It's getting awfully close to being Christmas time, and as always, Christmas albums are hitting the shelves. The latest addition is House of Heroes Presents the Christmas Classics. The guys in House of Heroes are no strangers to covers. They've already brought us a Beatles cover EP this year, so it only seems right that they take a shot at some Christmas classics as well.

This is a very short EP, having only three tracks. "Silent Night" and "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" are much loved traditional tunes, while "All I Want for Christmas" is a more contemporary, upbeat song. All three tracks should be familiar to any listener.

The approach to each song is fairly typical. Upbeat when called for, and mellow when it fits the mood. Front man Tim Skipper's vocals are smooth and thoughtful, with a backdrop of mellow, unpretentious instrumentation. All things considered, this is pretty normal fare for a Christmas album. Only at the end of "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" does the band venture off into their heavier rock roots.

House of Heroes Presents the Christmas Classics is as comfortable and familiar as a good Christmas should be. Each track is solid and might make the listener wish there were a few more. I envision this being an appropriate background soundtrack for any Christmas celebration.

- Review date: 11/10/09, written by Timothy Estabrooks of Jesusfreakhideout.com