Sometimes you have to make sure Santa knows where he is. Sometimes you want ol’ St. Nick to hear the double kick, the huge amps, and the sludgy riffs.
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“White Christmas” is fine, but have you ever heard Korn sing “Kidnap the Sandy Claws”? That’s the spirit of this list, to rattle the roof.
Here are the 12 best Heavy Metal Christmas songs.
1. “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” by Dio with Tony Iommi
Impending. You’re on a slow march to the electric chair. What could be a better aesthetic for a Christmas song? Satan’s power, going astray are the themes of this holiday metal classic.
2. “Kidnap the Sandy Claws” by Korn
A cover of the Danny Elfman classic from The Nightmare Before Christmas, the thick riff rock from Korn is the perfect wave for this track to ride. It’s hectic, haunting, and howling.
3. – 4. “Christmas Dreams” and “Carol of the Bells” by Trans-Siberian Orchestra
This group knows how to go hard on the holiday hits. Exhibits A and B are “Christmas Dreams” and “Carol of the Bells.” The first features piano, but the song builds and builds. And the latter is just a frenetic ride, rich with rises and falls with eerie cellos and lightning guitars.
5. “Jingle Hell” by Christopher Lee
Your grandfather, if he had a black star electric guitar that he used to summon the dead.
6. “Viking Christmas” by Amon Amarth
Grab your chalices, roast and smoke your meats, and leave the beard conditioner at home. It’s a Viking Christmas time. This growler from Amon Amarth is the sound of the cavern in your chest purging.
7. “Christmas with the Devil” by Spinal Tap
The world’s best fake band gives us one of the best heavy metal Christmas songs. Of course, it’s both artful and smile-inducing. The Spinal Tap signature.
8. “Mistress for Christmas” by AC/DC
AC/DC doesn’t waste any time, do they? They’re direct, right to the point. And here, the door frame-rattling rock group tells you, well, just what they want.
9. – 10. “Heavy Metal Christmas” and “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” by Twisted Sister
From the band’s Metal Christmas album, Twisted Sister offers two-holiday classics. And while these are heavy, riffy, and rock, check out more from the band, including a rendition of “Oh Come All Ye Faithful.”
11. “We Three Kings” by Halford
Metal is all about rebellion. And that can be especially helpful around the holidays when tradition seems to be king. Any regular churchgoer knows this song. But to hear Halford’s version is like a fist punch to the sky.
12. “Run, Rudolph, Run” by Lemmy, Billy Gibbons, and Dave Grohl
A freaking banger.
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