6 November 2026 – Superchunk Surprise-Release Wintry Mix and Give Christmas Music a Much-Needed Indie-Rock Makeover

American indie-rock veterans Superchunk have unexpectedly released Wintry Mix, a five-track seasonal EP through Merge Records, proving that festive music does not necessarily require excessive sentimentality or another supermarket playlist featuring the same twelve songs. The collection combines original material with covers of Wham!, The Magnetic Fields and Galaxie 500, bringing together several musical traditions that would not ordinarily share space on a Christmas compilation.

Among the recordings are interpretations of "Last Christmas", "The Blizzard of '78" and "Snowstorm", alongside "Have You Seen It in the Snow?" and the original composition "The Shortest Day of the Year (No Tinsel Mix)". The latter arrives with a lyric video featuring dogs named Birdy, Stevie and Bart, filmed by band members Mac McCaughan, Laura Ballance and Laura King.

Superchunk have approached the project as an opportunity to reinterpret familiar seasonal themes through their distinctive musical identity. McCaughan describes seasonal songwriting as an entertaining creative challenge, particularly when musicians attempt to find something original within subjects explored countless times before. The EP is available digitally, while a limited double seven-inch edition pressed on white vinyl will ship on December 4, restricted to 500 hand-numbered copies. Merge Records has also teased another version of "The Shortest Day of the Year", with further information expected on November 11.

Wintry Mix demonstrates that independent musicians can embrace seasonal traditions without surrendering their personalities. Apparently Christmas becomes considerably more interesting when Superchunk are allowed to decorate the tree with distorted guitars. Discover more guitar-driven releases in our indie rock hub and read new updates in our music news.