Hometown pinups 'N Sync have certainly proven their worth over the past year. Who better to capture the essence of a saccharine mall stroll on our most beloved holiday?
On "Home for Christmas," the harmonious lads turn in a stylized set of mostly original holiday-tinted fare with a few classics thrown in. Humorous simplicity easily lends itself to criticism, as on "Under My Tree," where the awkward paean "it's beautiful under my tree" almost crosses over the line in boyish sexual innuendo. "In Love on Christmas" borrows a jazzed-up "Jingle Bells" refrain, dropping in a slippery, sensual howl despite the grounding forces of "opening gifts and playing with kids."
For the most part, this is simple strolls and slow jams offset only by the vocal histrionics of five boys leaping over each other for attention. It's the sound of a little girl's Christmas dream and, as such, should probably be over by morning.
