SNACK Bits (December 2025) Scotland’s Essential New Music Guide

All the trees are on display now, and it’s cold. I don’t feel like going home now, I wish that I could stay.

No, it’s not BITS having a breakdown — it’s us looking forward to Christmas and seeing The Raveonettes, so why not combine the two? You’d be forgiven for thinking new music takes a breather at this time of year, but there are more than a few delights waiting for you under the tree, or in your sock.

‘Rockface’ is the first release from Raveloe in a while, and we’re delighted she’s back. That includes live headline shows, which we hope is a sign of more to come in 2026. Like some of her best material, there are shifts along the way. It starts with intensity, dragging you along before you’ve tied your shoes, then halts abruptly. The tempo dips, you grab a breath, and just as you adjust, you’re whipped away again. Soft backing vocals counterbalance the bite up front, and once again, she doesn’t disappoint.

Post Coal Prom Queen have also returned, with ‘Teleportation Blues’ landing squarely in the niche only they can fill. Lily Higham narrates the verses as sci-fi sounds whirl around, the chorus blossoms into something lush, and as ever, you sense there are deeper layers involved, some of which probably went over our heads, but that’s nothing new with PCPQ.

Right, onto the festive sweep, in our own roundabout way.

Helicon are teaming up once more with Will Carruthers of Spacemen 3, Spiritualized and more. Last time, the focus was race, heritage and the other C-word. This time, they’ve turned their attention to Christmas, with ‘There’s A War On Christmas’ but the bite remains just as sharp. Your gran might not be up and rock ’n’ rolling when this lands on Christmas Day, but it’ll bring a wicked smile all the same.

Those of you cheesed off with what Christmas has become might argue that ‘Money’ is the most festive title going these days. Thankfully, that’s not the tone here, as Paisley pop star Anya Vincent serves up tidy, 90s R&B-tinged smoothness. Slip it onto a playlist and watch a few folk swear blind they danced to it decades ago. If that’s what they believe, let them enjoy themselves.

‘Closer To The Edge’ by Quiet Man is the sort of heartfelt tune you could imagine in a Christmas TV ad — back when execs hadn’t yet decided it was easier to dust off old hits. Who doesn’t love a slice of melancholy with their mistletoe? This one delivers like the big man hauling his sleigh around the world.

Right, we’re sliding down the chimney faster now — time for the quickfire flurry.

‘The Wait’ by Kelso Bypass caught our attention immediately. Deep, breathy vocals in the verse, a cooing, gliding chorus, and a guitar solo worth sinking into. It wouldn’t shock us if it’s still swimming around your mind come New Year. With a debut album due in 2026, this is a promising warm-up. ‘The Wait’ is out on 12th December.

‘Sunlounger’ by Fairways isn’t festive, but who isn’t dreaming of warmer climes right now? Once the Boxing Day sales ended, the summer holiday adverts used to begin — and this bouncy number taps right into that feeling. If you’re sick of Mariah, these Falkirk lads have something sunnier for you.

There’s a touch of Greg Lake’s Christmas classic to ‘So Slow’ by Haiver. Frightened Rabbit fans will be chuffed that Billy Kennedy is back. There’s finger-picking, fast-but-never-rushed vocals, and a sound that wraps around you. It’s quite lovely.

PELOWSKA’s debut EP end / start is dark and trippy, with strong vocals cutting through the haze. ‘Calton Hill’ is lively, its percussion tripping over itself as squelchy synths fire beside it. Even if you’re on a bus or sitting at home, you’ll swear you’re in a smoke-filled room.

We liked ‘Passenger Seat’ by Justine Beverley, so of course we don’t forget to tell you about ‘On n’oublie pas’. It’s just as likeable, with a breezy country twang, but this time the lyrics are in French. That always adds a touch of class, even when the backing threatens a hoedown. It’s a bold mix, but it works, and we enjoy it.

And we hope you enjoy yourself this month — it’s later than you think.

Have a good ’un, and we’ll see you in 2026.