"Snow Globe" is a Christmas album that was released 2013 but not pressed on vinyl until 2016 when Erasure's back catalogue was bought by BMG.
When I found out Erasure were recording a Christmas album, I
have to admit, I wasn’t very excited. In fact I was anticipating it being as
bad as “Other People’s Songs”. Yet, somehow this album isn't the car crash it could have been.
Tracks like “Silent Night” and “Silver Bells” work because Andy sings them so well. Vince’s sparse arrangements augment the beauty of the vocals as they are imaginative and unique.
Strangely, a quarter of the tracks here are original material that are unrelated to Christmas. This means "The Christmas Song" sits cheek by jowl with new pop songs like "Loving Man". Whilst the running order of the album is incongruous, the new material is actually very good."Bells of Love", the afore mentioned "Loving Man" and "Make it Wonderful" are some of the best songs Vince and Andy had written in the 8 years since "Nightbird". An oddity of an album, but definitely worth a look. 3/5
