Whether it’s the holidays, you will always get a chance to hear the same tunes play over and over again. Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’ and Chris Rea’s ‘Driving Home for Christmas’ conquer every department store and marketplace that you visit throughout December. For a bit of an emotional thinking, John Lennon’s ‘Happy Xmas (War is Over)’ would suffice although a more romantic picking would go for Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’. You might frequent yourself with songs that might not fit the bill specifically, but still retains a similar feeling. For that, the Pretenders’ ‘2000 Miles’ balances out the festive fervour with a tinge of melancholia all the while it’s just about flexible to be checked out outside of its most popular month.
Neither of them hits the same way that Irish Celtic Rock band the Pogues’ ‘Fairytale of New York’ does. Cited by the Telegraph as being Britain’s most played Christmas song, it subverts all the optimism that you would often associate with the winter holiday. Depicting a couple’s disintegrating relationship over their squabble, the honest narrative and the soaring horns make for a more authentic listening experience than a lot of the tracks I have mentioned. Yet, even the iconic song itself can come off as being overplayed by a lot of radio stations now. That doesn’t mean that it is now bad, but sometimes it’s well worth taking a look towards where you could find another alternative to fill in that moody sense of festivity.
Enter Frightened Rabbit. Between 2003 and 2018, it’s largely the passion project of Scottish singer-songwriter/guitarist Scott Hutchinson who is accompanied by his brother Grant, as the drummer; Simon Lidell, the second guitarist; Andy Monaghan, the keyboard player; and Andy Kennedy, the bassist. Their sophomore record, 2008’s The Midnight Organ Fight, is hailed as the cornerstone of the Scottish music scene for its nuanced literary themes and anthemic songwriting. While it’s not specifically a single for their most notable releases, their festive song in ‘It’s Christmas So We’ll Stop’ stands out as an evocative, sentimental, and genuine account of how the day is the means of escapism.
What makes the track a poignant and charming piece is its use of organ to accompany Scott’s passionate singing. The typical choir-like background vocals and jingly piano playing is dissonant to the bittersweet lyricism which tackles the use of the holidays to hide away your resentments, regrets, and resignations. “We can be best friends with the people we hate,” goes the first verse of Hutchinson over the desire to get along even if only temporarily, “‘Cause we’ve all got blood/ And it’s warmer than you think.” In building up to the climatic chants, the payoff is cathartic as we gradually step into the reality that Christmas is just a pause for the day before “life went back to its bad self.”
Comparatively, ‘Boxing Night’ is tangentially related to the holidays for its title which, although it’s likely just around sports, is reminiscent of the introspection of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. Building around the theme of alcoholism and depression, the signature bigger-than-life stature of the band conflicts with how apparent the suffering of the voice is throughout the song. While the song is structurally similar to ‘It’s Christmas So We’ll Stop’, the nuances help to provide a greater sense of tragedy in how the song builds up. Take the chorus for example, with the implied loneliness and sense of containment, which forms the impression of someone who’s a beast. The galloping acoustic guitar riff, sparse use of electric instruments, and militaristic drumming makes for a primal impression, one that points to someone’s frustrations.
The acoustic demo is when the feeling of festivity comes into being with only Scott’s singing and his guitar playing. This minimal instrumentation offers an illusion of comfiness which stands in contrast to the wearied and notably bitter vocal performance from Hutchinson himself. When the riff changes chord to be more quiet in the chorus, it provides a sense of vulnerability as we hear the small lyrical changes. “I’ll be drinking to death,” Scott’s small changes make for a clearer take on the feeling of being broken, “Just me and these walls/ And a beaten up chair/ On Boxing Day”. Through the increased use of strong language, the final effect of this version is that of a more sincere and heartrending take on the feeling of isolation.
To me, ‘It’s Christmas So We’ll Stop’ and ‘Boxing Night’ are both songs that deserve to be seen as classics to be listened to for the holidays. The Pogues deserve all the fame that they receive with a song that’s as frank about the realities of the winter holidays as ‘Fairytale of New York’, but even some people would think it as being overplayed. For those who want a sobering take of Christmas that both recognises its power to cheer up and how it’s merely a temporary measure in the end, the two songs will be a nice new perspective to check out. Their sense of emotional vulnerability might not be for everyone to enjoy, but it will leave a mark on those who could relate to its lyrics. After all, it offers a certain sense of beautiful sadness, doesn’t it?
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