Merry Rockfest Christmas - A Great Christian Rock Gift Posted December 13, 2022 By RyanAdams_NRT, Staff Reviewer
What You Need To Know: Rockfest Records has been a monumental force in the Christian rock and metal community for the last few years. They have been signing and supporting great bands and artists and have released killer music with them. A while back, they released a compilation of the artists they had at the time. Now, they have released a new compilation, this time of Christmas themed songs that bands on the label have covered. This is A Merry Rockfest Christmas.
What It Sounds Like: This compilation features a range of rock styles, as are present on the label. Artists range from the gritty, nu-metal Relent, the forerunners of Christian rock Seventh Day Slumber, and metalheads Amongst The Giants. There is a variety, though all are fairly similar in musical intensity. The traditional melodies of these songs are close to the originals while each artist puts its own flair on. Hard rock is the focus with degrees of heaviness throughout.
Spiritual Highlights: Christmas themed songs range from classic songs to modern Christmas songs that just that: Christmas-themed. Songs like Mariah Carey's All I Want For Christmas Is You and Kelly Clarkson's Underneath The Tree are positive, up-beat songs but not deep in spiritual depth as with most modern pop songs. But classics like "O Come, All Ye Faithful" and "Mary, Did You Know" are present too. The majority are modern songs, though.
Best Song: Rockfest Records is more heavily supporting rock artists on their roster currently, with Amongst the Giants being the heaviest. But their cover of "O Come, All Ye Faithful" features a great example of the band's continual musical growth. They excellently blend melodic, singing elements and heavy metal parts to it. It is a standout track on the compilation.
Alternatively, Relent's cover of "All I Want For Christmas Is You" is noteworthy for the surprisingly mellow twist the band showcased. There is little of the elements of nu-metal or even rapping like the band excels at. Rather, they take a melodious, charming approach that doesn't lose their touch nor the original's peppiness.
For Fans Of: Skillet, Disciple, Kutless
Bottom Line: A Merry Rockfest Christmas is a great gift to rock fans this Christmas. From longtime fans of Christian rock who love bands like Seventh Day Slumber and The Letter Black, to those looking for something fresh in the scene, this compilation showcases great talent in the Christian rock scene. I believe there would be more depth in the record if they focused more on covers of classic, more Christ-centered Christmas songs rather than modern, thematic ones. Regardless, there is a lot to enjoy in this variety of talent and it is a gift that will keep on giving for years to come.
