So, pour a shot of cheap whiskey. Play "Rudolph's Rehab" at full volume. And remember: The best way to scare Scrooge is with a distorted power chord.
In the crowded landscape of holiday music, where Mariah Carey thaws out on November 1st and Bing Crosby haunts every grocery store aisle, one strange, beautiful, and terrifying outlier has emerged to save us from the saccharine sweet apocalypse: Gonzo Xmas .
For the uninitiated, "Gonzo" refers not just to the style of Hunter S. Thompson, but to a specific, rabid subgenre of rock, psychobilly, punk, and outright noise rock. When you combine "Gonzo" with "Christmas," you get a roaring, whiskey-soaked, feedback-laden sleigh ride through hell and high holidays.
Specifically, the releases and events surrounding and Gonzo Xmas 2021 represent a high-water mark for alternative holiday culture. Whether you are a collector of the digital compilations or a survivor of the live shows, these two years defined what it means to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year with a chainsaw and a bottle of cheap bourbon. The Genesis of the Gonzo Holiday Spirit Before we break down the specific years, it is crucial to understand the context. The phrase "Gonzo Xmas" was popularized by a rotating collective of artists (often associated with labels like Farmageddon Records and Filthy Bonnet Recording Co. ) who were tired of "White Christmas." They wanted a Red Christmas—red for blood, red for Santa’s suit after a bar fight, and red for the nose of the reindeer who snorted gunpowder.
Have a memory of the Gonzo Xmas 2021 or 2022 live stream or album drop? Share your story in the comments below. Did you survive the Santa suit mosh pit?
