Melissa Carper’s tender, time-warping voice is well-suited to Christmas material. Turns out, so is her storytelling. A Very Carper Christmas presents 13 original tunes lovingly plucked from the songwriter’s hardscrabble universe of scrappy living and simple joys, plus two classic covers that pay homage to the legacy of sorrow and humor in holiday tunes. Fifties jukebox arrangements of straightforward piano, festive fiddling, and playful crowd harmonies recall carols of yesteryear heartily performed in crammed living rooms. Like handmade stockings and inherited ornaments, these tinselly tunes are made to last, though their emphasis on crafting holiday magic from whatever’s on hand feels especially pertinent amid our country’s current financial instability and culture’s anti-consumerist pleading. “Inflation’s rising and we just can’t resist/ Checking out them dumpsters/ Saving stuff that’s gone to waste,” Carper sings on “Dumpster Divin’ on Christmas Eve,” narrating a snowy Aldi score with signature sly candor. Elsewhere on the album, the Nebraska-born Austinite recalls her first holiday season spent away from the Midwest, serenades her mother’s almond-topped cheese ball appetizer, and celebrates the chaotic joy of “Cats in the Christmas Tree” with a sprinkle of Latin swing. Trimmed with heartwarming frankness and wrapped with vintage bells and whistles, this Christmas offering is a classic-to-be.
This article appears in December 12 • 2025.