the advent calendar of earworms days 18-24

Day 18

The Aislers Set "Cold Christmas"

A new (although it's fairly old) addition to our Christmas playlist (over 19 hours and going strong). A rather tasty bit of American indie pop. I know nothing about this band.

Day 19

Dead air.

Day 20

Tom Waits "Day After Tomorrow" 

I like to either listen to podcasts or music on my phone while I do the washing up. This was the first song to come up on shuffle today and it damn near broke me. 

I love Tom Waits more than I can possibly say and this is one of the most perfect anti-war songs you'll ever hear. 

Taken from his "challenging" junkyard human-beatbox album Real Gone. It's one of my favourites now but I wasn't keen when it first came out. I got it on vinyl a couple of Christmases ago and for some reason it makes more sense - really bluesy and groovy.

Day 21

Here Come the Double Deckers! theme ("Get On Board")

My brain! 

Here Come the Double Deckers! Was a British children's TV series which revolved around the adventures of seven children whose den was an old red double-decker London bus in a scrap yard. Obviously. 

Another bit of music which plagues my brain, despite the fact that the show aired a few years before I was born. It must have been on repeat for a long time because I had a recording of this theme from when I was at college and making mixtapes for friends. 

Day 22

A-ha "Take on Me" and Guided By Voices "Game of Pricks"

Inexplicable mashup. "Take On Me" is obviously a banger - if you need to dance like you're in the 80s, just make sure you hit the 2nd and 4th beats (the snare beat). If you need to make it more 90s, go for the 1s and 3s. However, regardless of the era, NEVER clap on 1 and 3 - the scourge of TV talent show audiences everywhere. 

There are at least two different versions of "Game of Pricks" but this is my favourite. The other is on Alien Lanes, one of the many albums I purchased this summer. 

Day 23

Franco Godi - "Mr Rossi" theme (aka Viva Happiness)

This is a song that gets heavy rotation in my brain. I don't know why but I find myself singing it at random times. It's a great song.

Mr Rossi was on British TV in the mid-to-late 80s (I think). Episodes usually involved Mr Rossi going on a random adventure with his soppy dog Harold.

Day 24

Talking Heads "Once in a Lifetime"

Prompted by me saying "My God!" this morning. This dystopian mid-life crisis was not quite the positive end to this series that I was expecting. And yet, it somehow seems all too fitting for 2020, which can absolutely get in the bin. 

Have a great festive break, stay safe and I'll be back with more void-yodelling in the New Year.