It’s that time of the year again, that is, when you look at the calendar and realize Q4 is midway through and there is suddenly a new Adele album out in the world. Also, Christmas approaches and, for said reason, Carly Rae Jepsen decides to release a cover for Wham!’s much mocked (and equally celebrated) anthem “Last Christmas” — in the same day Adele drops 25. That takes courage.
It takes a while to process this fact and understand why Jepsen would do such a thing. Yet, she reinterprets said classic and makes it her own — the sonic palette of choice is reminiscent of the 1980s sound that made this year’s Emotion so great and the best pop album of the year. “Last Christmas”, in Jepsen’s world, is a controlled, hopeless anthem.