Valvulado: It's Midnight Christmas Mess (Rock)

A Midnight Christmas Mess (1984)

Review:

Other than a few too-pop or rockabilly clunkers on side one, we are left with an excellent '60s-punk type compilation of various contemporary groups. There's killer stuff from YARD TRAUMA,NADROJ & THE WOLRATS (doing the SONICS' "She's Waiting" with new lyrics), CHEEPSKATES, among others. There's even Midnight owner, JD, doing his tribute, Phil Specter's Xmas LP, to the season. ~ Tim Yohannan (from Maximum Rocknroll #19, November 1984).

Back in 1984 the New York label Midnight International put out a compilation of holiday-themed music by a bunch of local garage bands like the Cheepskates, The Tryfles, and The Suburban Nightmares. They slapped on some grotesque cover art and called the whole thing, appropriately enough, A Midnight Christmas Mess.

01. Christmastime Here (Could Never Be Like That) - Wednesday Week

02. On Comet - The Point

03. Christmastime With You - The Cheepskates

04. Here's What I Want on a Christmas Day - Justin Love

05. Christmas Dance - Johnny Rabb

06. Gotta Get Lucky for Xmas - Johnny Rabb

07. Xmas Time (It Sure Doesn't Feel Like It) - The Dogmatics

08. Last Minute Rush - The Cheepskates

09. Merry Christmas - Plan 9

10. Christmas Tyme (Baby) - Yard Trauma

11. Forget It - Nadroj & The Wolrats

12. Schizophrenic X'mas - The Suburban Nightmares

13. Gloria (in Excelsis Deo) - The Tryfles

14. It's Christmas (A Time for Giving) - Screamin' Jay Hawkins

15. Silent Night (J.D.'s Salute to Phil Spector) - Droogs

Oh! No! Not Another... Midnight Christmas Mess Again!! (1986)

01. Hazy Shades of Winter - The Slickee Boys

02. Christmas I'll Be Home - The Vipers

03. Star - The Cheepskates

04. Santa is Comin' Down Again - The Psycho Daisies

05. Santa Ain't Santa - Woofing Cookies

06. Jesus Christ - The Love Pushers

07. O Tannenbaum Now - Das Furlines

08. Blue Christmas - The Ravens

09. Wreck These Halls - Howard & Jag's X-mas Vacation

10. Sleighbell Bop - The Holidays

11. Coal in My Stocking - The Backbones

12. Christmas Eve at KNL (Kansas Neurological Institute) - The Iguanas

13. Snow is Falling - Dementia 13

In the late fall of 1984 Midnight International, an NYC based record label which catered to the growing Garage/Psych movement released its first Christmas compilation LP featuring thirteen different acts on fifteen cuts. The compilation proved to be so successful two more volumes were later released. "Oh No, Not Another Midnight Christmas Mess Again" was the second one featuring the outstanding Cheepksates, the Vipers, the Slickee Boys and more.

~ by Angelo.

It's Midnight Xmess Part III (1987)