We know Christmas has been and gone now and everyone is looking forward to New Year celebrations, but that hasn’t mattered to Howth who yesterday released Xmas Songs via Bandcamp.

He says it is “less optimistic” than his recent album The World Is A Beautiful Place, which may be something of an understatement. Musically it is a mix of folk, psych and weird outsider pop and lyrically it is laced through with black humour, macabre imagery and plaintive self reflection. Needless to say we think it is one of the finest releases of the festive season and all the better for missing the boat by at least five days.

Check out I Like To See The Flame Catch On My Cigarette and Tina With The Short Brown Hair below.

I thought I had but I guess that I hadn’t yet
Found enough reason not to smoke my cigarette
Death’s not enough and a clean lung is less than that
I’m fat and lazy please leave me my cigarette!

Happy New Year.

.

.

Follow @madmackerel