Review

November, 11th 2016

Let’s say it in advance – we didn’t like the version by The Northwest Choirs. Much more we liked the modern alternative of it (look it here) made by band Pentatonix. The version represented as the video attached here, is much too official, pompous, and loud. While Pentatonix’s version is much more heart touching and unveils the essence of the carol much closer to what was conceived. In the description of a song ‘It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,’ we told you about three most popular and starry carols for the Christmas time. We aren’t sure if it is the fate or a joke of the supreme powers, but this one has completely Christian lyrics and the background, while the Carol of the Bells has heathen’s origin and the lyrical filling hasn’t dramatically changed through the years. Of course, we can’t say what has originally been sung in Carol of the Bells thousands of years ago and on what language, but the basic roots are still in it. While in this piece, it is totally different – this is an entirely pure ode to the Christianity and its deity. The main lines in it are the singing of Nature and Heavens as He has come (descended on Earth, obviously). The 25th of December, the legend of His birth, is a date of the winter solstice, which was traditionally celebrated by heathens thousands of years ago. And Christianity redid this tradition, entirely replacing the date of actual birth of Him as theoretically once living person (which rather occurred on April, if to believe the researchers, the historians, and other science dudes) to eliminate even the memory of heathen gods.
The fact that He came is underlined and bulked with the necessary rejoice by every mean possible – singing, feeling happy and uplifted, preparing for his blessing and so on. While there is no emphasis on how his coming is manifested. Only in the date, on December 25th? So, we celebrate the birthday of some fellow that used to live 2 thousand years ago and was a preacher-icon of a new religion. Are we all serious? Okay, believe what you have to believe.
The originator of this piece was Jewish Isaac Watts, who wrote it in 1719 (three centuries from now) and was loosely but entirely based on the verse from the book of Christians. Since then, there were countless covers, singles, folk songs, alternations, and re-recordings of it. It is hard to say in which genre this song wasn’t played. Even if we name the doom rock or gothic metal, there are definitely pieces of it being recorded years before. So don’t wonder if there are all languages of the world and all directions of music embrace it up to now. Though Wiki officially knows only about somewhat a dozen of the alternations, but you should better address YouTube to surprise yourself (for example, this one in the metal version we like the most). It makes the best Christmas mood of all existing versions, as for us, if our opinion matters to you anyhow. Reference: More on Wikipedia