Liverpool indie rock four-piece, Circa Waves – known to their pals as Kieran Shudall, Sam Rourke, Colin Jones and Joe Falconer – are gearing down after a busy year on the festival and gig circuit.
As the Young Chasers look forward to a quiet Christmas before they embark on a UK tour in early 2017, frontman Kieran shares the tracks he’ll be listening to this holiday season, exclusively with UNILAD Sound.
…Hallelujah, there’s not a Mariah Carey high C in sight.
Bing Crosby and David Bowie – Little Drummer Boy/Peace On Earth
As Kieran rightly states, ‘Christmas without Bowie is pretty rubbish, isn’t it?’
In honour of the late, great legend, Kieran kicks his playlist off with Ziggy Stardust himself, adding, ‘Bowie was a one-off and this track is no exception.’
Despite the oddly staged video, which Kieran dubs a ‘bizarre intro… Something you couldn’t imagine anyone doing today’, this Christmas classic collaborates two of the best-loved creatives in musical history.
Chris Rea – Driving Home For Christmas
Driving Home For Christmas marks the beginning of the holiday season, as you head home to gorge on pigs in blankets and stuffing.
Kieran chose this track for ‘pure nostalgia’, adding ‘It’s just as cheesy and soppy as most Christmas tunes and I love it.’
The Pogues (feat. Kirsty MacColl) – Fairytale of New York
Needlessly justifying this choice, Kieran told us, ‘It feels wrong to not include it, doesn’t it? I love the lyric, ‘Got on a lucky one, came in 18 to 1′.’
Genius.
Vaughn Monroe – Let It Snow
‘It doesn’t feel like Christmas until I’ve watched Die Hard‘, according to Kieran, and who can forget John McClane driving off into the wintry night accompanied by the mellow tones of Let It Snow?
It created an epic moment that defines Christmas for so many.
Nat King Cole – The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You)
Recorded in 1961, Nat King Cole’s festive family favourite is a timeless addition to any evening by the fire.
Kieran said, ‘If this doesn’t make you feel all warm inside then I don’t want to know you. Nat King Cole’s voice has to be the greatest recorded singing voice ever.’
As Nat himself puts it: “Although it’s been said many times, many ways, Merry Christmas to you.”
Circa Waves will be back on tour in March and April 2017, after recovering from an eggnog and mulled wine overdose.
A former emo kid who talks too much about 8Chan meme culture, the Kardashian Klan, and how her smartphone is probably killing her. Francesca is a Cardiff University Journalism Masters grad who has done words for BBC, ELLE, The Debrief, DAZED, an art magazine you’ve never heard of and a feminist zine which never went to print.