Saturday, January 01, 2022

Black Russians - Feel The Christmas


Well I promised you no more Christmas posts in 2021, but I didn't say anything about 2022! The mighty and mysterious Black Russians have released a Christmas-themed EP just in time for Russian Christmas next week. The idea behind this digital release on Monster Zero was to give fans a taste of new album Communist Dudes, which will almost certainly be delayed due to the current vinyl-pressing logjam. "Winter" is the first single from the new album, and it's an absolute ripper! It's interesting to me that a lot of the great "Christmas" songs are really just songs glorifying winter, yet everyone stops playing them after Christmas...when winter is just getting started! Well Black Russians have stepped up to the fill the void, and "Winter" could very well be your personal anthem to survive the next two months. Elsewhere, the band celebrates the time-honored holiday themes of murder, terror, and the brutality of the KGB. If you had certain expectations for what a Black Russians Christmas record would be, you will most definitely not be disappointed! I can't decide if "It's Always Christmas At My House" (featuring guest lead vocals by Jason V) is the ultimate anti Christmas song or actually the ultimate Christmas song!

When it comes to pop-punk these days, I seem to have reached the point where I either love it or hate it depending upon the band. Black Russians are one of the bands I love. They manage to create a sound that's somehow both harder and catchier than what's typical for pop-punk. And then the wonderfully dark humor of their lyrics takes things to a whole other level. I've never cared much for party anthems, but Communist Party anthems are another thing entirely. Feel the Christmas is the party record you and your friends need while you're carousing under the stars in sub-freezing weather!

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