Emmy the Great is one of those names that kept popping up just outside my peripheral vision, and I can't say I've been a follower of Ash, from whence Tim Wheeler comes. The Intertubes tell me the two are a romantic pair, however, and for 2011 they've collaborated on what may be the best Christmas album of the year, especially if you like old-school pop rock that wears its influences on its sleeve. Things kick off promisingly with the Phil Spector arrangement of "Marshmallow World," but that's where the covers end; Emmy and Tim wrote everything else, putting their own stamp on the holiday for many seasons to come. "(Don't Call Me) Mrs. Christmas" is a holiday breakup song complete with girl-group style spoken interludes and "Christmas Day (I Wish I Was Surfing)" is self-explanatory and still great fun for all that, evoking the Beach Boys and the Ramones in equal measure. And who wouldn't cower in fear (and laughter) when they hear "Zombie Christmas," with its horror-show guitar breaks and lyrics that poke and prod at the dark side of the holiday. "Sleigh Me" is a great holiday love song, "Jesus the Reindeer" is an ode to that little-known 10th reindeer (the famous snowman gets insulted in the song's coda), "Snowflakes" hide the singer's tears over lost love, and "Christmas Moon" is an early 60s-style ballad about holiday betrayal. Things wrap up, too soon, with "See You Next Year," which Christmas music fans might hope they mean literally.
This Is Christmas, Emmy the Great and Tim Wheeler (Infectious)
Emmy the Great is one of those names that kept popping up just outside my peripheral vision, and I can't say I've been a follower of Ash, from whence Tim Wheeler comes. The Intertubes tell me the two are a romantic pair, however, and for 2011 they've collaborated on what may be the best Christmas album of the year, especially if you like old-school pop rock that wears its influences on its sleeve. Things kick off promisingly with the Phil Spector arrangement of "Marshmallow World," but that's where the covers end; Emmy and Tim wrote everything else, putting their own stamp on the holiday for many seasons to come. "(Don't Call Me) Mrs. Christmas" is a holiday breakup song complete with girl-group style spoken interludes and "Christmas Day (I Wish I Was Surfing)" is self-explanatory and still great fun for all that, evoking the Beach Boys and the Ramones in equal measure. And who wouldn't cower in fear (and laughter) when they hear "Zombie Christmas," with its horror-show guitar breaks and lyrics that poke and prod at the dark side of the holiday. "Sleigh Me" is a great holiday love song, "Jesus the Reindeer" is an ode to that little-known 10th reindeer (the famous snowman gets insulted in the song's coda), "Snowflakes" hide the singer's tears over lost love, and "Christmas Moon" is an early 60s-style ballad about holiday betrayal. Things wrap up, too soon, with "See You Next Year," which Christmas music fans might hope they mean literally.
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