The album art for ‘Hyrrs: Festive Hymns Made Feminist’; Photo: Grey London/Goldstein Music
Progressive British ad agency, Grey London, has teamed up with fellow Brit music production creatives, Goldstein Music, to put a feminist spin on seven iconic Christmas carols, with 100% of the proceeds going toward the charity organization, Refuge, that specializes in helping victims of domestic violence.
Dubbed Hyrrs: Festive Hymns Made Feminist, classic choral numbers like “Deck the Halls” and “Oh Christmas Tree” are supplemented with new titles, “Kick the Balls (of Patriarchy” and “Oh Sexism.” Equal parts sarcastic and in harmony, like some lost Monty Python project, an angelic choir slays on the former: [LISTEN]
Kick the balls of patriarchy
Fa la la la la, fa la la la
We’re all sick of this malarky
Fa la la la la, fa la la la
Old white men hog all the power
Fa la la la la, fa la la la
Let’s bring down that phallic tower
Fa la la la la, fa la la la
Seeking to add to the conversation around sexual misconduct incidents and allegations dominating the news world this year, from Hollywood to Capitol Hill, Grey London’s co-chief creative officer, Vicki Maguire, told Campaign US: “From Weinstein and Westminster to salaries and sexism, 2017 has shown how appalling it can be for women. That’s why we now want to make a statement about kicking everyday inequality in the baubles this Christmas, while raising money for an amazing cause that helps women.”
Meanwhile, Refuge chief executive Sandra Horley, chimed in on how effective a sense of humor is at this particular moment in time, “The Hyrrs of the world are often accused of lacking a sense of humour. So this is a divine opportunity for the Hymns of the world to see the funny side. Otherwise, guess who has the last laugh?”
Perhaps not as subversive a punch as last year’s “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” consensual update, with “Deck the Halls” and “Silent Night” dealing in decorations and deities we’re all familiar with. But with edits like these to the latter, Grey London certainly nailed the humor element:
Stereotypes, stereotypes
All of them, just ain’t right
Cougars, virgins, Tiger Moms
Crazy cat ladies and pneumatic blondes
If you don’t know what we mean
Watch a ‘Transformers’ movie
And of course every single penny is headed toward Refuge’s cause.
Check out the full track list for Hyrrs: Festive Hymns Made Feminist below, followed by a lyric video for “Kick the Balls (of Patriarchy)” and download the project’s Hyrrbook if you care to DIY it around town.
1.) Kick the Balls (Of Patriarchy) — to the tune of “Deck the Halls”
2.) Oh Sexism! — to the tune of “Oh Christmas Tree!”
3.) More Than Half of Working Women (Have Been Sexually Harassed) — to the tune of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
4.) Good Queen Wenceslas — set to the tune of “Good King Wenceslas”
5.) Equal Salary — to the tune of “In The Bleak Midwinter”
6.) Female Sexual Pleasure — to the tune of “Once in Royal David’s City”
7.) Stereotypes — to the tune of “Silent Night”