Destination ... Christmas!, The Superions (Fanatic)

The B-52s never recorded a Christmas album, but there have been a few attempts to emulate them on novelty holiday records. But if the B's never get around to making one of their own, their singer Fred Schneider has, with his new side project The Superions. This group is more a synth-pop act, but Fred is, well, Fred, so certain similarities are going to creep in, particularly when they recruit female singers as they did on "Santa's Disco." The lyrical approach is what you'd expect, with songs like "Fruitcake," a recitation of a fruitcake recipe; "Laughter at Christmas," in which laughter is constantly in the background; "Christmas Tears," an exasperated holiday medley; "Teddy and Betty Yeti," who capture and eat everybody in Santa's compound; and "Crummy Christmas Tree," in which a Charlie Brown-like tree gets thrown on the bonfire. Topping things off is "Santa Je' T'aime," a holiday tribute to the widely banned Serge Gainsbourg song of the late 1960s. The overall sound of this 2010 album is a little monochromatic, and folks may be inclined to pick and choose tracks for download, but B-52s lovers will likely be satisfied.