Christmas 2008, Part 2

 12/25/2008 03:35:28  ♥ written by vu ()

And so, it's Christmas already. What happened?

The Glasvegas article was supposed to be a short snippet in Part Two of my Christmas articles, but as I started listening to it and writing and realized this was a group that deserved to be in its own article... well you get the idea. So technically this is the second and possibly final Christmas post from me for this year.  And if I don't say it, it's implied that you have a wonderful Christmas. Keep warm!

By the way, for those wondering about a "Top Ten" type list, that's being compiled for January 2009!

So below are some old and some new Christmas-type songs.

WOULD-BE-GOODS
connectedup.com/would-be-goods ♥ myspace.com
As you know, I am a huge Would-Be-Goods fan, particularly because I find Jessica Griffin's storytelling songs very compelling. Plus, I am a sucker for her oh-so-British accent.

They quietly released their latest album, Eventyr (which means fairytale), late October and I haven't really seen much promotion on it. I've placed my order on Matinee at a reasonably price of $10, so I am hoping to have reviewed in 2009 as I clear out what's left of 2008.

Well anyway! They have this wonderful, fun Christmas song on their 1993 album, Mondo, called "Christmas In Haiti". Listen to Griffin's dilemma as she describe to you a Christmas in the tropics, complete with voodoo chicken and a cockroach in her beer.

As I listen to other songs off Mondo, like my all-time-favorite "Black Pearls Of Polynesia", "Lisbon Beat" and "La Fonda Del Sol"... wow I can't wait to hear Eventyr.

LAST NOVEMBER
lastnovember.com ♥ myspace.com
I previously mentioned Last November on W♥M last year, and since then I have their second album, Over the Top or Under the Weather. The album is pretty much alt-rock, so if you enjoy Story of the Year or the Midway State, you'll like this. They do utilize lots of reverb, strange loops, and echo effects, making it consisting interesting. Most of the song on the album is pretty upbeat.

My favorite song on the album is "Uppers, Downers, & All-Arounders", which is an all-out-sing-along stompering song.

Their Christmas song on the album is called "Merry Christmas Little Match Girl", a mellow and depressing song, one of the few. I should mention that toward the end, it does start to pick up a bit, giving a little hope.

Hey, guess what? They are doing a few dates:

27 Dec 2008 Handlebar w/ After August & Sequoyah Prep School Greenville, South Carolina
10 Jan 2009 The Vinyl w/ The Drownout, The Swear, & Hot Lava Monster Atlanta, Georgia
24 Jan 2009 Soho w/ Sequoyah Prep School Columbus, Georgia
20 Feb 2009 Dragonfly Theater w/ Hot Vegas & Young and Running Boone, North Carolina

BRITT NICOLE
brittnicole.com ♥ myspace.com
Britt Nicole is a Christian singer, probably better known over in Europe, despite being from Nashville. Her songs even sport a weird-British-style singing, combined with hip-hoppy pop-rap. Check out tunes like "Holiday" and "Say It" from her 2007 album, Say It. Fans of Lily Allen should want to check her out.

Anyway, regarding Christmas, she covered George Michael's "Last Christmas" on the same album. Almost all the popstars have covered this song, and this version is pretty faithful with little deviation from the original song.

Well, it looks like Nicole is busy working on her next album, due out in 2009. She loves her fans, apparently you can just call her number 615-823-7325 to leave a message for her.