Christmas time, the happiest time of the year...

Well, hello there. Welcome to the first post of my blog. I've been meaning to start a blog for some time now... back in the pre-blog late 90's I had a website called Bastard Betty's Trashcan, which has long since disappeared from the internet, which contained ramblings, photos of bands that I'd snapped on my 'film' camera, as well as one whole page dedicated to cats and dogs in my life. This blog will probably be fairly similar but will also contain mp3s I've ripped from rare-ish vinyl in my record collection, and science-stuff because science is awesome.

Anyway to get things started, since we're only a few days away from Xmas, I thought I'd share some Xmas songs from my record collection. Check back over the next few days for more Xmas download treats from Holly Golightly, Reigning Sound, The Black Lips, King Khan & The BBQ Show, Buck, Prisonshake and more.

Candypants - The Happiest Time of the Year / Cold, Cold Winter 7" (SFTRI728)

Candypants have been a favourite of mine ever since I heard their song 'Dishy' on Sympathy For the Record Industry's "Alright, This Time Just The Girls" compilation, which came out back in 2000, shortly followed by their debut self-titled album.

Led by the adorably cheeky Lisa Jenio (ex-The Pussywillows / The Stool Pigeons) on vocals, Candypants present cute pop often with lyrics that are a lot dirtier than first impressions would have you believe.

As is their contradictory nature, "The Happiest Time of the Year" can be described as anything but happy, but Jenio's lyrical humour still shines through. On the flip side is a cover of the Pixies Three "Cold, Cold Winter".