CD of the Day, 12/7/10: Various Artists-A Kool Kat Kristmas

With Not Lame sadly out of the picture, Kool Kat continues to take the power pop ball and run with it and they've leveraged their impressive stable of artists to come up with what not is only the best power pop Christmas album you've heard, but perhaps one of the best albums of the year.

Each artist contributed an original tune, and they all play to their strengths. Maple Mars' "Christmas Time in the City" celebrates Christmas in LA, the lyrical opposite of "White Christmas"; The Smith Brothers give us their signature breezy pop with "Every Day is Like Christmas", and Mike Giblin and Parallax Project's "All I Want for Christmas is a Chance" might be one of their best tracks ever. Meanwhile, Keith LuBrant's "The Christmas Spirit" is an energetic highlight, The Strands' "The Christmas Gifts" is a Ramones-like ode to finding where your parents hid the gifts, and Frank Royster serves up his usual fine retro-pop with "Christmas is Fun".

The real standouts, though, are a couple of somewhat tongue-in-cheek tracks. The Britannicas go for some old-school country rock with "Chris Hillman Christmas", in which they'd "rather listen to Jesus than to Wilco" and they'd "rather go back to jail than to see the Eagles reform again". And closing out the disc is The Goldbergs' "Channukah Guy", in which Andy Goldberg professes his love for all the trappings of Christmas, and is catchy as anything he's done (which is saying something).

And not only does A Kool Kat Kristmas have the tunes, but its heart is in the right place:

$5 FROM EVERY CD SOLD WILL BE DONATED TO THE SUSAN GIBLIN FOUNDATION: The late wife of Mike Giblin of Parallax Project, Susan Kroah Giblin held degrees both as a Paralegal and as a Certified Veterinary Technician, a degree that she obtained after going back to school at the age of 35. As one of Central PA's greatest friends to cast-off and wayward animals, she was a 17 year volunteer at the Helen O. Krause Animal Foundation, and served as its medical coordinator for nearly a decade. She also maintained a fostering room in her home which was rarely empty, and was well-known for her compassion, empathy, and personal connection with both patients and their owners. The Susan Giblin Foundation for Animal Wellness and Welfare was formed to honor the memory and continue the work of Susan Giblin, a Certified Veterinary Technician and noted animal advocate, who passed away from leukemia at the age of 46. The Foundation's mission is to raise and dispense funds to support animal caregiving organizations, to foster awareness and education of complementary therapies, and to support the continued education of those in the animal medical field

Between the quality power pop and the great cause, this is the one power pop disc to buy this holiday season above all others.

Kool Kat | Kool Kat Kristmas MySpace Page