Break Out the Christmas Music
Some folks have this thing—Christmas celebrations shouldn’t start until Thanksgiving is over and done. Generally, I’m with those folks; I want to wait for Advent to begin, myself. This year, though, I’m breaking a few weeks early, with good reason: I have two great additions to my lineup of Christmas albums this year.
Snow Angels is the second of Over the Rhine’s Christmas albums; folks who pre-order get pre-release MP3s of eight of the twelve tracks, which is a wonderful thing to do for their fans. What I have, I love; I’ve wanted a new Christmas CD from them for a while, and … well, now I have one. Karin and Linford, this is beautiful and a fine addition to the oeuvre. You have, again, outdone yourselves.
Sufjan Stevens’s Songs for Christmas is a project a long time in coming to CD: in the past, he’s simply put these out amongst friends and ask that they be distributed. The project has been mostly yearly, with 2004 being skipped. Now, Stevens is putting out the four previous years, plus a new set of recordings done this summer. Cost of all five EPs? $19. That doesn’t sell you? Stream the album and see what you think. I giddily got my shipping confirmation this morning; I hope to have it by the end of the week.
These fine additions join what I already have:
The Darkest Night of the Year, the first OtR Christmas disc. You may not love OtR the way I do, but man … I love this album.
Behold the Lamb of God is a masterwork from my friend Andrew Peterson. I don’t know how to say it any other way than that.
Boyz II Men’s Christmas Interpretations is admittedly something I picked up on the cheap from BMG. But … it’s not bad. [Don't look at me like that. My friend Corey Knowles and I shared a love for Boyz II Men in high school, and when I listen to them, I think of him---a good friendship formed over good music and the performance thereof. It's one of the few positive experiences I have from my old HS, so hey.]
What Christmas albums do you love?
Although I’m partial to many genres, I have a soft spot for metal:
“A Brutal Christmas – The Season in Chaos” (Various Artists)
November 21st, 2006 at 08:56“Your King Has Come” has been my favorite for many years now. Casella, Webb, McCracken, Osenga, and many others…it’s amazing. (and perhaps the closest thing to a square peg compilation than anything else right now)
and thanks for the heads up on the new OtR Xmas disc. erica loves the first one, i’m ordering Snow Angels right now.
b
November 21st, 2006 at 10:51Sure thing, Big Time. I fully expect that Erica will love this one, too.
November 21st, 2006 at 11:18Geof’s New Music: 19-25 Nov 2006…
New music will soon grind to a halt for me, other than some bootlegs, probably; I need to get ready for the cantata at church, I have a passel of Christmas music to hit hard, and I also want to curtail purchases so that family and friends can make purc…
November 22nd, 2006 at 16:39Geof’s New Music: 26 Nov-2 Dec 2006…
I started getting my Christmas music in this week as well as an order I’d done some time ago, so … awesome.
Sufjan Steven’s Songs for Christmas is something I’ve had part of in the past, but I’m now proud to own the whol…
November 28th, 2006 at 19:06