Song Of The Day 12/22/2015: Porn Orchard & the Opal Foxx Quartet – “This Holiday Season”

Christmas Week – A matchup of the eternally gulping Peter Murphy and whispered-about uncle Tom Waits stands little chance of happening in the material world due to previously booked commitments. That left it to Atlanta-area bands Porn Orchard and the Opal Foxx Quartet to take care of that summit meeting for us. This nicely conceived parody, alternately but unofficially titled "Christmas Sucks," was recorded for a compilation called The Mother of All Flagpole Christmas Albums, put out sometime in the '90s (1992 I think, though Discogs.com says 1995) by the Athens, GA magazine Flagpole. Porn Orchard was an arty hardcore band from Athens, much loved individually and collectively in the region. The Opal Foxx Quartet was led by the late Benjamin Smoke, a moderately costumed drag queen whose voice bore more than a passing resemblance to Waits. However, in my personal estimation, it's whoever's doing the Murphy impression (I believe but can't confirm it's Porn Orchard's Curtiss Pernice) that really nails it. I very much like the idea that wherever he goes Peter Murphy speaks in deep reverb. We all should.