Music Review: Brandi Burkhardt MERRY & BRIGHT Just Right For Christmas

Singer-songwriter Brandi Burkhardt has released a Christmas EP this month that is certain to become one that families of every dynamic and demographic will be able to enjoy during the holiday season, thanks to a nicely balanced mixture of musical genres, as well as old and new compositions.  The actress has been doing a lot of her own music, lately, with singles dropping periodically throughout the last few months, but those singles are aimed at the radio and playlists, with pop sounds and edgy vibes, but MERRY & BRIGHT takes Ms. Burkhardt right down a Yuletide path and into the holiday season, and it's taking us right there with it.

Wisely avoiding the religious and keeping things secular, Brandi Burkhardt presents two classic Christmas songs and two originals of her own composition (with Andrei Khalilov and Nate Lanzino) - new creations that are destined to be sung in other peoples’ shows and on other peoples’ albums.  They are new Christmas classics that people will enjoy for years to come, but right now it's best to enjoy them in the voice of the woman who brought them into the world.

What makes Merry & Bright such a welcome addition to the Christmas music catalogue is its diversity of sound and styles, which is probably what Brandi Burkhardt had in mind when she designed the set of songs.  As an actress, she more than likely understands the need for variety in emotions and experiences, and as a recording artist, she definitely appreciates the benefit of diversity in sound.  

For her first cut on the album, Ms. Burkhardt is offering her own song, "Merry & Bright," which opens with Christmas jingles and dulcet vocals, setting a holiday tone.  But then the percussion comes in and we are given a danceable track blending pop vocals with r&b beats.  The sweetness of sound reminds us of the childhood wonder of Christmas and the dance rhythms speak to the adult inside of us who enjoys the holiday season, especially the parties and people, and her music and lyrics are really working for her - it would be very easy to playlist this song with your selections from the Kelly Clarkson and Meghan Trainor Christmas albums.

Tracks two and three go traditional, with Brandi’s “Let It Snow!” giving bright, brassy, and bouncy, as it should be and as it has done, over the years.  But Brandi doesn’t do things the way everyone else does, so she puts a little jazz into the arrangement and makes the storytelling intention unique to herself by placing the emphasis on certain words that haven’t, traditionally, been given the focus.  It's fun to hear a something so often played find new nuances in the hands of an artist with a different point of view, and a quest for something all their own. 

From jazz and bounce, Brandi Burkhardt heads into ballad land with a simple and ever-so-slightly lush “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” that gives us all the feels a person gets at Christmastime, especially when waxing nostalgic about the holiday of seasons past.  With that pure and lovely Burkhardt voice full of emotion and intention, she tells us a story we’ve already heard before, only in a way that makes it a fait accompli that it will land in the holiday playlist, even though there are already three versions of the song there, already.  It's perfect listening for a contempletive walk in the park (hello, headphones) or a nighttime drive around the neighborhood to look at the lights of Christmas blinking against a moonless sky.

To close out the EP, Brandi Burkhardt saves the best for last.  Her new song “My Man In Red” is classic holiday big band meets modern-day bop, and it belongs on every playlist, every DJ’s list, and every reviewer’s “Best of” list.  Burkardt and Lanzino have married adorable lyrics and marvelous melody in the best of all possible ways, creating a hook that you will find yourself humming all day long.  Add to that those incomparable Burhardt vocals and great production values and you have the holiday hit of the season.  In fact, all of the technicians on all four songs (for they differ) are to be commended for the seamless blending of voice and instruments and the mixing of levels that make the set of songs both easy to hear and easy to listen to.  The entire project must have been a joy for Brandi Burkhardt to create, for it certainly is a joy to listen to MERRY & BRIGHT, and you will probably find yourself doing it over and over… even after the season is a few days past.

Brandi Burkhardt's MERRY & BRIGHT is a 2023 release on the Gracie Face label and is available on all streaming platforms.

All the credits and things:

Merry & Bright
Produced by: Andrei Khalilov/Kontrabandz
Additional Production by: Nate Lanzino
Written by: Brandi Burkhardt, Andrei Khalilov, Nate Lanzino

Let It Snow
Produced by: Dave Seibels

I’ll Be Home For Christmas
Produced by: Dave Siebels
Additional Production, Guitar: Nate Lanzino
Drums: Chris Pierorazio

Man In Red
Produced by: Booming Brothers/Beats Avenue
Additional Product by: Nate Lanzino
Written by: Brandi Burkhardt, Nate Lanzino

Mastered by: Tony Eichler, Goldtone Masterworks

Follow Brandi Burkhardt on her website HERE, on YouTube HERE, and on Instagram HERE.

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