Review: Loreena McKennitt 'Under a Winter's Moon'

I am a firm believer that nothing Christmas should darken my door until the “legal” start of the season; Santa Claus in the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. So I rarely end up reviewing holiday albums, which are typically released in early to mid November. I say all that to say the fact that I am reviewing Loreena McKennitt's double album Under a Winter's Moon is a mini-review in itself.

I've long been a fan of McKennitt who has, in my opinion, one of the greatest voices in music today. I have some of her previous holiday work in my collection already. But there are two things that set Under a Winter's Moon apart and make it a worthy buy even if you do have her other holiday collections. First is that it's recorded live. It's a rare thing for a holiday song or album, most of which are slickly overproduced and sickeningly sweet (I'm looking at you Mariah Carey). But recording the album live, during a series of 2021 stops at a historic sanctuary in Ontario, gives it a warmth and authenticity rarely heard in the genre.

The second is the spoken word aspect of the album, performed by Canadian indigenous actor Tom Jackson and memoirist Cedric Smith. Jackson kicks off the album with a dramatic telling of The Sky Woman Story, the Turtle Island creation story of Canada's indigenous population. It's a mood setter for McKennitt's otherworldly and haunting vocals.

It's Smith who gets the star turn here as much of the second disc is devoted to his reading of Dylan Thomas' “A Child's Christmas in Wales.” The folksy and engaging voice of Smith brings Thomas' poem to life in a form that is part Garrison Keillor's Tales from Lake Woebegone and part Jean Shepherd's tales that form the core of A Christmas Story.

But, as always, the true star here is McKennitt's band's aching instrumentals and her own voice, itself another instrument in the mix. The songs range from traditionals like “The Holly and the Ivy” to the star of the show, McKennitt's own “Dickens' Dublin.”

If you want something to soundtrack your holiday that is more than dirge-like pah-rum-pumming or twee money grabs from your favorite artist (this time I'm looking at you Paul McCartney), this is it. You won't know the album's live until you hear the applause, the band and the vocals are that good. The song choices are, while often pulled from the Christmas worship catalog, carefully selected to make this as much a “winter” album as a Christmas one.