The Hillbilly Thomists, a band of Dominican friars of the Province of St. Joseph, released their fifth album—and their first Christmas collection—Carols in December 2025. The ten-track recording, available for purchase on CD, on Apple Music and on Spotify, presents traditional carols arranged in the group’s familiar acoustic and folk style.

Discussing the musical choices behind this collection, Father Jonah Teller, OP, explained what the band hoped to offer within a crowded field of Christmas recordings.

“The banjo is a Christmas instrument! That sounds trite, but really I think there’s something Yule-ish about the banjo, and it was a delight to hear that instrument ornament all of these traditional carols with a sound that’s distinctly HT but at the same time rings true to the theme of the music,” said Father Jonah. He added that the group’s attention to vocal blend remained central. “We’re also really into harmonizing with each other, and I think that’s something at the heart of the band as well.”

Father Justin Bolger, OP, echoed that intention. “Christmas music is definitely a crowded field and our offering is not groundbreaking, but you could say the Incarnation is, and so art that celebrates the Incarnation at least participates in groundbreaking.” He noted that the album draws entirely from classic repertoire. “These old carols—no originals on this album—have rich lyrics that explore the beauty and mystery of Christmas,” he said. Their goal, he explained, was to produce “a theologically sound and hopefully sing-a-long-able addition to the Christmas album canon.”

Years in the making

Both friars described a long and patient recording process. The album developed over several years, with periods of focused work when schedules allowed. Father Jonah recalled one particularly concentrated session. “Around the end of February in 2024, Father Justin, Father Simon Teller and I drove up to Hanover, NH, to do a 48-hour Christmas recording session with Father Timothy Danaher. We set up shop in a big room at Aquinas House (the Catholic center at Dartmouth) and basically spent 30 of those 48 hours recording as many songs as we could.” Although initially concerned about the results, the friars later discovered that, surprisingly, a good deal of the recordings were usable.

Father Justin also pointed to the extended timeline. “These were recorded over the course of a few years when we had time. We didn’t prioritize this project but would fit it in when we were recording other albums. So it definitely required patience.” This, he said, aligned with the spirituality of the season, since patience is a prominent theme in Advent.

When it came to selecting music, the friars relied on instinct and shared musical experience. “The band just has a sense of what traditional pieces will sound right,” Father Jonah said. “I think Father Justin particularly has a good sense of what will work, and we tend to trust his lead on that.” He pointed to Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming as a highlight. “It was the very first carol we recorded a few years ago—this album has been years in the making—and that fiddle part that Father Simon plays is just perfect.”

Father Justin traced the repertoire back to the friars’ liturgical life in Washington, D.C. “Every year our schola sings carols for about 30 minutes before midnight Mass on Christmas eve. These are largely chosen from those carols.” Among his favorites are The First Noel and Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming, which the band arranged with “a mid-tempo bluegrass treatment.”

Both friars noted the album’s contemplative character. “I think we went for the more contemplative side of Christmas. No jingle bells. No jazzy chords. No appearances from Santa,” Father Justin said. Father Jonah agreed that balancing moods was intuitive: “That’s a feel thing, at least for me. We know we want a balance of that, I guess, and we’ve been playing music together for a while now.”

Encountering the mystery of Christmas

The album also brought moments of unexpected insight. Father Jonah explained that Coventry Carol, which he initially resisted, became an entry point into the drama of the Nativity. “It also gives you food for thought about the mystery of Christmas itself. Christ was born to save, and he chose to be born immediately into confusion and suffering.”

Asked what they hope listeners will experience, Father Jonah said simply, “The love of God and the delight of music!” For his part, Father Justin hoped the carols would draw listeners into prayer. “Christmas shows the truth and sweetness of God’s love. I hope these carols communicate and deliver some sense of this great mystery of our faith.”

Carols reflects the friars’ ongoing effort to unite preaching, beauty, and the joy of the Gospel. Through the thoughtful selection of familiar melodies, The Hillbilly Thomists invite listeners to return to the heart of Christmas, where the humility of the Incarnation continues to quietly speak.