The Sounds of McArathon Volume 0-49

The origins of McArathon are rooted in these "alternative" holiday playlists that have been obsessively collected and reorganized since 1999, originally called Xmas at Ground Zero but now rebranded as The Sounds of McArathon (synergy!) They're organized here in fifty loosely themed volumes, each designed to fit onto an 80-minute CD-R (which is now a completely outdated concept of course.) We also maintain a Spotify playlist with whatever we can find there, but the "true" playlists have a lot of extreme rarities you won't find streaming.

Vol. 00 Xmas at Ground Zero
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Vol. 01 Beneath the Mistletoe Screaming
These first two volumes are a loose recreation of the earliest iteration of this collection, featuring a lot of the most classic go-to alt-xmas hits.

Vol. 02 Toybox Garage
Mostly '60s garage rock with some modern garage revival and British Invasion thrown in.

Vol. 03 What the Frost
The first of two volumes of really out-there stuff - vanity records, novelty 45s, "song-poems," etc.

Vol. 04 Holiday Robot Funk
The first of two volumes of (mostly) danceable, bass-driven jams.

Vol. 05 Hang Up Your Stockings and Say Your Prayers
A mix of angular, aggressive punk-leaning tunes with some offbeat lo-fi pop.

Vol. 06 Christmas with All the Fixins
Some left-of-center old-school country, some outlaw/alt, and some weirdo cowboy crooners.

Vol. 07 Jingle Jangle Jukebox Jamboree
Mostly radio-ready 45s, a mix of early soul, dirty blues, and some toe-tapping novelty singles.

Vol. 08 Holiday Hot Sauce
Mostly bouncy/upbeat indie pop and hip-hop from around the early 2010s, a fun entry-level mix without much filler.

Vol. 09 Ding Dong Is Here
Tons of sleigh bell-heavy pop songs and jangly instrumentals; makes for extra-Christmassy sounding background music.

Vol. 10 Martha Kringle and the Vixens Sing Their Greatest Hits
Heavily featuring and inspired by the legendary A Christmas Gift for You record, with some more contemporary riot-grrrl energy thrown in.

Vol. 11 Bring Us an Iggy Pudding
Another round of aggressively angular, occasionally drunken punk and left-field pop, with a lot of personal favorites.

Vol. 12 Baby, It's Sad Out There
Somber pop, self-loathing blues, odes to seasonal depression and holiday loneliness, with a few darkly comic twists to keep it lively.

Vol. 13 More What the Frost
The second of two volumes of really out-there stuff - vanity records, novelty 45s, "song-poems," etc.

Vol. 14 Not Safe for Winter
The first of two volumes of NSFW songs, mostly comedic. Just drop these volumes if you're DJing the church picnic or whatever.

Vol. 15 The Wetter Outside
Mostly non-holiday-specific winter jams, leaning a little on icy, bittersweet, lovelorn, melody-driven pop.

Vol. 16 Hollywood Ho-Ho-Homicide
Soundtrack cuts and songs spun off from or inspired by TV and movies, including several "can't believe this exists" tie-in records.

Vol. 17 Santadelica for the Sleigh Master
The psychedelic spectrum from '60s bubblegum to acid rock to noisier modern throwbacks.

Vol. 18 Pop Goes to Wassail
Shamelessly catchy, keyboard-heavy, head-in-the-clouds pop songs.

Vol. 19 Eric Freeman's Garbage Day
The bottom of the stocking--mostly forgotten 7-inches or limited cassingles, merry cringe-mas!

Vol. 20 Merry Stories to Tell in the Dark
Mistletoe murder ballads, merry monster mashes, some darkwave synths, Halloween crossover music.

Vol. 21 Snow Covered Snow
The first of two all-covers volumes, this one heavy on alternative bands covering the holiday staples.

Vol. 22 The Sounds of McArathon Live!
The first of two volumes of live performances--some renditions of songs from other volumes mixed with a few stage exclusives.

Vol. 23 March of the Woolworth Santas
Bombastic and bouncy pop, lots of horns and snares, plus a few big-band instrumentals.

Vol. 24 Bing Crosby's Christmas Clones
Mutated takes on the "classics," classics being defined as whether or not Bing Crosby ever did a version.

Vol. 25 Gingerbread in the Gramophone
Some scratchy AM-radio stand-outs mixed with some modern lo-fi bedroom-pop.

Vol. 26 Belles on Bobtail Beach
Surf rock and beach party jams with some reverby spiritual successors.

Vol. 27 All Through the House Party
Party records, songs with their own dance steps, a few club bangers--you could drop any of these into a DJ mix, even the cornier ones.

Vol. 28 Jazzbots Nipping at Your Nose
Obviously some jazzier stuff, mostly mellow and sprightly but goes way out into outer space here and there.

Vol. 29 Yuletide Peril, Being Stung by Hellfire
Anti-Christmas tunes, seasonal stress ballads, some genuine angst mixed with sillier variations on the theme.

Vol. 30 Folks Dressed Up Like Metronomes
Upbeat, jittery pop with varying levels of untz-untz but a lot of manic energy.

Vol. 31 Some Turkey and Some Miscellania
A cornucopia of outliers that didn't fit anywhere else, mostly revolving around food--some good stuff mixed with some fun trash.

Vol. 32 Broken Bells
Mostly damaged, transgressive, mutant pop, upside-down Christmas carols, and a bit of pure silliness.

Vol. 33 Transmissions from the Polar Planet
Otherworldly, glitchy, cold and strange. Theremins and echo chambers. Plus a few sci-fi novelty singles.

Vol. 34 The Gospel According to Shane Black
Mostly non-secular "put the Christ in Christmas" tunes, including some sincere-but-boppin' gospel-funk along with a few ironic twists.

Vol. 35 Around the World in 12 Days
Some exotic "world music" (not the best term but you get the idea), French & Japanese pop, plus some travelogue songs exploring holidays in other countries (some more sensitively than others.)

Vol. 36 The Living Novelty Scene
You could argue every Christmas record is a novelty record, but these are EXTRA. High-concept gimmicky recordings plus some comedy singles.

Vol. 37 I Have No Chill to Bring
Low-key, relaxed, vibey but a little bit freaky.

Vol. 38 December in the Delta
Some mangy 12-string blues, some rockabilly, some howlers.

Vol. 39 Fuzzboxing Day
Some distortion-heavy indie rock, some shoegazey stuff, crank it up.

Vol. 40 The Rickenbacker Suite
Mostly jangle-pop with some power-pop and guitar-forward new-wave thrown in.

Vol. 41 In a One-Horse Open Mic
Acoustic coffeehouse troubadours and indie-popsters, some sad strumming mixed with some dry humor.

Vol. 42 We Twee Kings
Some warm sweater pop, some of it a little sugary, some ukuleles, but some more raucous stuff too.

Vol. 43 A Bit More Holiday Robot Funk
The second of two volumes of (mostly) danceable, bass-driven jams (with some great deep cuts on this one).

Vol. 44 Reindeer in the Rafters
Some big, muscular, arena-ready rock, some wailers, and some little guys just going for it.

Vol. 45 Still Not Safe for Winter
The second of two volumes of NSFW songs.

Vol. 46 Snow Covered Snow II
The second of two all-covers volumes, this one heavy on covers of songs from other volumes.

Vol. 47 The Sounds of McArathon Live!: The Encore
The second of two volumes of live performances--some renditions of songs from other volumes mixed with a few stage exclusives.

Vol. 48 Another Version Birth
Demos, remixes, and alternate takes of songs from other volumes, along with some holiday mash-ups.

Vol. 49 No Presents in the Future
One to grow on. More mutant pop, mostly from 2010-2020, with a noticeable curve towards the apocalyptic as it nears the era of Trumpism and the pandemic. Happy holidays!