Confidence Man dropped a Christmas banger last week, called “Santa’s Comin Down the Chimney.” It has a late-‘90s electro-techno thing going, like Dopplereffekt or Miss Kittin and the Hacker, which is really weird for a Christmas song and something that I, a person who is extremely picky about holiday tunes, can appreciate. If you were at The Mermaid for Splash! Sundays last night, you might have heard it sandwiched in between Del the Funky Homosapien and Crystal Castles.
Splash is an open format night, so, really, anything goes as far as the music is concerned. Since this was the Sunday before Christmas, and The Mermaid has its “Siren Who Stole Xmas” pop-up going on right now, I brought a few of my favorite holiday jams, like Charo’s disco-fied “(Mamacita) ¿Donde Esta Santa Claus?” and a really specific remix of “El Burrito de Belen” that took one holiday season of heavy Googling to find.
Still, I could have kicked myself for forgetting to download Los Bitchos’ holiday EP before the gig, but all their songs are good for a party, so “Talkie Talkie, Charlie Charlie,” from the band’s latest album, Talkie Talkie, made it into the set. Male Tears’ new one, “Little Doll,” which landed in Friday night’s set at Catch One, made a reappearance. A handful of 2024 faves— Fontaines D.C., Pet Shop Boys and La Femme included— turned up in Sunday night’s set too. It’s a real mixed bag, but I swear, if you were there and heard the set, which lasted from 8 p.m. until about 10:30 or so, it totally made sense. Keep scrollin’ to see what else was heard at Splash! Sundays on December 22. Next gig is New Year’s Eve at Underground. See you there.
The Ethiopians – Ding Dong Bell
Marie Laforet – Paint It Black
Nancy Sinatra- These Boots Are Made For Walking
Count Five – Psychotic Reaction
Plastic Bertrand – Ca Plane Pour Moi
B-52s – Private Idaho
The Smiths – Ask
Chemtrails – Join Our Death Cult
Taleen Kali – Flower of Life (Dildox Remix)
Berlin – The Metro
The Cure – Boys Don’t Cry
Tijuana No! – Spanish Bombs
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings – White Christmas
Thee Heart Tones – No Longer Mine
Spinners – It’s a Shame
Lauryn Hill – Doo Wop (That Thing)
Tom Tom Club- Genius of Love
Jean-Jacques Perrey – E.V.A. (Fatboy Slim Remix)
Chumbawamba – Tubthumping
The Jam – A Town Called Malice
Mark Ronson, Amy Winehouse – Valerie
Freda Payne – Band of Gold
Blondie – Rapture
Zapp – More Bounce to the Ounce
Choco The New Harlem Sound- My Little Donkey
Elia y Elizabeth – Alegria (Yuksek Remix)
Daft Punk – Da Funk
De La Soul – Me Myself and I
Del the Funky Homosapien – Mistadobalina (Block and Crown Remix)
Confidence Man – Santa’s Comin’ Down the Chimney
Crystal Castles – Vanished
Glass Spells – Hechizos
La Femme – My Generation
Shocking Blue- Love Buzz
Echo and the Bunnymen – The Killing Moon
Caifanes – Viento
The Ronettes – Frosty the Snowman
Edwyn Collins – A Girl Like You
Archie Bell and the Drells – Tighten Up Pt. 1
Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons – Beggin’
Asha Puthli – I Am Song (Sing Me) (Yuksek Remix)
Charo – (Mamacita) ¿Donde Esta Santa Claus?
Sally Shapiro – Anorak Christmas
Pet Shop Boys – Loneliness
Male Tears – Little Doll
Book of Love – Boy
Blur – Girls and Boys
Fontaines D.C. – Here’s the Thing
The Clash – Should I Stay or Should I Go
Brenton Wood – Oogum Boogum Song
The Supremes – Children’s Christmas Song
Los Bitchos – Talkie Talkie, Charlie Charlie
Dandy Livingstone – Rudy, A Message to You
Millie – My Boy Lollipop
Darlene Love – A Marshmallow World
Liz O. is an L.A.-based writer and DJ. Read her recently published work and check out her upcoming gigs.
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