Smoke Fairies - Wild Winter [Full Time Hobby Promo]

A christmas album. Usually not the thing we're looking forward to review to but as this is coming from the lovely Full Time Hobby imprint we're expecting things to be different than your usual happy-go-lucky, kitsch-loaden, 'we need to cash in at end of the year' approach and we're proven right from the very beginning. Although the vocals in the opening song "Christmas Without A Kiss" come across as bright and angelic as they could ever be the moody, droney backing that's crossing over into Metal'esque areas indicates that things are about to work out differently here, and the innocent, uptempo Folk Psychedelia of the subsequent "Steal Softly Thru Snow" takes us onto a blurry, well-trippy journey, before the "3 Kings" go epicly wild on your local Indie dancefloor - a killer anthem for sweet nights out. "Give And Receive" goes in for the folksy Pop - thinking Fleetwood Mac here for no reason - with a sweet'n'soft attitude that's also to be found in the more sturdy "Circles In The Snow" which might turn into an alltime Underground Pop classic over time whilst "Bad Good" balances the line between a late 60s feel and a more recent, pretty demanding Garage-y vibe that even incorporates a minimal hint of dirty PostPunk here and there. The albums title song "Wild Winter" is built on a super seductive bassline foundation and fragile synth spheres building up before the deep, dream-driven IndieFolk hits which might also appeal to the so-called DreamPop audience out there, the instrumental cut "Snowglobe Blizzard" brings in a more grave, contemplative flavour reminiscing of wide grasslands and the second to last "So Much Wine" tells tales of drama and violation that do happen more than they should around the festive season before the final song "All Up In The Air" takes a more forgiving turn for a grand finale. This is the kind of christmas album we all do appreciate for a reason. Nice.