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August Burns Red will release August Burns Red Presents: Sleddin' Hill, A Holiday Album on October 9th! The 13-track release features not only fresh takes on classics such as Jingle Bells, Winter Wonderland and even Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, but also original compositions that are destined to become future headbanging holiday favorites. The album also compiles remixed and remastered versions of the band s previous holiday hits, like O Come, O Come Emmanuel, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen and Little Drummer Boy. Rounding out the collection is an updated version of the band s rendition of Carol of the Bells, heard in Frank Miller s (300, Sin City) movie The Spirit and Seth MacFarlane s (Family Guy) American Dad. The idea of doing a full Christmas album has been floating around in the August Burns Red camp for a few years now, but what always held us back was finding the time and energy to write an additional full-length in between touring and writing our regular records, explains guitarist and principle songwriter JB Brubaker. After finishing [2011 s] Leveler I finally felt inspired enough to tackle the Christmas album idea. After working with some of the biggest producers in the genre, the band chose to come home and work at Lancaster's Atrium Audio with longtime friends Carson Slovak and Grant McFarland on Sleddin' Hill, which finds August Burns Red at its most ambitious and creative. It s a work that enhances the guitar and drum mastery August Burns Red are known for by adding unexpected elements such as banjo, violin, cello, piano and even horns. Because this was such a different type of album, I was able to get a little more wild with my influences, confesses Brubaker. There s a section inspired by one of my favorite bands, BEIRUT. There s also guitar solo that is an ode to Blue Album-era WEEZER, and my punk roots are evident all over the album. Writing metal versions of Christmas songs has always been a challenge for me because the songs are driven by simple vocal melodies with the only variety in the lyrics. We decided to take the songs and go the instrumental route - the main melodies are there, but this record has a lot more to it then that, he adds. The songs have sections of music that flow in and out of the classic melodies we've all come to recognize. There is a lot of substance in these songs- more than you'd find in your typical cover. On whether Sleddin Hill is destined to become a novelty album or a key part of the band s discography, Brubaker has the final word: To some, the concept of a metal Christmas album may come off as silly and a waste of time, but I think this record has plenty of original August Burns Red substance to interest even the biggest Scrooges out there.
P**I
Found it in 2016, and it has been all I've listened to this December
Every year I slog through Christmas music, hoping it'll inspire me like it used to, but every year it starts to sound monotonous... until I found this album. Metalcore meets Christmas, and does it WELL. ABR managed to take a genre sometimes beleaguered by formulaic and predictable writing, and make creative, interesting, exciting Christmas music with it. Appropriately placed break downs and blast beats, full of humor and never missing a single note of melody, this album has been my only Christmas listen of 2016 so far (yes, it was released 4 years ago, I'm behind). For $5 on amazon at the time of this writing, why not give it a shot?PROS:1) Lead guitar plays all of the melodies to perfection, and usually adds a harmonized/unison track.2) Drummer never misses a hit, never sounds like he's trying to keep up, but rather NAILS it perfectly, each time.3) Track-to-track variety (from heavy metal anthems, to upbeat rock, to folk, to straight metalcore) that demonstrates a real creativity and pushes the boundaries of the genre (IMO)4) Nearly entirely instrumental (can be shared with others with screamo-sensitivity)5) Musical surprises throughout, such as occasional strings, piano, even banjo and acoustic breakdowns6) Two original tracks that again show creativity and fit well with the spirit of the album (and Christmas)7) Odd meters, syncopation, quick picking, unisons - the band is actually quite technicalCONS:The ONLY con I have for the CD release is it doesn't include "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" or "Joy to the World". I'm not sure if those were on imported releases, or digital only, but they are two of my favorite tracks, and I was very sad not to see them on the CD release here.Still, if you're looking to break up the monotony of slow, ballad-y type Christmas music, grab this album and get ready for a fantastic ride.
W**T
A Must-Have for the Holidays
There is a serious lack of holiday-themed metal albums and thankfully August Burns Red did their part in helping fill this void. August Burns Red is an American metalcore band, but the album is almost entirely instrumental, so do not worry if you are not a fan of harsh vocals. The instrumentation is extremely technical and the band knocks out some classic Christmas melodies perfectly. The highlight of the album for me, though, is the two original tracks, Flurries and Sleigh Ride, that embody the holiday spirit so well in a heavy format. This is an album you need to have on hand for the Christmas season (and also a good one for getting others into the genre).
T**K
Finally! Christmas music just for me!
I love Christmas music - it's the one time of year we can hear songs about Jesus every where we go.I load my iPhone up with Christmas music and listen almost non-stop from late Nov til early Jan.But every once in a while I need to crank out Demon Hunter, Disciple, Skillet, or Red to fill the spot in me that needs it loud. Because for too long, Pillar's "God Rest Ye Merry Gents" and P86's "This Time of the Year" were my only Christmas songs my wife was afraid of.But now I have an entire album of very hard and very beautiful instrumental Christmas music. No idea how I missed this last Christmas!Incredible album.
N**X
This isn’t your grandparents’ Christmas carols...
It’s a really great alternative (metal) version of some classic Christmas season songs. It’s a good gift for the person in your life who thinks Christmas music is nauseous but who still likes the holiday season.
B**6
Greatest Christmas album ever
ABR proves again they are the best at what they do even when playing classic Christmas songs. Metal Christmas songs have been done before but never with such originality and ingenuity.Each track contains very obvious ABR qualities while maintaining an equally evident Christmas feeling. "Oh Holy Night," for example (an historical Christmas favorite for me and many others) will have you head-banging one second then send shivers through your skin and tears to your eyes with the overwhelming beauty of the classic song we all know and love.Another impressive aspect is ABR's ability to write an original metal Christmas song. The opening track "Fluries" will punch you in the musical face leaving you begging for more. And more certainly comes.I recommend this album to anyone who enjoys music.
J**E
Good stuff
I heard Carol of the Bells from this album on my Pandora station and decided to check out the rest of it. The only reason I left off a star is because I kinda felt like the title track came out of nowhere. It's not really consistent with the rest of the album. That's not to say it's a bad track, it's just different...kinda throws you off a little. Overall though, if you like rock music and you like Christmas music, you will love this album.
Z**K
Get into the season with Christmas Metal
There are not many Metal themed Christmas albums that keep the theme of the Holiday intact but this one does. The arrangements are quite good and the guitar and drums are crisp and heavy just like I like them. The only potential downside is a lack of vocals, but it just lets you add your own if you are so inclined.To me the highlight of this album is the Carol of The Bells. Great arrangement IMHO.
S**R
Thee Best Christmas album for any Metal head
This is a great Christmas album for any Rock/ Metal head in your life. ABR, even wrote two of the songs on this album. It isn't just pure heavy guitars, this is a band that understand Music theory and has a great blend of music.
S**D
Five Stars
the ONLY christmas album worth having.
P**R
Five Stars
great
G**Y
Pure awesomeness!
All the classic Christmas songs all re-arranged for metal-core, true brilliance. I recommend this item to anyone who like metal and Christmas!
D**N
Bon album de noël
Idéal pour un noël metal
C**N
Simply awesome.
This record can appeal to anyone, really. I love the fact that they took good old Christmas songs and made them metalcore-ish, although without Jake Luhrs' screams.