The boys in Relient K are responsible for one of the funniest Christmas collections to come off the assembly line in years. The five-piece Christian rock group mix holiday classics with original compositions on the humorously titled, Let It Snow Baby Let It Reindeer.
Listeners have no doubt heard many of the songs on Let It Snow Baby Let It Reindeer, but it's likely they've never heard them quite like this. Frontman Matt Thiessen's humor comes through loud and clear on the majority of the 17 track disc. Thiessen leads the band through rousing renditions of Christmas favorites like "Deck The Halls," rendered here as a distorted guitar carol, and "We Wish You A Merry Christmas," offered in a blistering emo reading.
Thiessen is a gifted songwriter as well as an adept interpreter of others' material. "Merry Christmas, Here's To Many More," a folkie tune that might one day join the cannon of classics, is one of six new songs Thiessen penned for the disc. The song builds from a simple acoustic arrangement into a full band cut with strings. The multi-instrumentalist and singer has crafted original songs that work well with public domain numbers such as "Angels We Have Heard On High" and "Silent Night/Away In A Manger."
"I Celebrate The Day" focuses on the real reason for the season. Acoustic guitar and piano compliment a rhythm section that provides just enough fill to carry Thiessen's delicate vocals. "From the lack of my persistency, we're less than half as close I wanna be," he sings. Guitarists Matthew Hoopes and Jonathan Schneck, bassist Brian Pittman (John Warne is the band's current four stringer), and drummer Dave Douglas join Thiessen on a punked up version of "Handel's Messiah" that will send grandma scrambling for her nitroglycerin pills.
When all is said and done, it's the funny tracks that stand out most on Let It Snow Baby Let It Reindeer. The band's chunking version of "12 Days Of Christmas," complete with tongue tickling new lyrics, is one of the best renditions of the beloved holiday number ever recorded. "I'm Getting Nuttin' For Christmas," with its pumping punk rock guitars and rollicking backbeat, is side-splitting good. Thiessen spits out the rapid fire lyrics with a hilarious, half-baked English accent.
If you like rock and roll music, but you're on the fence when it comes to Christmas music, don't hesitate to pick up a copy of Let It Snow Baby Let It Reindeer. Relient K make Christmas fun.
By Todd Sterling
