Album Review: We Wish You a Metal Xmas and a Headbanging New Year

For many a metal head this is the ultimate Christmas album. An album filled to the brim with all manner of rock & metal royalty. People like Lemmy, Alice Cooper, Dave Grohl, Ronnie James Dio, Chuck Billy, Billy Gibbons…the list goes on.

The cream of what rock & metal has to offer…all lending their talents to classic Christmas songs, carols & hymns with a decent amount of cheese sprinkled around too. There was no way We Wish You a Merry Christmas and a Headbanging New Year could fail!

Everyone will have their own favourite song on this 12 track album, 16 if you include the bonus tracks which you totally should! Be it Run Rudolph Run, a pacey little number with the unmistakable growl of Lemmy or maybe it’s the epic beat of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen sung by the legendary Ronnie James Dio. For me though it’s all about the intense death metal stylings of Silent Night, a song that lends itself to a more brutal sound perfectly.

It’s not all gold though, the Alice Cooper led Santa Claws is Coming to Town is uninspired & lazy while Happy X-mas (War is Over) is just a bad version of a bad song.

It’s a genuine pity that the 4 bonus songs may have passed many listeners by for years as some of this albums best stuff can be found amongst them. O Christmas Tree with the fantastic Doro Pesch will put a silly grin on your face while Girlschool rocking out to Auld Lang Syne is such a blast!

Part of the fun throughout this album is the vocal work of many a metal artist singing way out of their comfort zone. Whereas a metal god like Dio can make reading the instructions on a microwave ready meal sound fantastic others have a more tongue in cheek approach, namely Dez Fafara (Devildriver/Coal Chamber) on Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. It’s not any less of a great listen, it’s just a bit more silly!

It’s easy to hear why this is such a beloved Christmas rock & metal album. It gets so much right & deserves to be on all Christmas playlists!

Overall Track Listing:

1. We Wish You A Merry Christmas
2. Run Rudolph Run
3. Santa Claws is Coming to Town
4. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
5. Silver Bells
6. Little Drummer Boy
7. Santa Claus is Back in Town
8. Silent Night
9. Deck the Halls
10. Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer
11. Rocking Around the X-mas Tree
12. Happy X-mas (War is Over)

Bonus Track Listing:

13. O Christmas Tree
14. Auld Lang Syne
15. Frosty the Snowman
16. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer