The holiday season is a time compulsive shoppers relish, indulging in great bargains, teeming shopping malls and the excuse to buy mountains of meaningless crap. But, for the music fan, the holidays represent a minefield of problematic traditions.
One of the holiday season's greatest dangers is the inevitable end-of-the-year lists. These lists can be wonderful compilations of the year's best albums, songs or live performances, or just bizarre, ridiculous platforms for people to hype their favorite flop. For instance, although most reviewers, and many fans, thought the Kings of Leon's latest, Only by the Night, was average at best, Q magazine puts it atop their 50 Best Albums."" I am a huge KoL fan, but Only by the Night, though enjoyable, was nowhere near 2008's best, by any stretch of the imagination.
On the other hand, four of the five top lists I have seen put the Fleet Foxes self-titled album in the top six. This consensus adds legitimacy to my own love affair with this album. At best, top lists reinforce personal favorites and highlight albums that may have been overlooked. At worst, these lists insult great works by placing them in the same conversation as the new Mariah Carey. The Christmas release is another one of the holiday's problematic traditions. Every year, artists choose to release some original holiday songs. This year, two recent releases exemplify this stereotypical mediocrity: Low's ""Santa's Coming Over"" and George Michael's ""December Song."" However, both represent a break from the bubbly, happy Christmas song.
Low turns the lovable St. Nick into a creepy home invader, while George Michael sings clichéd, reminiscing lyrics over depressing, repetitive keyboards. Neither song is being hailed as the new ""Silent Night"" - or even the new ""Mele Kalikimaka,"" for that matter - but both are tolerable.
The real danger, though, lies in that more subtle holiday beast: the Christmas cover. I can forgive George Michael for his 1984 Wham! holiday release, ""Last Christmas,"" but I don't know if he can ever be forgiven for the endless parade of modern pop stars who have felt the need to cover that song. Carrie Underwood, Dexter Freebish, Hilary Duff, the Backstreet Boys and Ashley Tisdale are just a few that have felt the need to reinterpret ""Last Christmas."" Although research is still required, there seems to be a loose correlation between how many times a Christmas song has been covered and how likely a new version is to suck.
So this holiday season, as you participate in, or inoculate yourself from, the annual orgy of goodwill and consumerism, keep in mind the dangers inherent in your musical choices.
Send your shower-sung Christmas covers to Dale at dpmundt@wisc.edu.
