A Regional Holiday: Vandaveer

The final segment in our week long look at regional holiday offerings features our old friends from DC, Vandaveer. Unlike the other artists in our series, they choose to go the traditional cover route and they even want as far as to offer a 3 track EP. If you've ever seen them live, you'll instantly recognize the heartbreakingly beautiful harmonizing between Mark and Rose. If you haven't, this is a great introduction. Have a wonderful holiday.

mp3: The Little Drummer Boy
mp3: Silent Night
mp3: Auld Lang Syne

A Regional Holiday: The Swimmers

Photo By Lisa Schaffer
Next up in our Holiday series is Philadelphia's The Swimmers. Their track, "The Christmas Sound," was recorded in 2007. Much like We Were Pirates and Middle Distance Runner before them, their offering is an indie pop original.

mp3: The Christmas Sound

A Regional Holiday: Le Loup

Photo By Hatnim Lee
DC/Baltimore band Le Loup provide the next selection for our spotlight on regional holiday music, "Shenandoah." This track was their offering to the recently released compilation I'll Stay 'Til After Christmas.

mp3: Shenandoah

A Regional Holiday: Hoots & Hellmouth

Today is Winter Solstice. Fittingly, the next selection in our regional holiday music series comes from Philly's Hoots & Hellmouth. They have a track called "A Song For Solstice," that was a part of XPN's 12 Days of XPN Local Music.

mp3: A Song For Solstice

A Regional Holiday: Deleted Scenes

Photo By Peter Wadsworth
Next in our regional holiday series is DC/Brookyln band Deleted Scenes, who have gone the very non-traditional route. Their selection is "Get Your Shit Together For The Holidays," the closing track off of their forthcoming CD, Birdseed Shirt.

mp3: Get Your Shit Together For The Holidays

A Regional Holiday: We Were Pirates

Photo By Lisa Boggs

Recently, we were sent a hot off the presses holiday track from DC's one man band, We Were Pirates (Mike Boggs does just about everything). I'm not much on Christmas music, but this will make the playlist every December from now on. It sounds like what a Death Cab holiday tune would be if they made one. If this were in the hands of some 'tween queen or boy band, this would be the smash of the holidays.

Merry Christmas

A Regional Holiday: MDR

Not sure what it is about the music of the season. Some of it is horrid, some cheesy, and some classic (Bing & Bowie doing "Little Drummer Boy" is my personal fav). Over the next few days, I will post some of what our favorite IA regional artists have recorded. Some are remakes of the usual Christmas fare and some have gone out on a limb and created their own attempt at a holiday classic.

Photo By Susan Pleiman
DC's Middle Distance Runner has always been one of our regional favorites. Back in 2006, they dropped their own original Christmas song. Yeah, we've used this song before, but it is a great way to kick off the series. Trumpets and tambourines, what could be better?

XMAS Party

XPN Spreads the Holidy Cheer

Starting Monday, University of Pennsylvania's WXPN is kicking off their own version of the 12 Days of Christmas with a new seasonal song by a local artist every day until the 23rd. Be sure to tune in at 9:40 AM and 1:00 PM for the latest song. Each song will also be a free download exclusively on WXPN.org. With the likes of Marah, The Swimmers and Hoots & Hellmouth in the mix, the songs are sure to find their way into you holiday rotation for years to come.

* Monday, December 8: Marah "Counting The Days till Christmas"
* Tuesday, December 9: The Swimmers "The Christmas Sound”
* Wednesday, December 10: Ages "Frankincense Of Style"
* Thursday, December 11: Dan May "Christmas In My Hometown"
* Friday, December 12: Trisha O'Keefe "Christmas with You"
* Monday, December 15: Hoots & Hellmouth "A Song for Solstice"
* Tuesday, December 16: Erik Mitchell "I Think I've been Good this Year"
* Wednesday, December 17: John Flynn "Santa Claus & Mickey Malone"
* Thursday, December 18: Hiram Ring "Just a Single Season"
* Friday, December 19: Cliff Hillis "On a Day Like Christmas”
* Monday, December 22: Fooling April "Every Single Christmas"
* Tuesday, December 23: Andrew Lipke "A Winter Song"