I think I had this last year, but I'm too lazy to check. Anyway, it is still sweet, fun, and charming, so have A Belle Hops Christmas Song again. <a href=" http://thebellehops.bandcamp.c om/track/a-belle-hops-christma s-song">A Belle Hops Christmas Song by the belle hops</a> The Belle Hops: Bandcamp - Facebook
Oops, this was meant to be yesterday's song so I could fit in a gig plug, but, err, I forgot. All is not lost though, as The Phantom Band's Phestive Phantomime continues at Stereo tonight! If you're quick there should still be a few tickets left, try TicketWeb , Monorail, or chance your arm on the door if you are feeling particularly daring. Recorded for Vic Galloway's final Radio 1 show last year, The Phantom Band, who performed The Howling from their debut album Checkmate Savage in [...]
Touch N Go is someone else, but I'm not sure I'm meant to say who. I'll leave it a mystery so I don't risk a kicking. The blurb goes: "The heroic Mickey Touch returns with a triumphant ode to the Baby Jesus recorded especially for Christmas 2011 all around the world." If taken seriously this is not one of the better Christmas songs you'll hear on the blog. Don't take it seriously, or don't say you weren't warned. Touch N Go! "The [...]
I'd hoped to do something along these lines myself this year, but response to my requests and pestering was, at best, lukewarm, so nothing came of it. Not to worry though, as Neil over at Scottish Fiction managed to be a better motivator than I, and put together a charity Christmas compilation of his own. A minimum donation of £2 gets your seven tracks, from Lonely and Lola , Ed Muirhead , The Spook School (yay!), Linzi Murphy , Evil Hand (yay!), The Dirty Demographic and [...]
IT'S THE FIIIIIIINAAAAAAAAL COUNTDOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWN! Top ten Aye Tunes albums of the year time. I can stop listing things and try to reintroduce myself to society after this. Same disclaimers as yesterday: best just means my favourite, you are allowed to disagree without either of us being wrong. I've not heard every blooming album released this year. You can find a bunch of other albums I liked that didn't quite make the top twenty here , and numbers twenty to eleven here . 10. [...]
I'm going to let Neil do the honours of introducing this one, just because his email made me laugh out loud when I read it. "I've arranged a preposterous string quartet version of Wham's Last Christmas. I'm not really sure why - I hate the song." I appreciate Neil's level of dedication to supplying Christmas songs - even ones he hates - to the masses* Me? I quite like Last Christmas. *4 people who read this nonsense. Here's Neil's version of Last Christmas then. [...]
MORE LISTS! Yes, list season continues, as I fight with borderline obsessive compulsive disorder and an overwhelming need to rank things using a system that makes no real sense and changes every ten or fifteen minutes. Two disclaimers best just means my favourite, you are allowed to disagree without either of us being wrong. I've not heard every blooming album released this year. Onward then, to the first batch of my twenty favourite albums of the year. You can find a bunch of other albums I liked that didn't quite [...]
We had Lovers Turn To Monsters in the Advent Calendar just last week , but promised then that Kyle was working on a new Christmas EP, and would be turning up again. Well, Feed My Christmas Time is finished and available, and I'm a man of my word (unless I've promised to review something) here's Lovers Turn To Monsters again. The Christmas EP is a pay what you want download from Bandcamp, and if you have a look in the files after downloading you'll find out how to get a copy of last [...]
It is December, I write a music blog, that means it is list season. That time of year when the blogging community spend too long trying to remember what albums came out this year, which ones were good, which ones were rubbish, which ones it is cool to like, which ones we haven't heard but have to pretend we have, and so on. It is also the time of year that we all suppress a snigger while looking at other people's best of lists while saying to ourselves "REALLY? That album was SHITE!", and silently judging each other's taste [...]
Hooray, we're now past the halfway point in the advent calendar! The end is in sight. Today's post is a special one, we've got a wee exclusive! Last year Trapped Mice donated the song God Is Here to the advent calendar, and this is still the only place you can get that song. This year they've donated another exclusive track too, accepting a challenge I made on Twitter for someone to do a cover version of a song I love. Apparently God is Here will be getting its first live outing on Thursday, download it below if [...]
Advance warning, I've got the cold again, posts for the next few days might be half arsed and rubbish... The Banana Sessions launch their debut album, Mixtape, this Sunday - the 18th - at The Bongo Club in Edinburgh. The album is available to pre-order from Bandcamp now. Here's a festive tune from them to go with the plug. 01 Don't Lose Your Mind (It's Christmas Time!) by The Banana Sessions The Banana Sessions: [...]
Oops, rather late with today's Advent Calendar installment, aren't I? Better have something good to make up for it then. Let me have a root around my metaphorical bag of stuff.... Ah yes, Advances In Mathematics ! Today sees the first release from the Manchester band, with the Sad Xmas Present EP. I've been listening to this a fair bit in the past couple of weeks, and now that Sad Xmas Present is available to all, it is as good a release as any to use for the advent calendar today. The Sad [...]
Tim London is a many of many names and talents, but for today he is going under the name Yossarian for his entry into the advent calendar. Mr Xmas reminds me a bit of Madness, which is rarely a bad thing. It's loads of fun, grab it down below. Yossarian - Mr Xmas Tim London: Website - Music - Bandcamp
How To Swim can always be counted on to deliver a Christmas present, and this year is no exception. A Minor Key Christmas is available as a free download from Bandcamp, and you can listen to it below. It features two new songs, and a cover of the one Christmas song that makes me want to commit mass murder, Paul McCartney's Wonderful Christmastime. How To Swim's version is much less murder inspiring, so well done to them for that. Have a wee poke around their Bandcamp for more stuff too, including the Christmas EP they did last year. [...]
![We're Only Afraid of NYC - zero.four [Free Download]](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/3921393_lg.jpg)
Time to sneak in a quick plug for something that isn't draped in tinsel and glitter, I think! We're Only Afraid of NYC - AKA one of our favourite bands in Scotland - have a new EP out now. As ever Team NYC are being far too kind to us by offering the EP for free. You can get zero.four - and their previous three EPs - for no cost at all over on Bandcamp. We're Only Afraid of NYC are a band I've been stalking for ages, ever since I caught them supporting [...]
I pretty much love Evil Hand. And Bottle of Evil . And indeed the other half of Bottle of Evil, Bottle of Steven. There'll be more coming up soon about Huldra, this year's Evil hand album when - spoilers - it comes time to get into best of lists, so I'll spare you too much rambling for now. Grab Around The Tree, a new festive Evil Hand offering from Bandcamp, for free. Yay free stuff! If you like free stuff it is worth keeping an eye on Evil Hand on Twitter too, [...]
Gargleblast Records are having their Christmas party tonight (Saturday) and everyone is invited. The party/gig takes place at the Gargleblast studios in Hamilton, with Martin John Henry, Pan and Tio Malo playing live. Tickets are available here , and include a copy of the Gargleblast Xmas 002 EP. The EP, featuring songs by De Rosa, Martin John Henry, Pan and Desert Hearts is available to buy as a download from Bandcamp too. It doesn't have any Christmas songs on it, but I'm using it as an advent post anyway. Sue me. [...]
I promised Withered Hand would make an Advent Calendar appearance, so here he is. Real Snow is the first new material from Withered Hand in a while, and it's a cracker (sorry). The song is only available if you subscribe to the Fence Records Chart Ruse 7" series before December 16th, so do that here . If anyone fancies getting me a subscription for Christmas that would be magic too. Here's the video for Real Snow: As a wee bonus, here's an old Christmassy effort from Withered Hand [...]
I know nothing about Giant Squidz. I found them on one of my Bandcamp trawls, and their Christmas album is rather good, so here you go, help yourself. <a href=" http://giantsquidz.bandcamp.co m/album/pulling-a-christmas-kr aken">Pulling a Christmas Kraken by Giant Squidz</a> Giant Squidz: Bandcamp - Facebook
Bit windy out, eh? I'm late with the advent calendar today, I know. The midnight post never happened today as last night was spent whipping my best albums of the year lists into something resembling a shape, which took till about 2am, at which point I could not be arsed digging up a Christmas song. Today I'm phoning it in a bit, and opting for another repeat. It is one of my favourites, there's no way I could leave it out, so for the third year running, here's Campfires In Winter's contribution to the Christmas songs, with Christmas Song. [...]
Aye Tunes
The Weeknd - Kiss Land
Franz Ferdinand - Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action - Album Trailer
Holy Ghost! "Dumb Disco Ideas"
Action Bronson - "Strictly 4 My Jeeps" (Official Video)
Kanye West - New Slaves
[Listen] Daft Punk - "Horizon" (Japanese Bonus Track)
MP3: Daft Punk – “Horizons” (RAM Japanese Bonus Track)
