It’s December, which round these parts means it’s time once again for The Joyzine Advent Calendar! This year we’re celebrating our 20th edition, so we’ve scoured the archives to mix in some calendar classics along with a few fresh festive cuts from our favourite artists.
As always every track on the calendar will be absolutely free to download, and we don’t force you to sign up for our mailing list (though you can if you want, here) or hand over all of your personal data. The calendar is our Christmas gift to the world (or at least the part of it that enjoys seasonal songs by obscure indie musicians), but if you’re also in the giving mood we’d love you to make a donation to our chosen cause, the excellent anti-racism charity HOPE not hate, which you can do here.
On with the free festive tunes!
We’ve another free festive treat from a Joyzine favourite for you today, this time from Michael M (also of excellent existentialist nerd rockers SLIME CITY and formerly of the similarly ace We Are The Physics). It’s taken from his 2020 EP A Digital Christmas Gift for You, which is one of our favourite yuletide releases of recent years (you can get the whole thing via Bandcamp). You can watch the video for ‘It’s Easy to Hate This Time of Year’, here and download the track for free below.
We caught up with Michael to find out more.
What have you been up to this year?
I’ve played a few one-off solo gigs this year, but I was contractually obliged to concentrate on my other proper band SLIME CITY. We released our debut album in May 2023, which ended up in the charts like Ed Sheeran or T’Pau. The money is rolling in from that, so i’ve just been lounging around on a bed of fivers.
What have you got planned for 2024?
I just finished the manuscript for a memoir I’ve been writing about my previous life in the failed rock band We Are The Physics. I’m hoping to get that published in 2024 so that people can read about the chaotic time we went on national radio and tried to play Katy Perry’s ‘Firework’, but accidentally changed all the lyrics so it was just about a plastic bag.
Tell us about your track
This was a song I originally put out on an EP in 2020 during the dark pause of Covid, called ‘A Digital Christmas Gift For You’, with the idea being most Christmas songs were about being together and, at that point, we were being advised to stay away from each other. This track isn’t specifically pandemic-centric, but it reflects my own bitterness about how the themes of family and togetherness are wheeled out as a marketing tool in December, and it’s not always something that rings true for people, even outside of a pandemic that forced us all apart. Regardless, I actually really love Christmas, me.
This year Joyzine has been celebrating our 20th birthday – what were you up to in 2003?
In 2003 I was probably wearing a t-shirt that said ‘cKy’ on it.
Any new year’s resolution?
Every year I say I would like to become a better person, but every year I become a slightly worse person, so maybe I’ll just not commit to anything.
Download ‘It’s Easy To Hate This Time of Year‘
Make a donation to HOPE not hate
Find our more about Michael M and SLIME CITY via this handy Linktree
Check back tomorrow for another free festive download!
Catch up on all of this year’s Advent Calendar Tracks so far:
1: MJ Hibbett – I Got You What You Want For Christmas
2: Matt Edible & The Obtuse Angels – Advent Beard
3: Old Man May – Laden Sleigh
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