BarlowGirl

The Barlow sisters have lovely voices. Their three part harmonies and crisp solos are, at moments, breathtaking. However, soaring vocals cannot save the majority of their Christmas album from the brink of insignificance.

The opening track is an easily forgettable cover of “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”, with a wearisome mix of ‘been there, done that’ vocals. The cover of “O Little Town of Bethlehem” starts out promising, with a muted victrola-sound that lends a charming retro feel, but then it suffers an identity crisis, with an awkward attempt at a jazz styling. “Carol of the Bells” may have been a nice idea in theory, but it becomes muddled mid-way through, bogged down by a rushed vocal and chaotic feel when it hits the chorus.

The problem on much of the album is that the strings are so poorly mixed that it doesn’t do justice to the girls’ truly exquisite vocals. Some of the arrangements like “What Child Is This” and “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” suffer from a sleepy pace that offers little yuletide joy.

That’s not to say that there are not a few praise-worthy moments on this album: “Hallelujah (Light Has Come)” is a beautiful original that truly moves in the correct direction. It is a flawless formula composed of a tasteful backing choir, and a mix that highlights the purity of the vocal. “Panis Angelicus” also stands out among the lackluster arrangements as a unique nearly-classical piece, sung stylishly in Latin. “Go Tell it On the Mountain” happens to succeed, with a jaunty and smart bass and horn arrangement.

All in all, BarlowGirl may have set out to make a simple, homey Christmas album, but it hits some desperately wrong notes.

Tagged as: BarlowGirl, Home For Christmas

↓ One comment

#1 John Wofford on September 22nd, 2008 at 6:29 pm

Grace, welcome to the writing staff. It’s a strong review. Nice!

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