A Very Cherry Christmas 16, various artists (Cherryade)

Once again, Cherryade Records and DJ Gareth Jones compile their annual labor of holiday love, this 70-plus minute compilation of indie-pop-rock Christmas songs from around the world. It's only available to the public on CD and only 200 copies are offered, so hie yourself over to Bandcamp soonest if you want a copy of the 2022 disc. Let's start with Birmingham's Wiince, whose "Happy Xmas (When It's Over)" disguises their Scrooginess in a poppy-grungy melody, then onto Building Rockets of Austin, TX and the classic punk "It Ain't Christmas." We get more of the same with returning artist Goddammit Jeremiah's short "Where's My Presents" and The Portrait's "Renegade Reindeer," in which the Jacksonville, FL group imagines the reindeer as a gang. Another British band, Sheffield's Get The Fuck Outta Dodge, insists that "Well if Die Hard's a Christmas Movie, Then This is DEFINITELY a Christmas Song," but only for 57 seconds. Bristol/Bath "supergroup" Candymouse get on the green transportation tip with "Leccy Car For Christmas," returning group The Hannah Barberas offer a breezy "Dancin' Santa," and Sparky's Magic Piano return for the first time since Volume 5 with "Waiting For Christmas," spacey and orchestral with a children's choir. Mouse Assassins from Luton solve the mystery of "Who Nicked Santa's Trousers," Analogue Electronic Whatever break out the synths to ask "What's For Christmas," and Arcadia do likewise on "Christmas In the 80s," as does Rodney Crowell on the sinister-sounding "Cold Christmas." Coosticks are on about celebrating a happy holiday for "Bobbi & Kayleigh," Tennessee's File Under Foliage offer the piano-led "Sleigh Comes Tumbling Down," and Toronto's Cameronoise offers a holiday-flavored power pop instrumental, "And a Star On Top of it All." Cherryade was serious about world-wide coverage, as Spain gives us The Yellow Melodies and their indie-pop-rock "Ya vuelve la Navidad," Germany goes the same way on Herr Wade's "Und sie tanzen im Himmel, France's Joni Ile offers up a cheap keyboard rendition of 1968's "Joyeux Noel," and from Japan we get yumenoma's "A Winter Romance," a surprisingly Western-sounding number if you can factor out the language barrier. Fans of Wild Man Fischer will enjoy Kawaii Sakura Trees' "Catch is Catch Can," Jimmy McGee's "All I Want For Christmas is International Socialism," and Steveless' "Think of Christmas." Back on the synths we have My Lo-Fi Heart with "Spend Christmas With Me," Ukulele Bailey is surprisingly upbeat about there being "No Christmas Pud," by which he means pudding, The Woodlice make up a wild tale about Scrooge getting caught in the "Scrooge Flume," All Ashore! mourns the British energy crisis with "In Front of the Gas Fire," and the DMs wrap things up with "For Christmas Day." This exhaustive rundown, though not of much use to those who can't score a copy, will at least allow you to see if you can find some of these tunes on your own.