John Roberts has never been easy to categorize. He is known to millions as the voice of Linda Belcher from “Bob’s Burgers,” but he has carved out a musical identity that sits comfortably between club culture, queer art, New York grit, and his own eccentric humor. His new single, “Stoney Holiday,” released on X-Bop Records, adds another dimension. It is a hazy, playful holiday anthem for anyone who has ever looked at the season’s chaos and thought the only reasonable response was to get high and ride it out.
“Stoney Holiday” was co-written and produced with Kevin Rudolf. The two lean fully into the feeling of opting out. The song’s hook circles around the idea of choosing calm over chaos. It is Roberts at his most self-aware. He sings about skipping the parties everyone pretends to enjoy, smoking through the stress, turning off bleak news cycles, and giving himself the gift of not participating. It is funny on its face, but there is something honest underneath. The holidays can be lonely. Roberts doesn’t deny it. Instead, he owns it and gets a little lifted under the tree.
Roberts has long moved between creative circles. He grew up between New York and New Jersey and built his career with a mix of comedy, theater, and music. He has collaborated with Blondie, Big Black Delta, Beth Ditto, Felix da Housecat, Roger Sanchez, and Harry Romero. His 2021 album “Lights Out” marked his first big push into electronic pop, and recent work with producers like Junior Sanchez and Kevin Rudolf has expanded the scope of his sound. “Stoney Holiday” continues that evolution. It is simple on the surface, built on a rhythmic pulse and an easy melody, but there is a warmth and personality that makes it unmistakably his.
Roberts talks about music as a place he goes to improvise and experiment. He starts with beats, then follows whatever comes out instinctively. The approach matches the looseness of the new single. It is the kind of track you can imagine playing while snow falls outside and someone lights up something that suddenly smells suspiciously like a skunk in the living room.
His next album “Outside is a Clown” launched in November. The lead single, “Ain’t Too Tough To Dance,” is another collaboration with Rudolf and pushes deeper into dance and pop. After years of building characters on screen, Roberts seems more comfortable than ever building soundscapes that match his worldview. They are quirky, a little surreal, occasionally melancholy, and always rooted in joy.
“Stoney Holiday” fits neatly into that space. It is a holiday song for people who need a break from holiday songs. A wink. A sigh. A small cloud drifting over tinsel and blinking lights. For listeners who approach the season with a mix of affection and exhaustion, it might be the most relatable release of the year.
