2025-12-07 16:40:58
"Hating you for Christmas" by Everclear
Shimmering along in that "post-Grunge" era that didn't seem to take off so much, Everclear had some absolute tunes. Weird flex to go Christmassy but I'm not mad at it!
2025-12-06 18:37:54
"Is this Christmas?" by The Wombats
Scouse jangly indie that is considerably less serious than most scouse jangly indie, The Wombats can definitely put out a good tune and this original ode to Chrimbo hits all the hallmarks of their inimitable style.
2025-12-06 04:41:02
"Christmas Time (Don't Let The Bells End)" by The Darkness
Dismissed as a joke, The Darkness are actually a bunch of extremely talented folks with an ear for a banging tune. This is no exception.
2025-12-05 03:12:22
Retro Bar in Manchester has closed. I wasn't the most regular bar fly but it was a constant venue in my decades living in Manchester; known for a decent club night or two and as a cracking venue for seeing bands of a certain size/popularity/fame. For example, I remember seeing Frank Turner there on one of his first solo tours.
I have fond memories of the place; I had my thirtieth birthday there nearly twenty years ago. I danced with Cheddar Gorgeous in the club downstairs during Sparkle Festival and drank with Damnation Angels in the bar upstairs after they refused to play because the stage was too small.
I stopped in a for a drink a couple of times after they rebranded to Hive because it was handy for my old flat and the office.
Now it's shut up, messages of thanks taped to the windows and faded posters and graffiti adorn the outside as a sad monument to the diminishing live music circuit that once shone so brightly in Manchester.
2025-12-04 22:40:24
"I Want an Alien for Christmas" by Fountains of Wayne
Twee but not saccharine, this ode to an imaginary interstellar Christmas gift drips with childhood fantasy and earnest awe.
2025-12-04 05:17:01
"Do they know it's Christmas?" Far (feat. Chino Moreno and Grady Avenell)
A bunch of Sacramento bands put out a Christmas covers album to support a school music program and inadvertently created the greatest version of this song — mostly because it's not got Bono on it. I wish this supergroup had released more music.