The Garlands
'Christmas Song' b/w 'I Don't Intend To Spend Christmas Without You' 7” single
Snowflakes Christmas Singles Club - SNOWFLAKE 2

The Garlands' 'Christmas Song' / 'I Don't Intend To Spend Christmas Without You' is one of four 7"'s released as part of the 2013 (and first) edition of the Snowflakes Christmas Singles Club.

For the second single of the series, Stockholm, Sweden's indie poppers The Garlands have rearranged and rerecorded their 'Christmas Song', prevously released as a download only in 2008. This Chrismas love song has the sound of the swinging 60s with bells, piano, sweet harmonies and all. Their cover of 'I Don't Intend To Spend Christmas Without You', written in 1967 by Margo Guryan for French actrice, singer and dancer Claudine Longet, is a perfect match to their original song. It has the same hip 60s vibe but still with a indiepop bite.

The Garlands were formed in 2007 in Stockholm, Sweden, by Roger Gunnarsson and Christin Wolderth as a bedroom recording project. In the first few years, Roger and Christin recorded several tracks as a duo, tracks that were released on CDEP or 7” on labels like Cloudberry Records, Cosy Recordings and Atomic Beat Records. In 2010, the project turned into a real band, when Christin was joined for live shows by Einar Ekström (guitar), Patrik Lindgren (guitar), Maria Grum (bass) and Robert Klaesson (drums). With this line-up, The Garlands recorded the brilliant single 'You Never Notice Me' for UK label Big Pink Cake. In 2012, the first full length of the band was released on US label Shelflife Records. The Garlands are clearly influenced by 80s twee pop bands like Talulah Gosh, The Rosehips, Heavenly, Go Sailor and The Shop Assistants: catchy indie pop songs with girly vocals backed up by jangly guitar hooks, head-bobbing rhythms and lovely vocal harmonies, all clocking below 3 minutes. On the two Christmas songs, the band is not only adding Christmas bells to their sound, but also piano and flute, giving it a real 60s vibe, and showing the band doesn't limit their inspiration to 1980s guitar pop, but as much finds this inspiration in the baroque and psychedelic pop of the 1960s.