Mindy Smith is an American singer/songwriter who was born and raised in Long Island, New York but eventually ended up in Nashville pursuing a music career. Her music has been called folk, country, Americana, bluegrass and even pop. She’s often compared to Norah Jones and Alison Krauss. Snowed In is her second Christmas release, following her 2007 Christmas album My Holiday.
Snowed In begins with a brand-new, original Christmas song written by Mindy herself, “Tomorrow Is Christmas Day,” and it’s truly gorgeous. From the gentle guitars to the mellow beats to Mindy’s light and dreamy voice, everything about this song is perfect. Musically speaking, it sounds more like a folk song than a Christmas song, but the lyrics are all about Christmas, referring to Santa and toys and elves and all that good stuff. This is definitely a song I’ll be adding to my Christmix playlist this year. I might even use it as the opening track.
Mindy does an excellent country-style rendition of “What Child Is This” next. Where her voice had a sweet and uplifting vibe on “Tomorrow Is Christmas Day,” here she sounds much more serious, which is obviously what you want for a song about the birth of Jesus. She doesn’t sound overly solemn though. Just enough. And her voice still sounds rather pretty, as always. Listening to Mindy’s version of this classic is almost like having an angel sing it to you; her voice is that perfect.
The title track, “Snowed In,” is another original Christmas song that Mindy wrote for the EP. “All I could think to put on my list is Christmas,” begins the delicate song. “Playing our records / Spinning our favorite songs / Down by the fire / How could we go wrong,” goes my favorite part of the ballad-esque folk song, which paints a vivid picture of a perfect Christmas. Occasionally, there’s a bit of soft percussion, but much of the song consists of lightly-played guitars and bass along with pretty piano.
I expected to be a little bored when “Silent Night” began because we’ve all heard so many renditions of this one over the years that you just feel like, “‘Silent Night’ — again?” But I must admit that I fell in love with Mindy’s delicate version before the one minute mark. There’s an air of vulnerability to the way she sings it and it just over-takes you.
The EP concludes with “Auld Lang Syne,” the one about old acquaintances being forgotten and all that jazz. Mindy’s rendition starts off very softly sans percussion and for a second or two I didn’t think I was going to like it, but once the percussion kicks in and she starts singing it a bit louder, it really comes to life. In fact, by the end of it, you’re sure to agree that Mindy breathes new life into the old song.
I would especially recommend this EP to folk and country music fans who are on the market for some new Christmas tunes, but it’s really so wonderful that fans of any genre of music who are looking for new Christmas music should fall in love with it. I sure did.
Snowed In is actually Mindy’s second Christmas release. She previously released a whole album of Christmas tunes called My Holiday. Listen to her sing it below:
Check out Mindy’s official site for more information and great deals on her CDs and stuff:
http://www.mindysmithmusic.com/index.php
See also:
https://www.facebook.com/mindysmithmusic
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