OK, the radio stations are already going 24x7 Christmas (well, one of my local stations is, anyway), the stores are pushing the Christmas merchandise, and the town fathers have already put the city's lights in place. In an attempt to get away from the schlock, I'm going to be reviewing my music collection for a different take on the holidays. As I've mentioned on any number of occasions, I'm the father of four teenagers; since that means precious little discretionary income for personal use, I've spent the last few years diving into the world of indie music, simply because the samplers are free. I see no reason not to share the results with you...starting with California's Indie Vision Music.2008's A Very Indie Christmas Vol. 1 is a 53-track behemoth of a sampler (once you download the additional bonus tracks), and it runs across what seems a dozen genres, from screamo to acoustic to punk. There are some non-Christmas tunes, to be sure, but there's a ton of new takes on the Christmas season that will find their way onto your holiday playlist. My FLFs (First Listen Favorites) are To Tell's Here Comes Christmas, a fine remake of Joy To The World by A Common Occurence (whose keyboards, for some reason, remind me of early Wendy Carlos), Theocracy's metal anthem On Eagle's Wings, So This Is Christmas? from punk artists MxPx, and Ursa Robotica's synth-pop Arcadia Exeter. In addition, the bonus track Christmas Time, from Esterlyn, is a wonderful acoustic tune, in traditional Christmas style, that (to be honest) you could slip onto your mom's playlist.
Grab your own copy from the link below - I'll be posting more Christmas freebies over the next few weeks.
A Very Indie Christmas Vol. 1 | Compilations | Indie Vision Music
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