. Look how long my list has gotten. But that don't mean that I don't want it all." The Christmas drop-ins are expertly done. It's a really cool song but, in the end, it's the beat that sticks with you more than anything.

"Sugar Plum" is one of the absolute highlights of the set. Playing off the familiar riff from "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" and finding every possible rhyme for "plum" imaginable, it could have been a novelty filler if conceived by a lesser artist. Nicholas makes it work...exceedingly well. Everything from the 8-bit music break to the perfectly done Classic Rock guitar solo to the one-note "ooh" build reminiscent of the "ooh bop" in "Never Gonna Get It"...everything is perfect (and all of that is just in one section of an overall perfect tune). I know I said these were finely crafted Pop songs but, for my money, "Sugar Plum" was crafted the finest. There's a hit, there, if radio programmers weren't too deaf to hear it. And the production is genius.

1.   Love Love Love (On Xmas)
2.   Greedy Little Boy
3.   Sugar Plum
4.   Red Lingerie with White Fuzzy Trim
5.   Santa Planet
6.   The Great Christmas Airship Sails Toward Death
7.   Crystal Crystmas Sky

PRE-ORDER CD OR DIGITAL FROM BANDCAMP

And now, let the weirdness begin. Up until now, Nicholas has been flirting with adult holiday themes. I don't mean X-rated or anything. Over time, that perfect shiny Christmas of our childhood does take on a bit of tarnish. But now we've reached the lingerie portion of the program. I mean, what part of a childhood Christmas are we trying to recapture on "Red Lingerie with White Fuzzy Trim"? Wait, don't tell me; I don't want to know. "Red lingerie with white fuzzy trim, this is what Christmas means to them. Nothing more, nothing less, never buy the wrong dress. Nothing less, nothing more, always from the same store." Geez, even the spice in their eggnog has lost it's flavor. But, with all that, the beat somehow gives the whole thing the feeling of something a little more sinister ("Whip it. Whip it good."). Let's just say "Red Lingerie with Fuzzy White Trim" will not fit the theme of "Christmas the way it used to be." Then again, I don't know how your Christmases used to be.

Since we're dealing with what was once called Space Age music, it's only fitting we get a Space Age song. Not to get too deep, here, but philosophers through the ages have theorized that, because the universe is infinite, anything you can imagine actually exists within it. So somewhere out there, there must be a planet of nothing but Santas, who ride reindeer and eat magic mushrooms, who "live and love and die", never asking why. Because Nicholas Burgess has conceived of it, "Santa Planet" must exist. I can't help of think of "Santa Planet" as being a kind of Christmas tree farm for Santas. You know, some get picked and some...just live out the rest of their lives never knowing why they exist, never even thinking about it. Hmm. Does that mean they don't exist, because they don't think? Oh, Descartes, you were a wily one. In any case, for my money, "Santa Planet" is the most original and interesting of the songs on "Xmas Gold". That applies to both the music and the lyrics...and to whatever fever dream inspired them.

We delve deeper into dark territory on "The Great Christmas Airship Sails Towards Death". "Santa's sleigh flies where it may and the night gives way to dawn./You realize everyone dies when all the Christmases are gone." I can think of dozens of ways to interpret this song, but I'm gonna go with the most holiday friendly one I can think of. Keep the spirit of Christmas alive within you--as much as you can as long as you can--for, when the Christmas spirit within you dies, you die with it. OK, so...holiday "not-so-friendly"? But that's really a very traditional sentiment. Christmas was meant to be about the celebration and renewal of life amidst the darkest and coldest of times. Eh.....anybody buying this? Ahem, moving on then.

"Xmas Gold" closes with the Dream Poppy "Crystal Chrystmas Sky". The music on this one is gorgeous. The lyrics seem to suggest that this long strange trip was all a Christmas analogy to the stages of a relationship and, maybe, we've found resolution. At least for this year. "Sometimes I feel like I'm too ancient, sometimes I feel like I'm dead/And every dream I have of us melts in snow, just in my head/And when you're coming around, I feel I bring you down when everything else is good/But you don't see it that way. You make me feel OK. You make me feel like I should." Happy ending? Let's hope.

Understatement alert: "Xmas Gold" is not your ordinary Christmas album. But life isn't all sleighbells and snowmen, either. Nicholas Burgess deserves plaudits for taking us on a Christmas trip that's unique, honest, adult, and simultaneously real and surreal. As it happens, you won't be reviewing "Xmas Gold", so you don't have to think about Descartes and what the Santas on "Santa Planet" dream about, or even whether they exist. As noted at the outset, Nicholas knows how to write a good Pop song. So you can just enjoy the music. Or you can trip out to the electronic noises. In ten states, you can come back from the legal marijuana dispensary and contemplate your navel. It'll help you with the cover art which is, to be honest, a bit...disturbing. Now that I've said that out loud, I hope that's what he was going for. The songs stand well alone and my favorites are "Sugar Plum" and "Crystal Chrystmas Sky". Mmmm. "Santa Planet", too. "Xmas Gold" officially releases November 30 in both CD and digital formats. Place your pre-orders now on Bandcamp.

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KHRUANGBIN - CHRISTMAS TIME IS HERE

10/29/2018

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These are the times I'm somewhat happy I'm not still working in radio. Because pronouncing Khruangbin would be a regular nightmare. For whatever it's worth (and I'm sure I'll screw this up), "khruangbin" is a Thai word that is used for "airplane"; it literally means "engine fly". If I understand it correctly (I don't), it's pronounced "croong-bin". The Texas trio that goes by Khruangbin picked the name, originally, because they were influenced by Thai Funk and they honestly didn't expect to become popular enough for the name to matter. Well, they were wrong about that. Khruangbin became very popular very fast--a jam band whose influences don't stop at Thai Funk, but include rhythms and sounds from all over the globe, including American Psych and R&B. Mostly instrumental, the group's hypnotic and infectious sound is undeniable.

After their highly successful sophomore effort, "Con Todo El Mundo", earlier this year, the members of Khruangbin were discussing how different their Christmases growing up had been. Yet they all had the same favorite Christmas song. And so they quickly jammed out "Christmas Time Is Here" with their distinctive Khruangbin sound.

A limited edition green vinyl 7" 45 of "Christmas Time Is Here" is scheduled for release November 16. You'd better hustle to get a copy. The band has sold out on Bandcamp. Amazon never had it. Independent retailers like Bull Moose and Rough Trade still have a few to offer.

Anticipation for the single was so great that audio and the digital A-side were released last week, but you'll still have to wait until November 16th if you want to get the B-side..."Christmas Time Is Here (Version Mary)" (see what they did there?).

Much as I'm happy to not have to pronounce Khruangbin on the air, I will miss playing "Christmas Time Is Here" on the radio, as it's just the kind of track I loved to feature on my Christmas shows (much to the displeasure of my Program Directors).

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GOOD GOLLY, IT'S MOLLY

WHOLE LOTTA CHRISTMAS GOIN' ON

AULD LANG SYNE

ON THE SEVENTH NIGHT OF HANUKKAH 2018......

NICHOLAS BURGESS - XMAS GOLD (REVIEW)

KHRUANGBIN - CHRISTMAS TIME IS HERE

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