By: Seth Householder –

When mainstream music artists come to mind, Gwen Stefani is not one of them. Mainly popular in the 90’s with her band “No Doubt,” producing such hit songs such as “Don’t Speak” and “Just a Girl”, or in the early 00’s, when she went solo with popular songs such as “Hollaback Girl,” “Rich Girl,” and “Sweet Escape,” she hasn’t cracked the mainstream since.

She went through a lull in her career from 2007 to 2013, as during that time she was dealing with a new marriage and had three children. She joined the NBC show, “The Voice” as a judge from 2014-2015. She left “The Voice” after the end of their 2015 season to begin working on new music.

In the beginning of 2016, she divorced from her then-husband, Gavin Rossdale, and began dating country singer and “The Voice” judge Blake Shelton. Later that year, she released her new album, “This Is What the Truth Feels Like.” It struck sad themes of divorce and betrayal, but also struck happy themes of building a future and rebounding. She went quiet for almost a year until she came out with a single from her new Christmas album, “You Make It Feel Like Christmas.” The album came out October 6th and if you are looking for a good, new, Christmas album full of classic old songs and probably classic new ones, this is your best bet.

Track One: “Jingle Bells” – By far one of the most timeless songs on this entire album, Stefani brings her quirky voice to this classic and elevates it. Along with the retro horns and stellar 20’s-esque back-up singers, it perfectly encapsulates the spirit of the original song while giving it a timeless feel. Stefani’s vocals are nothing near what they could’ve been but they do the job. Rating: B+

Track Two: “Let It Snow” – Along with the backup singers from “Jingle Bells,” Stefani packs in some electric guitar. She captures the feeling of being snowed in but not caring about it perfectly with a combination of the vocals, and the guitar. The song radiates warmth and you can’t help but find yourself singing along. Rating: B+

Track Three: “My Gift Is You” – The first original song of this album, Stefani gushes over boyfriend, Blake Shelton, singing, “All I need is love and the truth / And I got it, my gift is you.” This song feels less like Christmas to me than the first two. The lyrics and the music are bland, not capturing the Christmas spirit like the first two did. This seems more like a country turned pop song than a Christmas song. It’s bearable though because of two reasons: the backup singers are back and the range of vocals Stefani shows. Rating: C+

Track Four: “Silent Night” – This Christmas classic is the one song that Stefani chooses to have the least other stuff on, from back-up singers to accompanying music. Showing off how beautifully weird her voice can be, it is a wonderful version of this song all the way around. Rating: A-

Track Five: “When I Was A Little Girl” – The second original song on the album, “When I Was A Little Girl” draws on one other song in particular. This song sounds like a distorted version of “Little Drummer Boy.” It is a deeper, more personal song to Stefani and you can hear it in her voice. She tries to make it sound Christmas-y, but, again, she encounters the same problem as her last original song, “My Gift Is You.” I usually enjoy it when artists open up with their music, but this is an exception. Rating: B-

Track Six: “Last Christmas” – Stefani tries to capture the magic of Mariah Carey’s take on Wham!’s original, but misses the mark. The more modern take on it is welcome, with Stefani’s formula (backup singers, guitar, the retro feel) helping it. Stefani’s quirky vocals are the slight wind that causes the arrow to miss the target. She tries her hardest to live up to Carey’s or Wham!’s, but falls on her face with her flatter vocals compared to Carey’s soulful, ranged, original vocals. Rating: B-

Track Seven: “You Make It Feel Like Christmas feat. Blake Shelton” – The source of the album’s name, it is by far one of the best tracks on the album. Stefani’s formula on previous songs is completely revamped with the addition of Blake Shelton. Not only does the music sound better, but she sounds happier because she’s dueting with Shelton. It is one of her original songs, and unlike the other two, this one is pretty good. It has classic status written all over it, and it would be a shame to see this song fade into oblivion. It is as personal as “When I Was A Little Girl,” she just does it way better. The best part is when Shelton and Stefani are singing together, he taking the lower range and she taking the higher range. It shows that not only does she have range, but she can do it and do it well. Rating: A

Track Eight: “Under The Christmas Lights” – Her fourth original song on the album, Stefani refreshes her formula for this one, adding deep piano, violins, horns, and some wonderful drum work. This one is as personal to her as “You Make It Feel Like Christmas,” and she shows it by adopting a Southern twang every once in awhile. It is definitely a good addition to the album, but will probably be the most underrated of all of the songs on the album. Rating: A-

Track Nine: “Santa Baby” – With this classic, the original was already very retro sounding and sensual, but Stefani totally amps those up to 11. She adds (on top of the old backup singers) some more back-up singers (male this time) and a little jingle bell every so often. Probably one of the best classic songs on this album. Rating: B+

Track Ten: “White Christmas” – Originally crooned by Bing Crosby, the original was wonderful enough as it was. Stefani tries her hardest to modernize the classic while still paying homage to the original and fit it within her formula. And, despite all of these things combined, she makes it work. Her vocals somehow even harken back to Bing Crosby’s original, which makes me like it even more. Rating: A

Track Eleven: “Never Kissed Anyone With Blue Eyes Before You” – With no original to compare to, Stefani does a nice job making this song personal to her (it’s about Shelton, by the way), with a little twang – sometimes even sounding full out country –  to remind listeners that they’re together. She makes it sound like her older hits from the 00’s. The horn line in the song adds the cherry on top. Rating: B+

Track Twelve: “Christmas Eve” – The last song of the album, and her 6th original song on it, Stefani is talking about how much she can’t wait to spend Christmas Eve with Shelton. She throws away the formula of the past eleven songs and strips it down to basic music, a choir, and her vocals. She shows true range and that is even better with the choir in the back. It is a fitting end to the album and wraps it up with wrapping paper, a nice bow, and a tag that says “To: The World, From: Gwen Stefani.” Rating A-

Overview: While the first half is lackluster, and maybe a drag at points, it still has a few gems in the tried and true classics of “Jingle Bells” and “Silent Night.” The original songs of the first half prove Stefani has all of the right tools and the formula for a Christmas hit, but has no idea how to get there. Once you’ve made it through the first half, you are rewarded time after time with breaks or improvements in her formula and complete gems. She continues to improve herself with song after song and impress with each passing song. Every song makes you feel like it’s Christmas, and that’s all thanks to Stefani’s ability to break the formula set up in the first half, and her ability to be personal. Overall Rating: A-

Stefani’s album is available now on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon, Apple Music, and at retailers (Target, Walmart, etc.) now. A deluxe edition with a 24 page picture book of how Stefani made the album is available at Target, with prices of the album ranging from $14.99 to $17.99.