The heart and soul of a musician shine in their Christmas
albums, especially, it seems to me, for those who are not in the mainstream. Such is the case with Andrea Hamilton and her
new release “Let Your Heart Be Light”, a beautiful new record this Christmas
season.
Andrea Hamilton has channeled her talents into Christian
recordings with her previous albums “Deciding What to Keep”, “Salvation Come”,
and “Slow Miracle”. In 2013, the
LA-based Olathe, Kansas native (a local gal!) turned to Christmas music to
deliver her message of spirituality and joy.
“Let Your Heart Be Light” is a collection of 12 traditional and original
Christmas songs that is certain brighten your holiday season.
Andrea’s arrangements of “O Come All Ye Faithful”, titled
simply “O Come”, “Hark the Herald Angels Sing”, and “Silent Night” are unique
and superbly refreshing, without losing the reverence for the season. “O Come” is upbeat and lively, turned in to a
light pop version of the Christmas classic.
“Silent Night” is an especially
pleasing performance, tweaking the melody just enough to make it interesting
and provocative, and then returning to the song's traditional form.
The original songs are exceptional. “Christmas Clock”, “Love Came Down”, and “Waiting
for Christmas Morn”, written or co-written by Andrea, show her accomplished
skills as a songwriter. “Every Time”,
written by Andrea and Kip Fox, is my favorite song on the album. It captures the meaning of Christmas as few
songs do. The line “It’s not what I got but what I got for you” perfectly
frames the spirit of the holiday, that of giving and bringing joy to the ones
we love.
Andrea’s light, ethereal, crisp vocals are beautiful
throughout the album, expertly complemented by her piano playing. Her musicians – Emanuel Cervantes, Corey
Witt, James Grey, Daniel Roberts, and Brendan Bennett – blend and accompany
perfectly throughout the record.
Andrea Hamilton is another artist I found via a Kickstarter
campaign. This year has produced some
amazing Christmas music through Kickstarter – Elizabeth Chan, The Bowmans, and
Andrea Hamilton. I encourage all of my
readers to visit Kickstarter and help fund these artists, even with a modest
contribution. Every donation helps these
tremendous musicians, and it’s a great feeling to play a small part in a
successful project.
“Let Your Heart Be Light” is available on Spotify. Give it a listen, and if you like it, support
the artist by purchasing her CD. This and
Andrea’s other albums are available on Amazon as well as her website,
hopefulpop.com.
Enjoy!
I found Andrea on Noisetrade, and I heartily agree with Der Bingle. This is one of the best new Christmas albums I've heard yet this season.
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