Pentatonix - “Holidays Around the World” Album Review

Story posted November 4, 2022 in CommRadio, Arts & Entertainment by Natalie Simone

The acapella group, Pentatonix, released another album featuring what some would argue is what they do best: Christmas. But, this time with a twist.

Nine out of the 12 songs feature different artists with a different cultural background including Lang Lang, La Santa Cecilia, and Hiba Tawaji. The acapella pop group recreated some classic holiday songs, showcased other hidden gems, and released three originals.

The very talented group was accompanied with equally talented artists. Each song with a featured artist had a twist to complement a different culture. Some of the songs were completely instrumental but others used instruments to complement their chosen culture.

Bells, drums, pianos, and guitars were played in some of the songs to keep the holiday vibe strong and mend the lyrics and song to a different culture. Besides the cultural diversity, there were songs that fit well into the pop, gospel, and traditional nostalgic Christmas vibes. “Love Came on Christmas,” “Invincible,” and others fit the pop music genre almost perfectly.

They had a repetitive chorus that was very catchy and upbeat. “Christmas in our Hearts” and “Silent Night” sounded like it had a lot of gospel influence with their rhythm and vocal dynamics.

Some of the more traditional sounding holiday songs were “Jingle Bells”, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”, and “Feliz Navidad,” but all had a well-done twist. A song that surprised me the most was, “Star on Top” which is a Pentatonix original because of its soft country vibe.

All the songs were filled with great harmonies and dynamics. In this album, there should be a song for everyone.

Assuming from the album’s title, Pentatonix wanted to showcase different holidays around the world, but this wasn’t executed well. The only holiday the album catered to was Christmas.

The holiday season in November and December hold more celebrations than just Christmas; none of the other holidays were discussed. Although, the acapella group did a great job bringing Christmas spirit.

One out of three of their original songs, “Kid on Christmas” with Meghan Trainor, not only further established their talents, is a brand-new fun and jolly Christmas song. In its upbeat chorus, Trainor sings “and a part of you believes and always remembers that sugarplums dance and reindeers fly.”

The song is specific to bringing back the Christmas nostalgia from when you were a child. Another Pentatonix original, “Love Came on Christmas” kept the fun upbeat aesthetic going: “joy can be hard to come by so, let’s make this Christmas one to remember!”

Pentatonix always produces Christmas albums very well, with a versatility of fun and calm songs to choose from. Although, this album did not highlight holidays around the world, but highlighted Christmas around the world.

Besides one or two songs, this album will not be streamed during this holiday season by me. The fun and unpredictable twists Pentatonix made on classic Christmas songs was enjoyable, and it should be exciting if they continue pushing the limits on their music.

Rating: 7/10

Reviewers Favorite Songs: “Kid on Christmas,” “Jingle Bells," “Feliz Navidad”

Reviewer’s Least Favorite Songs: “Star on Top,” “Prayer For This World,” “Christmas in Our Hearts”

Natalie Simone is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email nvs5790@psu.edu.