Yes, it is that time of year again. Halloween is a memory, Thanksgiving has just passed, and the New Year looms on the horizon. In between the now and the next is a little holiday called Christmas, and with it come all of the familiar trappings. Insane shopping, endless mall Santa's, charities looking to help the needy, holiday themed movies, and a string of annual Christmas television specials culminating with a twenty-four hour run of the timeless A Christmas Story.

Beyond all of that, for better or worse, there is another element of the season that is even harder to get away from, that's right, Christmas songs. No matter where you go or what you do you are bound to come across a tune or a jingle that will do one of two things: 1. awaken your inner child or 2. make your eyes bleed as you yearn for the season to be over already. Well, relief may be in sight for the metal fan, maybe, in the guise of Wish You a Metal Xmas and a Headbanging New Year.

A couple of years ago Warcon records got a bunch of their emo/screamo/post-hardcore acts together to put out a Christmas album called A Taste of Christmas. I am not a fan of most of the acts on the disk, but I picked it up in the hopes that it would fill the need for some rocking Christmas tunes. Unfortunately, it failed to do so. It had a couple of cool tunes, but it had a few depressing numbers that I just did not care for. Last year Twisted Sister put out a collection of Christmas tunes the only way they know how, and it paid off. It is no classic by any stretch, but Twisted Christmas went a long way towards providing some rocking holiday fare topped by their take on "The 12 Days of Christmas."

Now we have another metal tinged collection of Christmas songs. This one is a little different in that it does not feature a band or bands to provide the music, rather it is a collection of musical luminaries in various combinations. It is a different take that I have seen work for tribute albums, but tackling Christmas music is a different story. Could they come together and bring new meaning to Christmas classics? The answer is yes, although not overwhelmingly so.

The release is littered with such names as Alice Cooper, Lemmy Kilmister, Ronnie James Dio, Chuck Billy, Tim 'Ripper' Owens, Geoff Tate, and Dug Pinnick. And that is just the singers! Take a look at the instrument side and you will find the likes of Bob and Bruce Kulick, Billy F. Gibbons, Dave Grohl, Vinnie Appice, Tony Iommi, George Lynch, Billy Sheehan, Tracii Guns, and Greg Bissonette, among others. It is quite the awesome assemblage of talent and experience. How can you go wrong?