J.J. Hrubovcak

You know those atrocious novelty metal Christmas albums that no one actually enjoys? This is nothing like those. You might chuckle at Hate Eternal bassist J.J. Hrubovcak and his brother/Monstrosity and Vile vocalist Mike Hrubovcak doing an EP of death metal versions of Christmas classics, but here's the rub: he's dead serious. On Death Metal Christmas, the pair turn "We Three Kings" into what essentially sounds like "Where the Slime Live Part Two" while changing all the lyrics to fit their new lyrical concept, which fits very well into death metal's no-smile rules and regulations. The musicianship on display here is excellent; the whole thing sounds like the Trans-Siberian Orchestra for death metalheads. (Really — "Greensleeves" never sounded so good.) And the Nutcracker theme? Forget about it. It would easy to assume this was a jokey toss-off, but it's actually a well-crafted and surprisingly passionately delivered album of death metal Christmas classics, which is a really odd thing to say.