It’s Christmas time, the time of year when snow hits the ground, red and green lights are lit up, and presents are put under the tree. But most importantly, it’s a time of year when all my favorite bands release their holiday-themed songs.
Take the bland and boring song “O Holy Night.” Now, replace the vocals with that of Brand New’s singer, Jesse Lacey. Then add some cool emo guitar riff into the mix. What you get here is the simple yet effective equation most bands use to spread some good ol’ Christmas cheer every year.
Maybe it’s just me. Maybe I love the Christmas season too much, but Christmas-themed music just seems like one of the coolest things a band can do. Hell, if it weren’t for the genre of Christmas music, I don’t think I would ever show interest in Josh Groban.Don’t judge a book by its cover; Josh Groban’s CD “Noel” is something that anyone could enjoy this season.
One band that likes to release a new holiday track every year is alternative rock group The Killers. Earlier this month, the band released an iTunes exclusive track, “Don’t Shoot Me Santa,” which tells the story of how Santa Claus kidnaps front man Brandon Flowers and attempts to dispose of his body.
This is the second holiday track the band has released, following last year’s single “A Great Big Sled.”
One mainstream band that seems to share just as much holiday enthusiasm as I do is pop/punk act Relient K. Cleverly. It released the album “Let it Snow … Let it Reindeer,” which features 17 holiday tracks, 10 renditions of holiday classics and seven originals.
It seems like there’s an artist from every possible genre feeling the holiday spirit.
Dig ambient piano rock? Head over to iTunes and download Coldplay’s renditions of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “2000 Miles.”
Into hippie indie rock music? Check out Bright Eyes’ “Blue Christmas,” Ben Fold’s “Bizarre Christmas Incident,” and Rooney’s “Merry Xmas Everybody.”
For all those punk rockers, the Christmas season is one big goodie bag full of songs. New Found Glory, Blink 182, The Starting Line, Something Corporate, Jimmy Eat World, +44, Jack’s Mannequin, Death Cab for Cutie and Dashboard Confessional all have something out there that can have you dancing around the Christmas tree all night long.
So, pop on these tracks, crank your stereo to the max and breathe in the Christmas cheer. After all, things like this are only socially acceptable once a year.
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