An Alt. Christmas 23: Jim White

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

Long and slow, yet haunting and atmospheric, this track is one of Jim White‘s best.  In fact, No Such Place – the album this song was taken from – is a genuine classic, the overall strength of which means Christmas Day is often pushed into the shadows, and it’s only at this time of year that it gets the attention it so richly deserves.

Jim White – Christmas Day 

 

An Alt. Christmas 22: Spiers & Boden

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

At this time of rejoicing and all-round general good cheer we ought to remind ourselves of the true meaning of Christmas.  Better known for their work at the centre of modern folk mainstays Bellowhead, Spiers & Boden are on hand to set us straight with this tale of a callous, vain and hardhearted Jesus.

Spiers & Boden – On Christmas Day 

 

An Alt. Christmas 21: Withered Hand

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

Now we’re within sight of the finish line, it’s time to bring out the big guns; none of the songs in this festive selection have been anything less than good, but now is the time to take it up a notch.  These last four tracks are not only great Christmas songs, but simply great songs, period.  Withered Hand (a.k.a. Dan Willson) have (has) just released a new Christmas song on YouTube called Real Snow, but it’s their (his) home-recorded effort from a couple of years ago that really struck a chord with me.

Withered Hand – It’s A Wonderful Lie 

 

An Alt. Christmas 20: Piney Gir

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

This is the penultimate XO for the Holidays entry in this festive collection, and what Piney Gir‘s Christmas track lacks in length it more than makes up for in seasonal cheer.

Piney Gir – Christmas Time 

 

An Alt. Christmas 19: Casiotone for the Painfully Alone

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

The Casiotone For The Painfully Alone brand has been retired for over a year now, but that’s no reason not to enjoy this festive little ditty.  A reason not to enjoy it would be the stark bleakness of the lyrics; I’m a big believer in the ‘cheer’ part of Christmas, but nevertheless there’s still a few less-than-cheerful numbers amongst my Christmas playlist, this being one of the more obvious examples.

Casiotone For The Painfully Alone – Cold White Christmas 

 

An Alt. Christmas 18: They Might Be Giants

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

Another comic juxtaposition of joy (Christmas) and emotional turmoil (yesterday it was alcoholism, today it’s infidelity) for your delectation as we enter the final week of our festive countdown, this time courtesy of the ever-excellent They Might Be Giants.

They Might Be Giants – Santa’s Beard 

 

An Alt. Christmas 17: The Decemberists

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

There are few things on this earth worse than John Denver, and while this song of his verges on being an out-and-out comedy number (with a markedly unfunny subject matter) the Decemberists‘ usual textural panache lifts their version far above its humble origins.

The Decemberists – Please Daddy (Don’t Get Drunk This Christmas) 

 

An Alt. Christmas 16: Branches

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

Christmas is a time when my rational, atheist mind turns to mush when confronted with all the trappings of the season.  Thick dripping candles, vaulted ceilings, and the sheer power of carols that have been hardwired into my brain from an early age all come together to leave me very confused indeed.  It’s in that spirit that I find the Branches adaptation of O Come All Ye Faithful (taken from their new EP Merry Christmas, available for free download) intensely haunting, despite the god-fearing, exultant nature of the lyrical content.

Branches – O Come All Ye Faithful 

 

An Alt. Christmas 15: Banjo or Freakout

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

We’ve got another cover for you today, although this time it could be seen more as a ‘re-imagining’, with Banjo or Freakout messing with the melody, scansion, and time signature of White Christmas to create this ethereal, smoke-like version.

Banjo or Freakout – White Christmas 

 

An Alt. Christmas 14: Pictures of Then

[There’s plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure.  To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs.]

Greg Lake’s I Believe in Father Christmas is one of the few ‘proper’ Christmas songs that I can still stand to listen to, but it just sounds too dated (and – like all ‘big’ Christmas songs – overexposed) to make this list.  Thankfully we have this up-to-date cover of it to see us through, performed by Pictures of Then, and discovered through the XO For The Holidays compilation.  This version manages to quite effectively bring the air of menace and frustration – which was merely an undercurrent in the original – right into the foreground.

Pictures of Then – I Believe in Father Christmas