It’s that time of year again – Christmas time – everyone’s favorite holiday. Maybe it’s the look of snow and red and green decorations that people love, maybe it’s the spirit of giving that people love or maybe its, well, all the gifts we get Christmas morning.
For me, I love the music. There is nothing cooler than hearing some of my favorite bands singing songs about Rudolph’s magical nose or catching Mommy kissing Santa Clause. While some bands like Death Cab for Cutie, Coldplay, New Found Glory, Jimmy Eat World and The Killers to name a few, showed their love for the holidays by releasing a holiday song or two on one of the many Christmas-themed compilation discs that are out now, Indie/folk musician Sufjan Stevens went all out this holiday season and released a Five disc box set of nothing but Christmas songs.
Yeah, five discs. That’s 42 songs, all Christmas themed. Titled “Songs for Christmas,” the set of 42 songs contains a majority of remakes of classics, such as “Silent Night,” “O Come, O Come Emanuel” and “Jingle Bells.” Sufjan still contributes many of his own works to the collection, like “Put the lights on the Tree,” “Its Christmas Lets Be Glad” and “Come On! Lets Boogey to the Elf Dance!”
Don’t worry if you are unfamiliar with who Stevens is, you are not alone on this one. Stevens, who first came to the music world in early 2000, is a singer/songwriter from Michigan, known for his lyrically focused rich songs that often deal with his faith and family. Sufjan is considered to be part of the folk revival in indie pop, along with other artists such as Iron and Wine and Damien Rice.
If you thought writing and releasing a set of 42 Christmas songs was a little strange, wait till you hear about his other works. Stevens is currently working on his “50 States Project,” where he plans on releasing fifty albums, each one inspired by a particular state. So far he has released “Michigan” and “Illinois,” and is currently in the works for “Minnesota.”
Top 3 Downloads 1.) Come on! Let’s Boogey to the Elf Dance! 2.) Get Behind Me, Santa! 3.) Christmas in July
Lets get back to “Songs for Christmas.” If you’re already a Sufjan Stevens fan, you already know what to expect. His banjo playing, along with his soft acoustic guitar and his soothing voice heavily influence the majority of songs.
There are some Christmas songs that have been played and redone so many times that we have all gotten sick of them. Sufjan’s rendition of these songs, like “O Holy Night” and “We Three Kings” make no exception.
Stevens does however do a great job creating some of his own Christmas jingles. His song, “Come On! Lets Boogey to the Elf Dance!” is a powerful song full of holiday cheer – one that you will have blasting while you are decorating your tree this year, not matter if you’re a Sufjan Stevens fan or not.
Another memorable tune that Stevens contributed is his own, “Christmas in July.” One of the only songs to feature violin, trumpet and drums, “Christmas in July” might also be one of the catchiest tracks in this set. Just like all the other originals that Stevens contributes to his collection, this is the kind of song you could expect to hear playing in department stores all over the country as the weeks draw closer to Christmas.
The most disappointing aspect of this unique box set is the choices Stevens made for his remakes. He picked some of the most bland and boring songs to cover, and passed up on covering some greats like “Winter Wonderland,” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”
Overall, Stevens does a great job writing his own Christmas jingles. If you are already a fan of Stevens, or just a fan of Christmas music, I recommend you pick up this box set. But hurry, because once Christmas passes in two weeks you won’t be able to listen to these tunes for another year.
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