Pistol Annies keep things merry and light on the title track of its first Christmas album, Hell of a Holiday (out Oct. 22). It's from Miranda Lambert, Angaleena Presley and Ashley Monroe's fourth long player together, following Hell on Heels (2011), Annie Up (2013) and Interstate Gospel (2018).
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Lyrics co-written by the trio poke fun at how Christmas decorations and holiday music take over proper society before we even get a chance to take in Halloween or Thanksgiving.
"The whole world is decorating and it's only Nov. 1 / They're carving the pumpkins, they're hanging the lights / They're stuffing the turkey, they're pouring the wine / Already singing 'Auld Lang Syne' / It's a hell of a holiday," goes the latest example of the group's tight harmonies and clever wordplay.
"'Hell of a Holiday' is a song about how they all come rushing in at once. It's like, summer's over and you go to a grocery store or a Target somewhere and it's like, Halloween candy and all the cornucopias and pumpkins, and then all the Christmas decorations and stockings," Lambert shared (as quoted by The Boot). "Like, what's happening? I feel like Thanksgiving just doesn't get a fair share, so we wrote that song about that debacle."
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The rest of the tracklist mixes classic country covers (Merle Haggard's "If We Make It Through December"), holiday standards ("Auld Lang Syne") and originals (infectiously fun clap-along "Snow Globe," which hit streaming services on Oct. 1) with cover art that's reminiscent (intentional or not) of God Bless the Go-Go's.
Frank Liddell and Eric Masse co-produced the 13-song collection.
A music video for "Snow Globe" followed on Dec. 13. It's a no frills (yet plenty of sequins) live performance of one of the trio's best holiday originals.
An unlikely source spoiled the Pistol Annies return (and, based on the group's outfits in the accompanying photo, the "Snow Globe" video). Columbia, Tenn. Mayor Chaz Molder posted on social media that the trio spent Sept. 27 in town working on a music video.
"Seeing them shoot music video in our town, on the same stage (@The_Mulehouse) where I had pre-school performances as a kid, was a moment I'll never forget," Molder wrote.
Today, I was honored to welcome to @ColumbiaTNUSA @mirandalambert & the @PistolAnnies incl @ashleymonroe & @guitarleena.
Seeing them shoot music video in our town, on the same stage (@The_Mulehouse) where I had pre-school performances as a kid, was a moment I?ll never forget. pic.twitter.com/Vl700Xvp1V
