About this Playlist
We know that not everybody celebrates Christmas, which is while you’ll find a couple of Solstice playlists in the list below, however a lot of people do celebrate Christmas and the vast majority of Christmas playlists tend to be rather saccharine in nature. We give you some of the best off-beat Christmas playlists with of course some favorites thrown in too.
- Christmas Monster Mash
- Sky’s Christmas Medley
- Anti-Christmas
- Songs For the Solstice
- Suck My Dickens
- More Than Less Than Zero
- Boiled With His Own Pudding
- Festive Funk From The Hoof
- Songs on a Snowy Solstice
- Asshole Santa!
- Jane Does Christmas
Christmas Monster Mash
Christmas Songs about the Legends and Myths from Christmastime.
Ah, Christmas time! The season of joy, laughter, and spending time with loved ones. The sights and sounds of the holiday season are truly magical. From the twinkling lights to the smell of freshly baked cookies, there’s nothing quite like it. And let’s not forget about the presents! There’s something special about giving and receiving gifts that brings people together.
While many of us associate Christmas with Santa Claus and his reindeer, there’s a darker side to the holiday that is often overlooked. Christmas legends and myths are filled with tales of giants, witches, and creatures like the Yule Cat and Krampus. These characters are often depicted as menacing and cruel, and they have no problem punishing those who misbehave. For example, some legends say that Krampus would beat naughty children with sticks or even kidnap them and take them to his lair. Many more stories you will hear in this playlist that celebrates Christmas Monsters….just remember they are always watching…
Go to playlist page for full track listing
Sky’s Christmas Medley
Holiday music that leans towards upbeat pop songs. Featuring artists like: • Mariah Carey • Ariana Grande • John Legend • Sia • Gwen Stefani • Kelly Clarkson • Sufjan Stevens • Whitney Houston
Anti-Christmas
A nontraditional holiday soundtrack. Featuring artists like: • Peach Pit • The 1975 • Taylor Swift • blink-182 • Weezer • Rainbow Kitten Surprise • Panic! At The Disco • The Black Keys.
If you’re exhausted from the same old holiday soundtrack you’re not alone. So if you’re feeling rebellious against holiday music norms like I am, enjoy this refreshing mix of indie and alternative hits to break free from the seasonal cliché jingles. Here is what you can find me listening to around this time of year. Besides a couple of holiday themed singles (I can actually stand these) the rest have practically nothing to do with Christmas. I think it’s time to bid farewell to the repetitive carols and let the unfiltered lyrics and high energy riffs take over. 😎
Go to playlist page for full track listing
Songs For The Solstice
There’s just something about celebrating the turn of the seasons. Featuring artists like: • The Staves • Noah Kahan • Emancipator • Khruangbin • The Zombies • Queens of the Stone Age • Tyler • The Creator • Bob Dylan..
It’s that time of year – at least for those following the Julian calendar – and thoughts turn to festivals. Whether it’s Kwanza, Hanukkah, Christmas, the actual solstice itself – there’s just something about celebrating the turn of the seasons – when the days start to get shorter or longer. Those of us in the Northern hemisphere get to celebrate the return of the sun – while those in the South get to look forward to the harvest.
We threw this to the community and here they are:
Go to playlist page for full track write ups and listings
Suck My Dickens
by Jane Asylum
A mildly amusing X-mas story with a not-too-Christmasy Christmas playlist. Featuring artists like: • Bauhaus • The Cure • Miranda Sex Garden • Killing Joke • Depeche Mode • The Smiths • Sisters of Mercy • Siouxsie & the Banshees
A x-mas story with winter-themed songs
“And you’ll be careful. You’ll not shoot your eye out?” Mrs. Parker warns Ralphie in The Christmas Story playing on TV before he almost shoots his eye out. That kid never listens.
I wished they’d play other movies at Christmas. I could handle some “Nightmare Before Christmas” — I’m more of a Halloween girl — maybe an Ed Wood movie, or if I’m being honest, even “Santa Claus Conquers the Martians” would be better. Okay, maybe not. But it’s that time of the year and cable stations play the same-old whether you’re in the States or Europe.
“Alexa, turn down the TV and shuffle Suck My Dickens.”
“Sure thing! Shuffling Suck My Dickens for you.”
Go to playlist page for full story & track listing
More Than Less Than Zero
The definitive Gen X mix tape to disappear in Los Angeles ca. 1983. Featuring artists like: • Elvis Costello • Joan Jett & The Blackhearts • The Psychedelic Furs • Duran Duran • The Clash • X • The Go-Go’s
A holiday playlist built around a nearly forty-year-old book may not seem the most obvious thing in the world. Not only that, Bret Easton Ellis’s debut novel Less Than Zero may not be the first book that comes to mind when you think about Christmas. And yet, here we are.
People are afraid to merge on freeways in Los Angeles. That was the first thing Clay heard when he landed, ca. December 1983, in LAX. All it comes down to is that Less Than Zero is the story of a boy coming home for Christmas and meeting people whom he hadn’t seen in four months and people are afraid to merge.
While there are plenty of authors out there who are not afraid to merge their appetite for pop culture with their work, none use music references quite so effectively or profusely as Bret Easton Ellis. In Less Than Zero — itself named after an Elvis Costello song — music is more than background noise or a reminder of the time and place: every song referenced in Less Than Zero adds to the characterization of the cast and tells a story of its own.
At first glance, this may feel like a saccharine early ’80s pop playlist, but much like in the L.A. of Bret Easton Ellis’s Less Than Zero, that feeling is soon drowned out by the surprisingly dark undertones of even the poppiest entries.
Go to playlist page for full track listing
Boiled With His Own Pudding
by https://www.musicto.com/curators/jon-ewing/
A celebration of Christmas that side-steps the commercial and the religious, coming from leftfield yet unashamedly festive. Featuring artists like: • Low • Rufus Wainwright • The Hives & Cyndi Lauper • The Big Moon • Half Man Half Biscuit • Tim Wheeler & Emmy the Great
In a world benighted by war and climate change and cost-of-living crisis and my local football team facing relegation and possibly financial collapse this season, I can’t help spending eleven-and-a-half months of the year wearing my cynicism like a well-tailored suit, scoffing at blind optimism and scoffing even more at those who dare to indulge in it. But lo and behold, as the calendar nears the end of December, I find myself ensnared in the auditory web of Christmas music.
Go to playlist page for full write up and track listing
Festive Funk From The Hoof
by The Hoof
Merry Xmas from Music to Shake a Hoof. Featuring artists like: • Mayer Hawthorne • Aloe Blacc • Black Pumas • The Teskey Brothers • Blondie • Khruangbin • James Brown • Clarence Carter
A Hoof origin story 😆
The Hoof was a horse who hated Christmas. He hated the cold, the snow, the lights, the presents, and most of all, the music. He hated the jolly tunes that played everywhere, the carols that people sang, and the bells that jingled. He thought they were all annoying and pointless.
He lived on a farm with other animals who loved Christmas. They decorated their stalls, exchanged gifts, and sang songs. They tried to include him in their festivities, but he always refused. He preferred to stay in his stall, alone and miserable.
Go to playlist page for full story and track listing
Songs On A Snowy Solstice
by Nuno Nogueira and Jane Asylum
Snuggle up for a snowy night with the sounds of female vocalists. Featuring artists like: • Cowboy Junkies • St. Vincent • Lucinda Williams • Beach House • Mazzy Star • Beth Gibbons • Liz Phair • Lana Del Rey
melodies for winter nights
It’s a frosty December evening. The only sounds that break through the snowfall are the crackling fire, wine pouring into your glass, and the melodies on our Songs on a Snowy Solstice playlist. Whether you’re lost in the pages of a book, sharing a glass of cheer with a friend, or simply watching the snow fall outside your frosty window, these 22 songs by female vocalists fit the vibe of a snowy winter night spent snug and warm by the hearth.
Go to playlist page for full track listing
Asshole Santa!
He knows you’ve been naughty…That’s because he likes to watch… Featuring artists like: • Fear • Eartha Kitt • Jacob Miller • The Kinks • Tom Waits • Clarence Carter • Rufus Thomas • Bob Dylan.
I love Christmas.
What I don’t love is the repetitive commercial BS. The insincere blatant hard sell. The rampant marketing of fake sentiment.
What I love is the chaotic affection. The realistic cynicism. The desire to be human, messy and real.
I love the imperfection of just being.
I love Christmas with a spiky outer shell and an inky black sense of humour. I love mocking and making it wild and crazy.
However you celebrate it…This playlist is for you.
Go to playlist page for full track listing
Jane Does Christmas
by Jane Asylum
A naughty and nice Christmas playlist that won’t assault your ears Featuring artists like: • Tom Waits • Margo Guryan • Morphine • The Ventures • Josh Homme & C.W. Stone King • The Sha La Das • Clarence Carter
A somewhat saucy and slightly off-beat Christmas playlist, Jane Does Christmas is a naughty and nice music mix of both familiar and unusual holiday songs.
Santa Claus Conquers the Martians inspired me to create this holiday playlist, which includes one mention of Mars and a song about a spaceman. Any similarities stop there. I didn’t want to assault your ears by curating a playlist so bad it’s good. Maybe next year!
Go to playlist page for full track listing
We hope you have as much fun with these lists as we did making them. If you love music, love meeting people around the world and are curious about how these lists are created – come and learn more about the musicto community – we’d love to make a list with you.
