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Simone Kopmajer – Home For Christmas

Florian Buechting Media Review No Comments

Simone Kopmajer - Home For Christmas

Simone Kopmajer - Home For Christmas
4.1

Rating

 4.1/5

Flyctory.com Pros

  • Nice new, jazzy approach to Christmas classics
  • Amazing voice

Flyctory.com Cons

  • Some songs are a bit too virtuous

In February 2023, Austrian jazz singer Simone Kopmajer fascinated me, when she released her album With Love. In the review, the record received 4.7 out of 5.0 points. On 8th November 2024, she is heating you up for the hunt for presents – it’s Christmas time with the artist from Styria. Her album is titled Home For Christmas.

 

Simone Kopmajer – About The Artist

Simone Kopmajer is a 1981-born jazz artist. She early learned to play the piano and later added the saxophone. The decision to focus on vocal performances came comparably late, in her later teenage year. She later studied in Graz and New York City, where she also recorded her first record. Moonlight Serenade (2003) was rather successful in Japan. Since then, she has already released thirteen studio albums. Her most recent is Hope, which has been published in July 2024. Home For Christmas is by the way her sophomore Christmas album. She released the album Christmas four years ago.

 

Simone Kopmajer – Home For Christmas – Track by Track

The fifteen song album lasts 57 minutes.

1. It’s Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas

Jingle bells in the background and a typical jazz band in the background – Simone Kopmajer starts her 2024 Christmas album with exactly what you would expect from this album. Furthermore, she is going for one of the Christmas classics. The sound is very jazzy. The focus is on the lovely voice of the artist. Nice opener, which fades out in a rather virtuous way.

2. Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town (with Ana Milva Gomes)

Most of the version of this classic are rather rocking and speedy. However, it is a key element of each cover album that you add your own personality to it. Kopmajer does great in this discipline. The song is very jazzy and the collaboration with Dutch Ana Milva Gomes is leading to a versatile and enjoyable listen.

3. I’ll be Home For Christmas

The opening of this version of I’ll Be Home For Christmas starts with a some twenty second instrumental intro, before the vocalist takes the floor with her warm and soulful voice. Overall, the song is more a showcase to the instrumentalists and comes with some beautiful piano melodies. A festive treat for (instrumental) jazz.

4. Home (with Viktor Gernot)

Viktor Gernot is joining Kopmajer for Home. His dark voice is a real treat and add-on to the song, which became big by Michael Buble. The two artists turn the song into a great jazzy listen.

5. Christmas Each and Every Day

The fifth song of the album is featured on Home For Christmas twice. First of all, there is this album version, while the chucker-out is the shorter radio track. The song is surprisngly pop-ish and thus easy to digest.

6. What Are You Doing New Year´s Eve?

Whkle most of the songs on the album are Christmas classics and may be found on your personal Santa Clause playlist in other versions, I did not know this one before. Kopmajer interprets this song in a slow and gentle manner, so that it is a real treat to listen to her telling the story of it. Nice.

7. River

The following track River works similarly than its predecessor. The most catching element on the instrumental side is definitely the saxophone in here. Especially in later parts of the song, it is a very present part of the listen.

8. Let It Snow

Okay, that’s a real classic, you can all sing-a-long to it. However, don’t do too loud, because then you might the rhythmic and somehow cheeky performance by the artist. I really like her wwas of performing it, it has a nice groove and vibe.

9. Hallelujah (with Anja Om)

The thoughtful and deep classic by Leonard Cohen is getting quite a load of Christmas vibes in this 2024. A key feature of Kopmajer’s song is thereby the collaboration with Anja Om, which is adding a lot of atmosphere. Some parts even feel like a choir in the background.

10. It´s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year (with John Di Martino)

The tenth song comes with another collaboration. This time,US-American jazz artist John Di Martino is the guest musican. The jazzy transformation works really good in this one, which turns out being one of my favorite listens of the album.

11. Süsser die Glocken nie klingen

So far, Simone Kopmajer solely presented songs in English. However, this one is a Christmas classic in Germany – and the jazz artist is going for a performance in her native language. This version is nice, but the key catch is the language, indeed.

12. Erzherzog Johann Jodler (with Herbert Pixner)

This one is maybe the most special listen of the album. This Austrian song is performed in Austrian dialect. The key element is definitely the jodeling. Accordion player Herbert Pixner is joining for this song, in which even is a small beatbox-alike section. Erzherzog Johann Jodler is one of the most playful songs of the album. It is fascinating, but also a bit of confusing to me. Nonetheless, it adds something new and special to Home For Christmas.

13. Rockin´Around the Christmas Tree (with Aaron Heick)

This one has to have speed, rhyhthm and fun – and that’s exactly what the Austrian artist is going for in her interpretation. This also means that she has to be a bit closer to the original than in other songs of the album. Thus, it is the role of the instrumentalists to make this 2:53 minute recoding special. Especially the saxophonist is in focus in that regard.

14. Happy Xmas (War Is Over)

So this is Christmas and what have you done – the last song of the album, apart from the radio edit version thereafter is spreading rather typical holiday vibes. The children’s choir in the background is doing a lot in that regard. This is Christmas – this record closes in a wonderful manner.

15. Christmas Each and Every Day (Radio Edit)

The radio edit of the opener is some one minute shorter. Overall, the versions don’t differ that much. I rather lean towards the full album version.

 

Simone Kopmajer – Home For Christmas – Spotify

Here is Home For Christmas on Spotify:

 

Simone Kopmajer – Home For Christmas – My View

Christmas albums are a very difficult genre. Either you sing the classics in a way people are used to it – and hope that they either like you or your voice so that they buy or stream it. Alternatively, you add your own spirit and try to fascinate people by giving them the long-known songs in a very different style. Simone Kopmajer rather leans towards the second option in her 2024 album – and she does so in a really nice manner. Some songs might be a bit too virtuous . However, I have to state that I guess jazz lovers will have a different view.

Favorite Song: It’s the most Wonderful Time of the Year

 

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