Wynona Bleach – (Don’t Know Why) I Wish You A Merry Christmas (Fierce Panda)
Belfast bubblegrungers Wynona Bleach release Christmas single (Don’t Know Why) I Wish You A Merry Christmas on label Fierce Panda Records – and it is an absolute belter full of rich melody and festive melancholy
Artist: Wynona Bleach
Track: (Don’t Know Why) I Wish You A Merry Christmas
Label: Fierce Panda
Released: 1 December 2025
Find it: Bandcamp
Are we a Christmas singles blog now? Maybe, but when the tracks are as good as (Don’t Know Why) I Wish You A Merry Christmas by ‘bubblegrungers’ Wynona Bleach the festive spirit is irresistible.
With a sleigh bell intro that quickly leads us to a wall of shimmering guitars set against devastatingly big riffs and twinkling flute and string interludes, all the magic we need for Christmas is in the melody here. Which is just as well, as lyrically it is less festive cheer and more ‘festive? meh’. Melyssa Shannon’s vocal is the guiding star here: soaring and sugar-coating the struggle being sung about.
‘I’ll write you a letter / Signing on on Christmas eve / If it makes you feel better / I’ll pretend that I believe’
The band said, “This track’s lyrics were originally written on the back of an unemployment benefits application envelope. It’s about being totally broke on xmas, and not really understanding the point of it all.
“It was self-recorded in an old disused ballroom by the band, and mixed by Grammy nominated mixer and producers Andy Bradfield and Avril Mackintosh (Björk, Rufus Wainwright, Bryan Adams).”
Like The Waitresses before them Wynona Bleach deliver the best kind of Christmas track, offsetting richly-layered, joyous and catchy melody with a healthy dose of melancholy. Get this on your festive playlist without hesitation.
(Don’t Know Why) I Wish You A Merry Christmas by Wynona Bleach is out digitally now on Fierce Panda Records.
Find Wynona Bleach: Bandcamp | Instagram | Facebook | website
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Sarah Lay
A long-standing music journalist she's also co-founder of independent record label Reckless Yes, an author of novels, and when not messing around with words and music, a digital strategist.
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