Bradley’s Almanac

Mp3s: Sharing Some Seasonal Songs

Posted on December 22, 2005 at 9:31 am | No Comments

In the spirit of, well, whatever the heck it is you choose to believe in, I’ve pulled some random holiday songs together for your varying degrees of enjoyment. I tried to pick tracks that I haven’t seen elsewhere so far this season…

(be forewarned: extreme candy-cane flavored sugar-coated sweetness lies ahead. if your heart is three sizes too small, you might wanna just surf along.)

(note: files removed on 2/4/2006)

First, a couple of festive numbers from my pal Colin Clary, who I had the pleasure of seeing at PA’s Lounge this past Friday. I’d planned on recording and sharing the snow-themed set he played with one of his fellow Magogs (usually a full backing band, this time simply Steve), but forgot my freakin’ microphone. Smoooooth. Fortunately, Colin’s cool with my sharing up a song from his solo disc on Asaurus, ‘Sweater Weather Or Not, These Are The Songs I Got‘, and the crew at Total Gaylord records gave the ok to share up the lead-off track from their ‘Cwistmas Twee‘ compilation. The first song is for our Jewish friends, the second goes out to all the kitties…

Colin Clary – ‘8 Kisses’ – from ‘Sweater Weather Or Not…’
Colin Clary – ‘Meow Meow’ – from ‘Cwistmas Twee’

Next, a new holiday song from The Sea Navy, the Seattle-based project of former Bostonian (and former Ivory Coast frontman) Jay Cox…

The Sea Navy – ‘The Truth About Christmas
(links to the Sea Navy site, where you can grab the song)

Here’s something pretty special: A song from Jeremy Quist, an Almanac reader who recorded it for friends and family, and sent it to me as a little thank-you for doing the ‘Nac. I definitely feel like I came out ahead in that exchange. Here he is, with his fiancee Suzanne Stradley on backing vocals…

Jeremy Quist – ‘Cool All The Time’

Quasi will have a new album out on Touch & Go in March, but the label figured ‘why wait?’ to share a preview track, especially when it’s called ‘Merry X-mas‘. Here’s an mp3 of it…

Quasi – ‘Merry X-Mas’ – from ‘When The Going Gets Dark’

Finally, a few rare ones that I always like to bring back at Christmastime for those who’ve never heard ’em. A couple of them are pretty crackly, as they come from well-worn wax…

Tsunami – ‘Could Have Been Christmas’
Velocity Girl – ‘Merry X-Mas, I Love You’
Tsunami & Velocity Girl – ‘Deck The Halls’
all three from the ‘Seasons Greetings’ 7″

Cocteau Twins – ‘Winter Wonderland’
Cocteau Twins – ‘Frosty the Snowman’
both from the out-of-print ‘Snow’ EP

If you make it all the way through the minor mess that is the ‘Deck the Halls‘ rendition, congratulations, you’ve got far more holiday spirit than most.

And if you’ve been curious to hear that super-good (and, apparantly, last) new Pedro The Lion Christmas 7″, keep an eye on this thread at the Undertow messageboard. When and if the limited edition single sells out over at Suicide Squeeze, Undertow will be sharing up mp3s for those who missed out. But don’t wait for it, order up the sucker yourself if you’ve got a turntable… it’s well worth it. You can also find the lyrics that David Bazan added to the traditional tunes in that same thread.

Updated to add… Matt Pond PA has posted a new demo over at their MySpace page called ‘NJ Holiday‘. It’s a little “non-denominational winter holiday festive time gift to you and yours”, so go give it a listen.

Hope your holidays are filled with close family, good friends, and if you’re a drinker, some alcohol-fueled festivities. Me, I’ll be back up in Vermont for a few days, so look for me wandering Church Street in a nostalgic stupor…

Comments

Leave a Reply





  • BOSTON-AREA LIVE SHOW ACTION
    Monday & Tuesday
    December 29th & 30th
    The Disco Biscuits
    Monday @ the Sinclair
    Tuesday @ the Royale

    Thursday, January 8th
    Ms. Ezra Furman
    doing what she wants
    with Ryan Walsh
    (of Hallelujah the Hills)
    opening with a solo set
    @ the Rockwell

    Wednesday, January 14th
    Bishop Allen
    Mates of State
    @ the Sinclair

    Thursday, January 15th
    Cate Le Bon
    @ the Sinclair

    Thursday, January 15th
    Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
    "Piano & Voice" performance
    @ the MFA Boston

    Saturday, January 17th
    Silver Screams
    Static Friction
    Screw Cart
    Fear is a Mind Killer
    @ the Midway Cafe

    Monday, January 19th
    Shame
    @ Brighton Music Hall

    Thursday, January 22nd
    Bill Murray and His Blood Brothers
    @ the House of Blues

    Thursday, January 27th
    The Residents
    Eskimo Live! Tour
    @ Brighton Music Hall

    Thursday, January 29th
    Bad Bad Hats
    performing "Psychic Reader"
    @ the Crystal Ballroom

    Friday, January 30th
    Greg Freeman
    Golomb
    @ the Red Room at Cafe 939

    Saturday & Sunday
    January 31st & February 1st
    Something In The Way Fest 2026
    with Explosions In The Sky,
    Sunny Day Real Estate, Citizen,
    Tigers Jaw, The Hotelier, Momma,
    Angel Dust, February, First Day Back,
    Glitterer, Glixen, Gollylagging, Guv,
    Graham Hunt, Horse Jumper of Love,
    How Much Art, No Warning, Pelican,
    Park National, Pool Kids, Sheer Mag,
    Wicca Phase Springs Eternal,
    and Teen Suicide
    @ Roadrunner

    Thursday, February 12th
    Brandi Carlile
    The Head and the Heart
    @ TD Garden

    Friday, February 13th
    Nine Inch Nails
    @ TD Garden

    Friday, February 20th
    Marissa Nadler
    @ the Somerville Armory

    Saturday, February 21st
    Margo Price
    @ the Royale

    February 28th
    Ratboys
    Florry
    @ the Sinclair

    Tuesday, March 3rd
    Spiritual Cramp
    @ the Sinclair

    Wednesday, March 4th
    Cat Power
    "The Greatest 2026" tour
    @ Roadrunner

    Friday, March 6th
    Michael Shannon,
    Jason Narducy,
    & friends play REM's
    "Life's Rich Pageant"
    with opener
    Eugene Mirman
    @ the Royale

    Friday, March 13th
    Quarters
    Paper Lady
    @ the Royale

    Friday, Saturday, & Sunday
    March 13th, 14th, & 15th
    Dropkick Murphys
    @ MGM Music Hall

    Tuesday, March 17th
    Dropkick Murphys
    @ House of Blues

    Thursday, March 19th
    Julianna Barwick
    & Mary Lattimore
    @ the Somerville Armory

    Friday, March 20th
    The Hives
    The Chats
    @ House of Blues

    Saturday, March 21st
    Cass McCombs
    Chris Cohen
    @ Brighton Music Hall

    Saturday, March 21st
    Joyce Manor
    Militarie Gun
    Teen Mortgage
    Combat
    @ House of Blues

    Sunday, March 22nd
    Maria Somerville
    @ the ICA Boston

    Monday, March 23rd
    Westerman
    @ the Sinclair

    Thursday, March 26th
    The Format
    Piebald
    Adult Mom
    @ Roadrunner

    Sunday, March 29th
    Ladysmith Black Mambazo
    @ Sanders Theatre

    Wednesday, April 1st
    Wednesday (the band)
    @ Roadrunner

    Thursday, April 2nd
    On Cinema Live! with
    Tim Heidecker
    & Gregg Turkington
    @ the Wilbur

    Friday, April 3rd
    Patrick Watson
    @ Somerville Theatre

    Friday & Saturday
    April 3rd & 4th
    Hayley Williams
    Water From Your Eyes
    @ House of Blues

    Saturday, April 4th
    The Dirty Three
    @ the Sinclair

    Saturday, April 4th
    Puscifer
    Dave Hill
    @ the Wang Theatre

    Wednesday, April 8th
    Mclusky
    Pile
    @ the Paradise

    Thursday, April 9th
    Circle Jerks
    Gorilla Biscuits
    @ the Paradise

    Thursday, April 16th
    Rhiannon Giddens
    @ the Orpheum

    Saturday, April 18th
    The Last Dinner Party
    Florence Road
    @ Roadrunner

    Sunday, April 19th
    Heavenly
    Swansea Sound
    Jeanines
    @ the Sinclair

    Thursday, April 30th
    Oklou
    @ the Royale

    Monday, May 4th
    Yumi Zouma
    Ducks Ltd.
    @ the Sinclair

    Thursday, May 14th
    Melody's Echo Chamber
    @ the Royale

    Tuesday & Wednesday
    May 19th & 20th
    Belle and Sebastian
    play "Tigermilk" (19th) and
    "If You're Feeling Sinister" (20th)
    @ the Orpheum

    Thursday, June 11th
    Echo & the Bunnymen
    @ Roadrunner

    Tuesday, June 23rd
    Wolfmother
    @ House of Blues

    Wednesday, June 24th
    The Church
    The Singles Tour
    (rescheduled from 8/1/25)
    @ Somerville Theatre

    Tuesday, July 14th
    Joe Jackson
    @ the Chevalier

    Friday, September 4th
    Peter Hook & the Light
    play New Order's "Get Ready"
    @ House of Blues

    Saturday, September 12th
    Rush
    @ TD Garden