Dirty Xmas, Hamell On Trial (Saustex)

Hamell On Trial is an Austin, TX-based artist with almost 30 years of indie rock releases to his credit. For 2025 the artist has dropped a full album of holiday rock, rated somewhere between PG-13 and R. It starts with "Xmas Carol," a flashy uptempo album opener, and goes on to "Rudy," a profane talking folkie take on the red-nosed one's story; "Taut," a relentless beat obscuring the lyrics, couldn't make it out after a couple of tries; "POS," not a holiday tune, check the title in the Urban Dictionary if you're not hip; the album's title song, a bluesy strum backing a sketch about calling North Pole customer service; "Adele," an apparent love song to the pop diva that's also not a holiday tune, nor are the rockers "Dream," "Kisses" or "Amy";  "Gonna Miss U" is a poppy ode to not having someone in your life on the holiday, mentioning decorating the tree while "high as hell"; "Frosty" tells the snowman's story in Hamell's inimitable style; "Xmas List" is a folky strum about ditching the list in favor of love for all; and "Mailman" is the old joke about giving him a Christmas tip. Streaming and downloads everywhere, and a super-deluxe vinyl LP package is on offer through the Bandcamp site.