Let’s face it. Sometimes getting into the holiday spirit isn’t easy. Life is messy, times are tough, and the holidays can be overwhelming. Sometimes, enjoying the holidays takes a back seat to surviving the holidays. It can be hard to “be merry.”
Luckily, there’s merriment on its way up the shore, courtesy of what one of the founding members, Nate Dungan, calls a band of “professional hedonists.” Trailer Trash is rolling into Silver Bay with their long-running Trashy Little Xmas Show, a high-octane holiday tradition designed to cure even the deepest humbug.
“It’s more than just showing up and playing music,” said Dungan. “It’s about creating a party situation for everybody to relate to.”
Trailer Trash has been performing since 1993, though many have been friends since the 80s. The Trashy Little Xmas Show evolved just a few years later as a way to entertain the band’s regular night club crowd. It gradually became a holiday phenomenon and was recently named one of the “11 best holiday shows this season in the Twin Cities area” by the Star Tribune.
Dungan explained that the band began experimenting with mashups, blending Christmas songs with pop hits and creating original holiday tunes.
“As the years went by, we accumulated quite a repertoire of Christmas music, and then we started to mix and match and mash up Christmas songs with pop songs and write our own Christmas originals,” he said. “It sort of evolved organically.”
Trailer Trash’s main objective is simple: to have fun and let the audience join in.
“The people who come out to see us, the people who buy our CDs, the people who hire us for private parties, these are people who like to have a really good time. And we’re just lucky to be able to put the show on for them. I mean, the show is for them. We’re just having the fun of putting it on.”
Despite the “Trashy” name, the show is family-friendly, offering G-rated holiday cheer accessible to all ages. Dungan explained, “Don’t let the name fool you. It’s really a family show. Every song we do is family-friendly. We don’t do bad Santa or tacky jokes. It’s just a whole lot of fun. People need a really fun release at Christmas time, and this show is a good excuse to get into the spirit.”
With classics, obscure tunes, and originals making up the set list, Trailer Trash is a roots, country, honky tonk band, that crafts its music to keep the audience on their feet.
“Every single song we play is danceable,” said Dungan. “At the end of the day, Trailer Trash is a dance band.”
Trashy Santa, who serves as MC, and the Jingle Stick, a hubcap with sleigh bells mounted on a broom stick, transform the audience into part of the performance.
“It has magical powers,” Dungan said of the Jingle Stick. “It can transform the average person into a rock star.”
Important note: The above-mentioned rock star is asked to try to keep up with the drummer, but rock stars already know how to do that. Allegedly.
Silver Bay has seen Trailer Trash before, brought to the stage by Rocky Wall Entertainment in the Music in the Park series. The same non-profit organization is bringing them back as part of their Free Winter Concert Series and Benefit House Concerts, which help to raise funds to continue to bring great music to Silver Bay.
According to Dungan, the band is excited to return. “We had a fabulous time last summer at the concert in the park. Now we’re coming back and we’re just thrilled to be part of it.”
Trailer Trash’s roots run deep. Before moving to Minneapolis, Dungan grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee, where Christmas was a time for family, celebration, and making things meaningful.
“My family used to make our own Christmas presents. That was a conscious attempt by my parents to make Christmas meaningful,” he said, explaining that he carries that DIY spirit into the band that was formed out of a shared love for music rather than any immediate ambition for fame or success.
Dungan reflected, “We just wanted to have fun and amuse ourselves, and then find a place to do it. Because if we had fun, we thought there would be a few hundred, maybe a few thousand more people who would find it fun too.”
The band has survived the typical ups and downs of music life and remained together for decades, building something that Dungan affectionately calls the “Trashy Fam.” That camaraderie extends to the stage, giving their performances energy and authenticity that fans have returned for year after year.
“Trailer Trash is definitely a family. There are six guys in the band and our six wives all get along,” he said. “We go to our kids’ grad parties. We are a family for sure.”
For Dungan and the band, the Christmas show is more than a tradition. It’s a seasonal highlight they look forward to all year.
“It doesn’t get old to us. There are people who honestly have been coming out to see the Trashy Little Christmas Show for decades,” he said. “We get people whose parents and grandparents come out to see us. It is a seasonal standout. It’s the perfect kind of antidote to the usual holiday hoopla.”
So whether you’re stressed, exhausted, or just needing a night of laughter and music, Trailer Trash has got you covered. Bring the family, bring friends, and leave the humbugs at the door. With a mix of high-energy classics, original songs, and interactive fun, the band reminds us that the holidays aren’t just about stress. They’re about community, connection, and a little bit of joy. Trailer Trash has been creating these moments for decades, and one night with Trailer Trash is enough to make anyone a believer in the magic of the season.
The Trashy Little Xmas Show runs for one big set starting at 7 p.m. on Friday, November 28, at the Reunion Hall in Silver Bay. Admission is free, but it is encouraged to register for complimentary tickets to ensure a spot. The band will stick around town for a Trashy Little XMAS Reindeer Games Benefit House Concert on November 29. To purchase tickets and for more information about the show, visit rockywallentertainment.org or trashylittlexmas.com
