Wednesday, 4 November 2020

Pentatonix - We Need A Little Christmas


51 DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS!!

Buy-stream We Need A Little Christmas here (external link)

Self proclaimed choir-nerds, Pentatonix, have become synonymous with the most wonderful time of the year. Every year since circa 2014 has featured new holiday music from the a cappella group and, in a year when we perhaps need it the most, 2020 is no different. The aptly titled We Need A Little Christmas is the cure for what ails you after the annus horribilis we are stuck in - it is almost like there is a silent "for the love of God" prefacing the album's title. What you get contained within is a sparkling set of intricate and innovative vocal harmonies and voice creations that give you layered songs with nary an instrument in sight. It is all but guaranteed to make your season merry and bright. So grab a glass of something celebratory and hunker down with these 5 golden rings. Oh, and when its done, look forward to the deluxe edition with brand new songs in 2021...

The album opens with 12 Days of Christmas. Each group gets a solo moment up to the cover art inspiration of 5 Golden Rings. From there, they take thrilling liberties with the beat, pace and timbre of the song before it culminates in a chorus line, leg kicking finale. They are equally as jubilant on Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, texturing their vocals to take you on a giddy sleigh ride of a musical journey. The "nothing can compare to that bright nose reindeer in the air" feels like it has traversed the passages of time from an opulent 50s Hollywood movie musical. Pure bliss. Talking of which, The Sound of Music's My Favourite Things is next - a crisp, fast paced romp that Maria Von Trapp would surely have loved to get those precocious kids to do. So lush is the vocal backdrop that multiple listens are required to fully appreciate it.

Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone) is perhaps the most obvious tip of the reverent hat to the year we've had. It is performed with such solemnity and graceful respect that it helps the cares of the world melt away, even if just for the time the song is playing. Thank You is just a sincere a song (this time with added piano), a poignant melodic song of praise with gospel infused harmonies that are like angels from on high singing their song. This feels like it should be a shoo-in for top 40, the type of song which used to top the charts. A timeless classic. They slide into whimsical fancy on Santa Tell Me; embracing the longing romance of the Ariana Grande original. It has a finger click groove and reflective emotion wrapped round each other like paper round a present. Jingle Bell Pop is an update on the Jingle Bell Rock standard - making you want to grab the one you love and shimmy. 

When You Wish Upon A Star is enchanting Disney majesty. They get the harmonies right with exquisite precision, transporting you to your favourite Disney World location and all the wonder that entails. Beautifully soothing and gloriously hopeful at the same time. Once Upon A December wasn't from a Disney animated feature, but it is just as mesmerising. There is a beguiling charm to the song that captures the essence of the original, a person lost in a sea of memories who can't quite seem to grasp onto them. That sumptuous middle 8 is a ballroom waltz of epic proportions - elegant harmonies at their finest. Happy Holiday-Holiday Season is a melodic Christmas card that would leap off your shelf, wrap you in festive merriment before sharing a lush hot chocolate with you. So vivid and happy that you can't help but sing along with unfettered glee. 

Two final songs on the album couldn't be more musically diametric yet are a rousing finale to this uplifting opus. The Mame musical song, We Need A Little Christmas, is all about embracing the spirit of the season, regardless of what has come before. The group give each phrase the right emotion - at times they are contagious excitement, yet they are suitably tender and fuelled by pathos when they sing "I've grown a little older". It leads you right into the song you can play all year round - Seasons of Love (from Rent). This has become somewhat of an anthem for the #BeKind movement, urging people to focus on love and positivity rather than division and negativity. It is performed with an earnest yearning that leaves you with a feeling that maybe, just maybe, 2021 won't be quite as awful. That's quite the gift.

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