It happened. El Vez’ “Merry Mex-mas,” “Sno Way Jose,” also by El Vez, and Jingle Cats have been topped. And it was topped by a group of local artists, too.

Up until last week, I thought the pinnacle of holiday music was watching El Vez sashay across stage in a skin-tight Santa costume singing, “I’m dreaming of a brown Christmas…” or the “Dreidel” interlude on the Jingle Cats album, “sung” in fast forward by a chorus of real barking dogs.

But last Friday, Bloat Records had their annual Christmas party at Club Congress. This time it doubled as a CD release party to commemorate the unleashing of “Christmas in Tucson,” a collection of the beautiful, touching, fun, twisted, sick, debauched and bizarre songs, which so perfectly reflects the array of diverse talent that Tucson has.

The CD takes you on a holiday mood swing rollercoaster ride through a rivetingly perfect instrumental of “Sleigh Ride,” courtesy of Matt Mitchell and then a sensually drunk version of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” by Franco-Tucsonan Naim Amor Then Jose Saavedra and Elise DuBord puts you in a pensive mood with the haunting “Hacia Belen Se Ecaminan.” Cathy Rivers of Little Black Cloud jerks your Festivus tears with “Holiday Song,” but just when you are about to grab a bottle of JD and curl up in the fetal position, you are hit with Mr. Tidypaws’ bizarre sax saturated “Christmas Song,” Love Mound’s dirty rock blues ditty “Shake Your Christmas Tree” and the “We Wish You a Sh—ty Christmas,” a song that sounds like it would have been sung by a junkie version of Oscar the Grouch. It’s actually Bob Spasm.

And these are just the highlights.

When I first heard the T-Dub Rockers (Tom Walbank and friends) through a set of headphones about 30 minutes before they went onstage, I didn’t think the booming voice that generated that Jamaican accent could possibly from our beloved English bluesman. And yet it was. Blues, dub… what’s next? Techno-polka?

Rockabilly ruffian Al Foul performs a song with what may be the coolest title ever, “Dim the Lights on the Xmas Tree for Mother (They’re Using the Electric Chair Tonight).”

And then it gets really weird, or rather, really Bloated.

The Bloat Records crew takes over during the twilight of the CD. The latter part of the CD can best be described by this quote from one of the best examples of writing ever to grace Hollywood:

“The brown bear and the field mouse can share their lives and live in harmony. But they can’t mate or the mice will explode.”

Well, Golden Girls fans will know, the urban version of a brown bear mating with a field mouse is the equivalent of a Bloat Records Christmas album. And if you can stand the analogy, you know that musically it will be so terrifically horribly fantastic you won’t be able to hit the STOP button.

And that’s the idea. After all, it is Christmas.

This album was put out by internationally known artist Olivier Mosset and curator Elizabeth Cherry. And if you dare call the album remotely self indulgent, you will have to remind yourself that all proceeds go to the Primavera Foundation, which benefits the homeless. So there.

Just so you know, the “Christmas in Tucson” album is available at Hotel Congress and other local haunts, but unfortunately (ahem) it is NOT available on the Bloat Web site.

Sigh. Typical.

All photos copyright by gomina@animaaproductions.com