As a young lad, I became accustomed to those tortured Christmas Carol albums– you Christmas observers out there know which ones I am talking about. Your parents would dig them out and play them over and over, year after year. Don’t get me wrong– I enjoy the spirit of Christmas, but always thought there was a better way to do the ‘music part.’ Sufjan Stevens is coming to the rescue this year and is bringing us ‘Songs for Christmas,’ a 5-disc indie rock Christmas sing-along box set (he recorded the first 4 discs for friends and family over the past 5 years). I have always enjoyed Sufjan’s music, but I have to give him special props for adding a little indie flavor to Christmas music. In ‘Songs for Christmas,’ you’ll find some classics and you’ll find some more secular Sufjan originals (e.g. ‘Come On! Let’s Boogey to the Elf Dance’)– either way, it makes for a great gift for that person you know that enjoys Christmas, but is tired of conventional Christmas music. It’s available online ($19), directly from Asthmatic Kitty Records.