I first heard Lisa thanks to Dan Pavelech's Hi-Fi Christmas Party CDs, which each feature a tune from this album. What we have here is a comparative rarity in rock 'n roll Christmas world: a single artist's conception of an original Christmas album with all original tunes. Actually, "Jack Frost" is a cover, but it's such an obscure one that it doesn't hurt the premise. It's a song from a Russian film, "Morozko (Father Frost)," supposedly based on a Russian fairy tale that mashes up various bits of "Cinderella" and the parable of talents from the Bible. "Mystery Science Theatre 3000" fans probably recall the episode in which this film was parodied. But let's not lose sight of Lisa's achievement here, first recorded in 1990 and released in its current form in 2002. With the help of Wondermints Darian Sahanaja and Nick Walusko, she knocks out a power pop masterpiece that has been criminally overlooked even for being a Christmas album by an American artist that's only available as an import. (Currently out of print as of the date this entry was updated, but I left the Amazon link in anyway.) Bangles and GoGos comparisons are a bit too facile; she's clearly learned from the same original sources as those bands without turning this into a spot-the-influences party. You'll certainly hear 60s girl groups and garage rock, Phil Spector, Beach Boys, ELO/Wizzard, 80s power pop and even a bit of Rimsky-Korsakov with balalaikas ("Jack Frost" again) through the 12 songs of this CD. You'll also hear some melancholy in the songwriting, but that just adds more depth to her performance -- I'll let you track down her website for the inspirations behind this album. We've mentioned the title song and "Listen to the Bells Ring" elsewhere on the site, so I'll skip to the funky "Closer to Jerusalem," which could be the soundtrack to a "happening" in a 60s hippy movie; the poppy "We Will Look Away," a bubblegum anthem with just a hint of Partridge Family; "Bernie's 3rd Christmas," a garage-pop workout; the ballad "Christmas Came Too Soon," drenched in a variety of acoustic and electric guitar sounds; and the cello-led climax "Pure and Simple." This is very nearly the Pet Sounds of Christmas albums. UPDATE: The CD is out of print, but Futureman Records has an expanded version of the album available for download. The expanded version has a few 60s covers that are not Christmas, demos of a couple of the album's original songs, and a cover of the Beach Boys' "Santa's Beard."
Lost Winter's Dream, Lisa Mychols (Rev-Ola/Cherry Red)
I first heard Lisa thanks to Dan Pavelech's Hi-Fi Christmas Party CDs, which each feature a tune from this album. What we have here is a comparative rarity in rock 'n roll Christmas world: a single artist's conception of an original Christmas album with all original tunes. Actually, "Jack Frost" is a cover, but it's such an obscure one that it doesn't hurt the premise. It's a song from a Russian film, "Morozko (Father Frost)," supposedly based on a Russian fairy tale that mashes up various bits of "Cinderella" and the parable of talents from the Bible. "Mystery Science Theatre 3000" fans probably recall the episode in which this film was parodied. But let's not lose sight of Lisa's achievement here, first recorded in 1990 and released in its current form in 2002. With the help of Wondermints Darian Sahanaja and Nick Walusko, she knocks out a power pop masterpiece that has been criminally overlooked even for being a Christmas album by an American artist that's only available as an import. (Currently out of print as of the date this entry was updated, but I left the Amazon link in anyway.) Bangles and GoGos comparisons are a bit too facile; she's clearly learned from the same original sources as those bands without turning this into a spot-the-influences party. You'll certainly hear 60s girl groups and garage rock, Phil Spector, Beach Boys, ELO/Wizzard, 80s power pop and even a bit of Rimsky-Korsakov with balalaikas ("Jack Frost" again) through the 12 songs of this CD. You'll also hear some melancholy in the songwriting, but that just adds more depth to her performance -- I'll let you track down her website for the inspirations behind this album. We've mentioned the title song and "Listen to the Bells Ring" elsewhere on the site, so I'll skip to the funky "Closer to Jerusalem," which could be the soundtrack to a "happening" in a 60s hippy movie; the poppy "We Will Look Away," a bubblegum anthem with just a hint of Partridge Family; "Bernie's 3rd Christmas," a garage-pop workout; the ballad "Christmas Came Too Soon," drenched in a variety of acoustic and electric guitar sounds; and the cello-led climax "Pure and Simple." This is very nearly the Pet Sounds of Christmas albums. UPDATE: The CD is out of print, but Futureman Records has an expanded version of the album available for download. The expanded version has a few 60s covers that are not Christmas, demos of a couple of the album's original songs, and a cover of the Beach Boys' "Santa's Beard."
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