It's always a sign that a group is hot if they release a
holiday
album mere months after their debut. That's the case with
*NSYNC
. Their debut was released in America in late March, and in early December,
Home for Christmas
hit the shelves. Much of the album is devoted to newer material, with only a handful of songs qualifying as
standards
:
"The Christmas Song,"
"The First Noel,"
and
"O Holy Night."
All of it is given the familiar
sheen, alternating between slickly produced
adult contemporary
ballads
and lite
dance-pop
. Fans of the group will certainly find it reasonably enjoyable, even though it makes it clear that the group simply can't rival such peers as the
Spice Girls
or the
Backstreet Boys
in terms of charisma. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine