November 24th, 2012 
Jordan Munson 
Band: August Burns Red
Album: August Burns Red Presents: Sleddin’ Hill, A Holiday Album
Label: Solid State Records
Genre: Metalcore/Seasonal
Before getting into the meat of this thing, let me preface this by saying I don’t normally care for holiday music save for two styles: old school vocal jazz and Trans-Siberian Orchestra. That’s pretty much it. When review responsibilities were being doled out, I opted for this album since August Burns Red are one of my favorite bands, not because it was a holiday album. At any rate, I’ve spun the album a number of times now and can safely say that it’s not entirely what I was expecting, suffice the incredibly vague expecations for the album.
If you’re reading this there’s a pretty good chance you’re already familiar wih August Burns Red, at least on a cursory level. To quickly sum them up, they’re a Christian metalcore act from Lancaster, PA signed to Solid State Records and have a handful of full-length albums in their catalog with the label. Outside of the fact that they’re also pretty good, that about sums up the band. Now, for whatever reason, they’re doing a holiday-themed album comprised of both covers and original tunes and carrying a lot of this sound onto it.
Sleddin’ Hill begins with an original song, titled “Flurries” and already sets the album up to break any expectations for the album as the first things you hear are clean guitar parts and piano alongside some bells. Christmas music in a nutshell. Not long after, however, burst in the electric guitars and things kick it up a few huge notches as the August Burns Red we know and love enters the fold. Creating a justaposition of chugging breakdowns under the chiming bells and pretty piano, August Burns Red find a way to make holiday music both cheerful and heavy.
From song to song things remain mostly steady–riffing, chugging and traditional holiday music sounds like bells. Quite surprisingly, however, vocals don’t enter the fold until the seventh track on the album, “Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer.” It’s not surprising that there are vocals on this track, but rather that there are no vocals on “Frosty The Snowman” and “Jingle Bells” which precede “Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer” on the album. Even then, when the vocals do come in, they’re not Jake Luhrs’ standard, commanding shouts–instead they are punk-esque gang vocals. And that’s it for vocals. Not even on the songs that follow (“Winter Wonderland” and “We Wish You A Merry Christmas” for instance) are there vocals.
Moreso than I anticipated, this album is a really fun listen. For all its faults, such as the odd mastering and cheesy guitar sounds, Sleddin’ Hill is, at its core, an incredibly fun album–just as all holiday music should be. As weird as it was to want to do a circle pit during “Frosty The Snowman” or headbang during “We Wish You A Merry Christmas” at its typically relaxed sections, it was awesome. I just wish there were more vocals. At least there’s nothing stopping us from adding our own while we’re gathering with friends and familiy for the holidays.
Score: 6.5/10
Review written by: Jordan Munson (Twitter)
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