The Gripweeds “Under The Influence Of Christmas”
This reliable New Jersey power pop band could have made a great album about Festivus if it wanted to. The originals here like “Christmas Dream” and “Santa Make Me Good” are excellent songs, full of loud riffs and bluesy harmonica. Included is a cover of The Pretenders “2000 Miles,” a great tune not always played out during the holiday. There are wonderful flute, harmonies and jangling guitars on traditional songs like “Hark The Herald Angels Sing” and a very mod “Welcome Christmas” that Pete Townshend would approve of. An impressive album that should linger long after January on your playlist.
The Deadbeat Poets “A Deadbeat Christmas”
The subtle and unassuming guitar of “Christmas Eve” leads us into “Christmastime in Painesville,” an original full of great guitar work amongst the pity party lyric where even Charlie Brown’s Christmas Special can’t cheer you up. The sacrilegious “Drunk At Midnight Mass” is the highlight of this disk, with impressive drumming and churning guitar rhythm. It plays a bit like a Meatloaf meets Jethro Tull here – and it’s pretty compelling. If you say humbug to traditional cheery Xmas tunes, you’ll prefer this take on the holiday.
CD Baby | Amazon