To hurl us headlong into Christmas cheer and bow out of 2021 in suitably alternative indie style we have compiled our own list of our 8 toppermost festive songs, brought to you in watchable YouTube format. Sit back, scroll down, click along and enjoy!
1. Ramones – Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want To Fight Tonight)
Potentially the greatest punk band put out one of the most enjoyable, dumbest Christmas singles going. Turning their snarling, lanky, leather and denim, drop out pioneer punk into pure yuletide joy for one song only.
2. Manic Street Preachers – Ghost of Christmas
Although they don’t celebrate the fact, the Manics created this saxophone rocker tribute to 70s Christmases and nostalgia, sounding every bit as ballsy as the Slade classic they evidently love.
3. Julian Casablancas – I Wish It Was Christmas Today
Between The Strokes and The Voidz Mr Casablancas took some time out on a solo project. During his wilderness years he conjured up this innocent ode to holiday magic. Thankfully for us it actually is Christmas right now but we appreciate Julian’s sentiment all the same.
4. Fountains of Wayne – I Want An Alien For Christmas
Back in the 90s Fountains of Wayne gave us this wonderful throwaway proto-emo indie tune where they begged Santa to hide an extraterrestrial in their stocking this year. There was pretty much nothing else Christmassy about the song other than that bit of the lyric, but it’s a solstice banger all the same.
5. Glasvegas – A Snowflake Fell (And It Felt Like A Kiss)
A contemplative, heart churning number now from Glasvegas’ 2009 wintery EP, where James Allen finds comfort and solace from turmoil in a quiet moment, feeling snowfall on skin when the rest of the world has turned to crap. If it doesn’t cause a lump in your throat and a tear in your eye then you’re a cold, cold human being.
6. Joni Mitchell – River
Another contemplative classic. From one of the timeless Joni Mitchell’s greatest albums, this song is less jingle bells and handclaps and more carols, piano and brass bands, warming your hands on a cup of mulled wine while considering lost lovers at the happiest time of the year.
7. The Waitresses – Christmas Wrapping
The best of the mainstream Christmas classics you’re likely to still hear on Radio 1. A new wave, post-punk wonder in it’s own right. You’ve already heard it a billion times so we don’t need to explain it anymore. Just take a listen to it again.
8. Tim Wheeler & Emmy The Great – Home For The Holidays
Tim Wheeler from Ash and Emmy The Great put out a whole Xmas album in 2010 and this was their heartwarming single about dreaming of bumping into an old flame in their hometown in the last days of December. The rest of the album was a collection of festive covers performed in their inimitably twee indie style.
Bonus mention: Razorlight feat. Lisa Moorish – Fairytale of New York
A gorgeous rendition of The Pogues masterpiece performed by Johnny Borrell, Lisa Moorish and an acoustic guitar. Sparse, minimal and beautiful.
And with that we would like to wish everyone who has followed us in 2021 a raucous and massively merry Christmas!Here’s hoping 2022 actually ends up being decent.
Thanks for reading. We’ll see you in the new year!