Holiday Mixtapes

Along with endless amounts of shopping this holiday season comes another guilty pleasure-holiday music. Every savvy musician knows there’s a market in seasonal cheer, leaving consumers with a wide array of music to choose from. Consider popping in this “Holiday Mixtape” on your way home for winter break and listening to these unique variations of vintage songs.

1. ‘Little Drummer Boy’ (Dandy Warhols): The Dandy Warhols crank up the amps and spice up this Christmas classic with loopy, electronic guitar riffs. The low-budget 1994 video (pre-Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia fame) featuring a bizarre, middle-aged man running around in tighty whities and a Christmas hat is oddly amusing as well.

2. ‘Silent Night’ (Sinead O’Connor): This haunting version carried by O’Connor’s powerful, yet soft vocals is nothing short of spectacular. Discrete synthesizers fill in the rest, as O’Connor’s peaceful voice lulls listeners into tranquility.

3. ‘The Chanukah Song’ (Adam Sandler): After putting much thought as to whether or not I should include this song, I just couldn’t help myself. Yes, we will hear this song approximately 10,000 times on the radio this holiday season, but it just doesn’t feel without Adam Sandler naming a boatload of Jewish (and Gentile) celebrities.

4. ‘Ave Maria’ (Dolores O’Riordan and Luciano Pavarotti): Dolores O’Riordan is, without a doubt, my favorite rock vocalist of all time. However, I was unsure as to how she would fare next to “The Maestro” himself, Luciano Pavarotti. O’Riordan manages to bring unique, whispery vocals to this piece, making it her own while Pavarotti tones down his flawless voice a notch to not outshine O’Riordan. Opera experts might cringe at O’Riordan’s lack of Latin pronunciation, but other audiences should give this rendition a shot.

5. ‘Hallelujah’ (Jeff Buckley): Buckley’s melancholy take on Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” strays from the original with impressive guitar-picking that is hard to notice below Buckley’s sincere and luscious vocals. This beautiful rendition is worth a listen, if not for the last five seconds where Buckley shouts “Hallelujah” with such passion and conviction, it’s hard to forget.

6. ‘God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen’ (Barenaked Ladies featuring Sarah McLachlan): A perfect combination of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen along with another Christmas carol “Kings of Orient.” The Barenaked Ladies provides acoustic chords and pleasant vocals, when McLachlan chimes in, making room for a sugary-sweet combination.

7. ‘Panis Angelicus’ (Chloe Agnew): As a member of the successful musical ensemble Celtic Woman, Chloe Agnew delivers a spectacular rendition of this Latin hymn with her cherubic vocals.

8. ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ (Mariah Carey): Mariah Carey’s 1994 original proved to be a staple back then, and it’s still bound to be played at every shopping mall across the country this holiday season. Though there’s no doubt in my mind that I’ll hate this song by the end of the season, I just can’t start the winter without it. A bouncy beat teamed with Carey’s almost-too-perfect voice, makes this song undeniably catchy . whether you love it or hate it.

9. ‘Adeste Fideles’ (Enya): Enya provides a flawless rendition of this song with the crystal clear and angelic voice for which she is famous.

10. ‘Christmas Song’ (Flyleaf): The rockers of Flyleaf manage to clean up for this harmless Christmas song. Though Lacey Mosley’s unique, high-pitched vocals can be too much at times, she manages to pull off this acoustic rendition quite well.