Casting Crowns For Christmas
Posted November 24, 2008
By art10,
I've heard every style of Christmas music there is, and I love them all. I've heard so many versions of each classic, and have my favorite versions of each. Maybe it's because I love the season so much, or maybe it's because I have such great memories of the music. And even though I'm a critic of Casting Crowns, I decided to give the album a listen in the good spirit of the season. This album, by its nature is a Christian Traditional Christmas album, in that the phrase 'jingle bells' is not uttered anywhere on this record, or the word 'snow.' :(
The record starts off with not a Christmas classic the title makes you think, but a seemingly original song done by the group. And by original, I don't mean it's never been done before, I mean it's made by the band. "O Come All Ye Faithful" is a very good softer take on the classic, made better with its acoustic aspects. "Joy To The World" is also a pretty decent take on the song. "Silent Night" isn't half-bad either.
However, "Away In A Manger" wasn't that great by the band back then, and it doesn't improve much since. The originals and the lesser-known "classics" on the other hand either miss their mark entirely, or are nothing to write home about. "God Is With Us" does have great vocals though.
The good thing about this record is that it's by Casting Crowns. The bad thing about this record is that it's by Casting Crowns. Casting Crowns' fans will love this album, and play it years from now. The problem for me is that Casting Crowns by style is unoriginal, and while highly spiritually-based, largely forgettable. So goes this album. You'll find a pure celebration of the birth of Christ, which is in someway original, but there's not much beyond the theme and the lyrics. Sorry, but Relient K and Jars of Clay did it a lot better last year... View All Music And Book Reviews By art10 | View art10's Profile
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