Craymo Releases A Cover Of A Christmas Classic

The latest release from Craymo delivers the Christmas spirit in the form of a traditional and classic single that we've all heard on the radio in various forms. His version of the track brings out a wonderfully lush and vivacious, almost disco pop approach, and I absolutely fell right for it.

"Last Christmas" is the track a lot of us have grown up listening to, especially in the '80s and '90s; however, the single has been on the radio ever since as soon as the holidays started coming around.

Craymo's vision and version of this track is brilliant simply because it captures the heart of the song itself, holds true to a lot of the classic melodies that are involved, but brings forth a new and sort of thriving energy that becomes quickly infectious.

The track boasts a great sort of vast and spacious undertone, which is almost a classic move for the artist himself with a lot of his other music, but it also has a driving beat, and outstanding synth work that adds to the textural balance of the track.

There are also these disco-like string sections that come in and out around the choruses, and this brings a bit more brightness to the song in those areas. I adore that move because you can tell that there was a lot of attention paid during the production of the track itself.

That musical energy is vibrant, and the song holds the true spirit it was originally written with.

Some people would consider this to be an electronic version of the track. I agree with that to an extent, but it also boasts a lot of pop overtones and feels very current, radio-friendly, and showcases the artist's love for music creation in general.

This is a song that isn't easy to do a fresh rendition of. It has been done before, of course. His version dips into electronic but still keeps those classic elements alive. As I mentioned earlier. It's got a lot of this disco undertone that shows face here and there, and I think this is part of why it still holds a nostalgic sentiment in its soundscape.

You can tell he was really focusing on coming through with something that held the heart and holiday spirit, but brought something a little refreshing to the table, easy for anyone to dance to, and had some of his signature sounds attached.

He certainly accomplished all that and more with this one.

The vocals give an amazing dynamic balance to the track as a whole. They are subtle, but also have a sort of colorful tone that works with the music of the track on a textural level.

The tone of his voice with the digital instrumentation feels good to listen to. All of those textures blend in a unique fashion, and it lets the song come through with a certain kind of shimmer to it.

Craymo often creates music that lets his presence as an artist shine, and this track is no exception to that rule.

The arrangement is really well thought out, it's got little breakdowns where the beat stops out and comes back in for the last final kick and chorus, and the whole thing has a very driving backbone.

It's upbeat, but it's not too fast; the tempo is just perfectly right in the middle, and again, it really does capture the essence of the original without straying too far from the staples the artist normally boasts.

There's some great production throughout the track, and that final chorus is just bombastic. The last course has a huge sonic presence to it. It is in full swing, it's got all the synths and keys going on, the vocals are a little bit intensified, and you can just tell this was done as a passion project.

Craymo wrote and released this because he probably grew up with this song, just as a lot of us did, and wanted to do his own version of it, almost like a love letter to the original, but also to the holiday itself.

This was tonally addictive and absolutely shows how Craymo writes and produces his music with a certain freedom.

This was a vibrant and refreshing cover of a holiday classic and might just be one of the best Christmas covers I've heard so far.

But don't just take my word for it, listen to the track. Don't forget where you heard this first.

Hello again and welcome back! Let's get into "Last CHristmas"! This was such a great cover of the original! You gave it your own spin but kept true to the original version at the same time! What made you choose this Christmas song out of the many there are out there?

Thank you so much! This is my favorite all time Christmas song! I read that last year, 2024 was the 40th anniversary of the Wham! release and I knew right then and there I had to do a cover version! There are certain songs that get stuck in your head at Christmas time that help you enjoy the season and also help you reminisce about holidays of the past. This is one of those songs.

Did Christmas itself inspire you to do this? Did you have memories of Christmas as a kid that sparked this?

Yes! I have always wanted to release a Christmas record. I earned my living for 30 years as a nightclub DJ. Every year I wished there were more danceable versions of Christmas songs that I could play in my DJ sets to keep the holiday vibe going! That's what sparked this version with it's funky dance groove! It's dedicated to the DJ in all of us!

Why not write an original Christmas or Holiday song?

Funny you should ask, haha,! I have been trying to write an original holiday song for years but never have come up with any ideas I was excited about.  I can write good sing along pop songs any day of the week, but writing a really good Christmas song has so far eluded me! Maybe I will be inspired this year, who knows, for me, it's been harder to write a good original Christmas song. I went into this recording with the intention of just  having fun and enjoying the moment.  Funny, in retrospect, If I would have thought about it more, I might have been intimidated or petrified in recording such an iconic song!  Thankfully, as in yours, I have been receiving some wonderful reviews and comments on my version. It loosens the pressure a bit! George Michael has one of those beautifully smooth tenor voices. Mine is more baritone, as mine has gotten deeper and have matured with age!

Who have you been listening to lately?

I have been listening to the new Mika single "Modern Times" which I love! I so hope to see him on tour this year. I also love Lady Gaga's new music, Kylie Minogue and anything and everything Dua Lipa puts out, her voice and music production are epic.

Are you working on anything else right now?

I am currently working on a new dance rock version of my Happy Birthday song, an epic dance song caled "Out Of My Mind" and a synth pop cover of "Under The Milky Way' by the Church, Steve Kilbey has such a haunting voice and delivery. That is another one of my all time favorite songs that I have wanted to cover, I am excited for that one. Last year I released a cover of Rick James "Give It To Me Baby" that I had a blast recrding in the studio! Doing cover songs are just such a wild, limitless freedom of expression and fun, I hope to do more of them!

Do you record your stuff at a home studio? If so, what is your set up?

I record on my home studio on a laptop and sometimes go into a professional recrding studio to do my vocals.  work with a lot of different engineers and mixers. I worked with Lewis Kelly from mixedbylewis.com

on "Last Christmas" who did an amazing job mixing and mastering my track and vocals

What would you like to express to fans?

Pop music fans, this song is for you!  I am on a mission to record more positive and uplifting music in my time on this planet, the world needs more positivity and more songs that make you feel good!

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