Michael Ball & Alfie Boe - Together At Christmas
Nice big throated theatrical throwback album from veteran board treaders Ball and Boe.
I’ll probably add a couple of tracks to this year’s selection.
Lindsey Stirling X Darius Rucker - What Child Is This
Meh
Alex Lahey - Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want to Fight Tonight)
This Ramones classic is fast becoming the Last Christmas of the alt / punk set. Perfectly acceptable take that oddly feels the need to remind us, in the single’s artwork, that it’s a Ramones cover. Not the best version to come out this year, though.
Tori Amos - Better Angels
Seems like a solid Tori Amos song, doesn’t exactly scream Christmas. Looking forward to the rest of the Christmastide EP. Her earlier Chritmas album is always in heavy rotation around here at the holidays.
Tinashe - Comfort and Joy
I found neither comfort nor joy listening to this. Whatever.
Bleached - Jingle Bells
Basic punk cover. No more, no less.
Kim Wilde - Wilde Winter Songbook
I was pleasantly surprised when I first heard the original version of this album and I still pull it out during the season. This re-release of the deluxe re-release includes six bonus songs, two of which are remixes and one the obligatory Last Christmas cover, and while they’re fine they don’t make a major impact. I’m thinking Isobel’s Dream, which isn't really new, is the only bonus track I’ll add, though I may have it already.
Phoebe Bridgers – If We Make It Through December
Another over-covered song. Perfectly good but how many different, yet similar, versions do you need. Obviously Bridgers many fans will cherish this, and that's the thing with a lot of these Christmas releases, if your a fan then the track will resonate with you far more than it does for a casual listener who already has a dozen versions of the same song inn their library.
Grace Eden - fortune
Lovely three track acoustic release. Quite nice and definitely added to this years selection.
Jamie Barnes - Christmas Vol. 5
Nice collection of five familiar holiday tunes. Nothing groundbreaking but quite pleasant.
37 Tales of Christmas (via Falalalala)
Generous sized indie comp worth checking out, though the quality varies track to track. If you have a few minutes to sample it you might find a couple of pleasant surprises.
