Thankfully, Christmas has wound down again for another year, after months of buildup and pressure to embrace the holiday and celebrate it with a level of spirit not everyone is capable of achieving. The drive to guilt you to buy into the madness of the season and climb aboard the Christmas celebration train begins earlier every year, usually at the end of summer with the subtle infusion of traditional Christmas music by retailers. Before you know it, the Christmas decorations and merchandise begin sprouting gradually, aisle by aisle like an alien fungus, until they overtake every retailer and every inch of every store. The Christmas music becomes more pervasive and louder until you can't even think rationally anymore. All that seems to matter is it's Christmas time, and you've got to buy a bunch of stuff to make you, your friends, and your family happy.
You're tricked into this same trap every year. You buy too much. You eat and drink too much, and when the tinsel clears, and the traditional Christmas music is still reverberating in your head like a holiday hangover, you tell yourself, never again. However, deep down, you know you will be boarding that Christmas celebration train again, and you will most likely be making the same "never again" promise to yourself next year. So, as the twelfth month nears its end, here is a final parting gift for those who really want deliverance from the holiday insanity. Listen to the twelve alternative Christmas songs below instead of that traditional Christmas music that clouds rational thought. They will help you see things more clearly next year and avoid the crazy train.
"Christmas Lights" by Coldplay
"Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis" by Tom Waits
"Cold White Christmas" by Casiotone for the Painfully Alone
"I Wish It Was Christmas Today" by Julian Casablancas
"Merry Christmas from the Family" by Robert Earl Keen
“Lo How A Rose E'er Blooming” by Miranda Dodson
“Holland’s Bar of Grace” by Sergio Trevino
"The First Song" by Band of Horses
"Santa Claus" by Wild Billy Childish & the Musicians of the British Empire
"All I Ever Get For Christmas is Blue" by Over the Rhine
"Listening to Otis Redding at Home During Christmas" by Okkervil River
"Wake Me Up When Christmas Is Over" by Listen Lisse