I know your predicament; You want the Christmas cheer, you want the happy yuletide glow but, the last thing you want is your father's version of either. No Perry Como, no Bing Crosby (unless he's side by side with David Bowie) and definitely no Dr. Elmo and his Grandma Got Run-over By A Reindeer ring-tones, which according to the lawsuit do more to enrich his Mr. Scrooge record company than his own Bob Cratchit self.

With those kinds of restrictions placed on the modern hipster's holiday playlist, it doesn't leave much room for X-Mas cheer, does it? Well, guess again Emo boy. Here are a few modern holiday favorites you (almost) certainly haven't heard.

Jasin of Your Standard Life clued us in to a great cover of "White Christmas". It's unconventional, slow, and really brilliant. Jasin writes, "If you are a frequent visitor here, you know i am a big fan of Jamie Randolph and his CD Villian. Here is an early Christmas gift to all of you from Jamie. Happy Holidays. Download MP3 Here." Jamie Randolph's album is available from Marauder Records.

Last year a musician friend of mine, Pete Green, wrote a song entitled, "Everything's Dead Pretty When It Snows." It has become an instant holiday favorite of mine. It's available for free download under a Creative Commons license, so share it up with your friends! Check out more from Pete, and if you're in Manchester, England.. go see him live tomorrow night at The Basement where he'll be playing a holiday fund-raiser for Manchester's "funky social centre/café/arts space thingy."

Finally, Without Sound, points to a host of Sufjan Stevens Christmas songs. "Get Behind Me, Santa" totally wins for best x-mas song title ever. "If Stevens' previous releases didn't reveal the depth to which he is also searching, you may be surprised to find that an anthology of Christmas songs proclaims his grasp of the undeniable truth that we are all searching. Searching for a way to extend that moment when we forget who we are, we raise our voices together, and bask in the glory of one voice." Four songs available for download from Sufan's Christmas album show that it's a must have for alterna-holiday cheer.