Looking for the true meaning of Christmas? Jake Flowers nails it.

 

There’s a tenderness in Christmas that usually gets lost in the upbeat musical refrains we hear too much (Slade, Paul McCartney, there’s a lot of offenders). On the other hand, that tenderness turns into isolating loneliness too much too (looking at you, Coldplay).

Luckily, Jake Flowers is a master of tenderness. As such, Lets Make It Christmas is a beautifully understated ode to the festive season that captures the spirit of the period. Not only does it set the ideal mood, but it does so with the right balance of frail melancholy and fragile joy. Flowers’ voice is the ultimate emotional weapon in shaping the sound of this track.

Of course the tinges of Christmas vibed percussion help. As do the very intelligent lyrics that allude to Christmas time traditions (“It’s a wonderful life; it’s a pantomime; it’s a silent night; it’s Christmas time“) without seeming cheesy, cliché or overt. It’s a sophisticated subtlelty that shows Flowers is one of the finest modern songwriters. This goes hand-in-hand with his ability to really lay down that impossible to describe feeling of Christmas. This is the true meaning of Christmas, spelled out in four minutes.