This Warm December: A Brushfire Holiday, Vol. 2 follows up the original 2008 collection and features more laid-back pop, rock, and folk-style holiday songs. Featured this time around are tracks by such artists as
Zach Gill,
Rogue Wave,
Neil Halstead,
Money Mark,
G. Love, and others. Generally, these are extremely soft-focus cuts that range from the sweet and jaunty (
Money Mark's "Make Time") to the more melancholy (
Halstead's yearning "Home for the Season"). The collection includes
Paula Fuga's earthy "Winter Swell Blues,"
G. Love's rollicking "Christmas Cookies," and
Matt Costa's psych-inflected "I Bet on Flying High." ~ Matt Collar