It’s been nearly two years since indie rock trio POP ETC released their latest LP Souvenir. After the band changed their name from The Morning Benders to POP ETC, they slightly adjusted their sound to become a more pop-oriented sound. Now two albums into their transformation into POP ETC, the band has released a short EP of Christmas songs for the holidays titled A POP ETC Christmas. mxdwn is excited to bring you the premiere of this EP, which features two holiday covers and one original track.

First up is a song everyone knows from their childhood, the venerable “Christmastime is Here” from A Charlie Brown Christmas. While the original is punctuated by the innocence of children’s voices, POP ETC’s adds in a warm electric guitar tone.

“Since I was a kid I always loved Christmas songs,” said lead singer Chris Chu. “I fell in love with Vince Guaraldi’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas” soundtrack from an early age and I’ve listened to it every Christmas I can remember. I’ve always had the idea of trying to record a few Christmas songs myself, but for some reason or another things always got too busy around the holidays and I lost track of it… Until Now!”

The centerpiece of the album is the one original, “All I Want For Xmas (Just My Baby)” is a tuneful acoustic ballad with plenty of reverb on the vocals, making it a great addition to your holiday music rotation. According to Chu, it’s a song that he has been singing around the house since the day after Thanksgiving. Closing out the collection of three songs is one of the most popular holiday pop songs. Drummer Julian Harmon takes on Paul McCartney’s Christmas hit “Wonderful Christmas Time,” giving it a modern facelift.

A POP ETC Christmas

1. Christmas Time Is Here (A Charlie Brown Christmas)
2. All I Want For Xmas (Just My Baby)
3. Wonderful Christmas Time (Paul McCartney Cover sung by Julian from POP ETC )