Tuesday 12/15: The Aislers Set—"Cold Christmas"
Today, we share our thoughts on a new (old) Christmas tune from the indie-pop band The Aislers Set.
Welcome to Endless Scroll, the brainchild of Eli Enis (he/him) and Eric Bennett (they/them). Since Feb. 2019, we’ve been a weekly podcast about music, the internet, and where those two things intersect. Now we’re, also a M-F newsletter about songs. Our format is simple: a link to a song and a short take from each of us about what we think of it. Each day of the week has a corresponding genre: Monday is indie, Tuesday is punk, Wednesday is hip-hop, Thursday is pop, and Friday is misc.
Today, we share our thoughts on a new (old) Christmas tune from the indie-pop band The Aislers Set.
The Aislers Set—"Cold Christmas"
Eric Bennett:
I am generally pretty apathetic towards Christmas music. I work in retail, and after having done so for years, I now find myself numb to the rotation of the same ten to fifteen tracks. Even the ones I even slightly enjoy pass through me at this point. That said, newer, original Christmas songs are the ones I’m more amenable to. The Aislers Set’s “Cold Christmas” works really well for me because, sure, it’s a Christmas song, but it’s also musically interesting. I’m a huge Belle and Sebastian fan, and this song fits very much in their indie pop tradition. The vocals even sound like Stuart Murdoch sometimes. A cursory google even reveals the two bands have toured together. It’s jangly, fun, and it’s sleigh bells fit in seasonally, but also musically. How can I get this to replace the drek piped into [Redacted National Coffee Chain]?
Eli Enis:
After a few years of being scrooge-like toward Christmas cheer in my early ‘20s, I’ve come back around to loving Christmas music. What I love about this Aislers Set song, which was recorded in 2010 but released just last week, is how timeless it sounds. Albums from any other portion of the year come and go through my rotation, but I think the mark of a great Christmas song is one that sounds unmoored from contemporary trends so that it’ll actually have some longevity. “Cold Christmas” sounds like it could’ve been written in 1966, and I love the semi-cryptic lyrics about someone taking a Christmas Eve stroll while their partner waits home by the fire and wonders what their lover is up to. A little bit of drama, a solid helping of classic Christmas imagery, and a whole lot of pristine power-pop.