Billie Marten – “White Christmas”

Billie Marten – “White Christmas”

Artist To Watch/Best New Bands honoree Billie Marten’s debut album Writing Of Blues And Yellows has been one of my most constant comforts this year. The English teenager plays gentle, expansive folk-rock that will calm your nerves and warm your heart if you let it — which means she’s a perfect fit for covering Christmas classics. The guitar chords in Marten’s new rendition of “White Christmas” flicker like a fireplace; its melodic noise shimmers like snowflakes. It’s spare and melancholy and gorgeous, and I recommend listening to it below.

“White Christmas” is out 12/9 on Chess Club/RCA. Marten will perform it as part of Dermot O’Leary’s Choir Of Angels on BBC Radio 2 on 12/17.

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