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hOMe FOR THE HOLIDAYS, CHRISTMAS REMIXED
(Om, Six Degrees)
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Anyone who’s ever been subjected to the pummeling of the Yuletide drum ’n’ bass stand-by "Jungle Bells" knows that the marriage of dance music and Christmas carols can be as painful as waiting until December 24 to do your shopping. But that doesn’t stop a pair of new compilations from attempting to fuse holiday music and electronica once again, with somewhat better than the usual results. hOMe for the Holidays, a mix of seasonal covers and new compositions, has a tough time reconciling the cool composure of underground dance music with the overripe sentimentality that characterizes much of the Christmas song catalogue; Sutro Heights and Casey Nefey rely on, respectively, diminished chords and too-tasteful R&B vocals for dull, down-tempo renditions of "Winter Wonderland" and "Silent Night" (retitled "Psyonics Night"). The originals fare slightly better, but in lieu of a familiar holiday melody, perfectly serviceable house tracks like Kaskade’s "Still Still Still" feel compelled to tack on syrupy strings, sleigh bells, and cooing choirs in a fruitless attempt to muster holiday cheer. It’s too bad that the one real charismatic cut-up, Rithma’s "Psycho Jingle Funk," didn’t found its way onto the far superior Christmas Remixed. Starting with well-known seasonal fare like Charles Brown’s "Merry Christmas Baby," a dozen DJ producers — including Dan the Automator, Robbie Hardkiss, and Mocean Worker — add rhythmic oomph and lively humor to their source materials without upstaging the warmth and personality of the original performances. The Stuhr remix of "I’ve Got My Love To Keep Me Warm" throws a throbbing, "Billie Jean"–style bass hook under big-band horns and Kay Starr’s brassy vocals. Rise Ashen recasts Johnny Mercer’s "Winter Wonderland" as a chugging Brazilian batucada. And if you thought David Bowie’s 1977 surprise TV visit to Bing Crosby (who appears here twice) was the pinnacle of holiday hip, just wait till you hear "It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" in rousing 6/8 time, with Shrift accomplishing a feat as miraculous as any virgin birth: making Andy Williams sound groovy.
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