Old 97's - Love the Holidays [Red & Green]

Love the Holidays is the sound of Dallas alt-country lifers Old 97's trading heartbreak for tinsel, pressed here on festive red and green vinyl with a download card.

Since forming in 1993, Rhett Miller, Murry Hammond, Ken Bethea and Philip Peeples have built a reputation on fast, twangy songs about bad decisions and worse romances. A Christmas record might seem an odd fit for a band raised on honky-tonks and punk clubs, but they approached it the way they approach everything, with a grin and a full tank of energy. Released in 2018, it is mostly made up of original songs rather than the usual parade of standards.

The title track opens the record and makes the band's case for the season. "I Believe in Santa Claus" and "Here It Is Christmastime" keep the spirit high, and the album signs off with the band's own take on "Auld Lang Syne", a fitting last call for the year.

Bethea's guitar lines bring that familiar chiming twang, the rhythm section keeps everything rolling at a lively clip, and Miller's voice, equal parts boyish and weathered, is perfect for songs that are sentimental without getting sticky.

File it next to your Christmas classics for the nights when Bing Crosby feels a little too polished.