REVIEW: Bieber fever breaks with Christmas album
Thanksgiving and the commercial madness of Black Friday have come and gone. Christmas trees are being put up in front rooms, Christmas lights now adorn houses, trees and metal reindeer. It is officially the season for Christmas music.
Walking around Christmas Village in downtown Ogden and ending up at the scene of the Nativity, I began to get into the Christmas feeling. So in the spirit of the holidays, I decided to review Justin Bieber’s new endeavour, “Under the Mistletoe.”
I will have to begin this CD review with a warning. If you are over the age of 16 and are not a girl, then you might have a hard time wrapping your head around the idea of Christmas carols sung by a 17-year-old boy. If Bieber fever didn’t hit you before, then maybe this album will kindle that fire.
If you like traditional music, then you might want to search elsewhere. If you like putting “Now That’s What I Call Christmas 3” on repeat during the yuletide season and skipping the classic songs on the radio, then I suggest picking up “Under the Mistletoe.”
The album begins with well-crafted R&B beats and guitar, with Bieber dishing it out like the whip cream on top of a peppermint sundae. Sleigh bells give the song the right touch, and this song is one of his great love croons to his adoring fans.
The album then blends into a Bruno Mars-style reggae guitar, with matching bass and snaps. I don’t know if Bieber is trying to create his own identity or if he is trying to follow pop music greats by throwing his voice up and down after each note.
I wouldn’t describe it as annoying but to the untrained ear, I’m not so sure.
A star-studded cast appears on “The Christmas Song,” or more commonly known as “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire,” as vocal harmonies between Biebs and Usher are purely sublime. Boyz II Men, Mariah Carey, The Band Perry and Busta Rhymes all have a duet with Bieber. With such a cast, what could go wrong? Note: This is mostly sarcasm.
“Fa La La,” the song with Boyz II Men, is actually well done, with great harmonies in the background by the Boyz, and Carey’s contribution is quite fun, a tribute to the original Carey classic “All I Want For Christmas is You.”
Bieber, or his song writers, have a knack for nailing harmonies between the music and the co-singers.
My absolute least favorite song is Busta Rhymes’ rap duet with Justin Bieber on “Drummer Boy.” It doesn’t start off bad, but then the drums go all “High School Musical” and the synth builds up only to drop into a rap by Justin about the drummer boy being bad like Michael.
The drums alone aren’t bad for this song, but combined with fast and heavy raps about something Christmas-ish, the beat resembles a grinding club classic and overall terrible representation of the classic song is bad — not like Michael.
Growing up on Harry Connick Jr.’s version, I was surprised by how empty this song made me feel. I was at first excited after seeing this song on the list but was sorely disappointed.
The harmonies are great, but I wish he didn’t extend and exaggerate the end of every line.
My favorite song on this album has to be the final song “Silent Night.” I think here, Bieber finally starts to realize that the true meaning of Christmas music might not be to necessarily put your own mark and make it sound different, but to bring in the spirit of what the holiday really means.
I don’t mean to sound preachy, and I don’t usually put my religion in my columns, but I think Christmas songs should put one into the mood of family and spiritual things found in books of old.
I wish more songs on the CD, especially “Drummer Boy,” weren’t so much about Bieber, but about the infant he sings about.
Bottom line: Justin Bieber’s album “Under the Mistletoe” is a partier version of classics that could put you in the mood for Christmas.
If you enjoy pop music and Justin Bieber, I wholly recommend it. If you prefer a traditional Christmas carol, I would recommend Harry Connick Jr. or Amy Grant. I think they got it right.
– alexander.h.van_oene@aggiemail.usu.edu