Christmas on the Moon, TheeSatisfaction (self-issued)

The self-described jazz-psychedelic-rap act from Seattle put this EP out for Christmas 2009. It's just six songs, none over two minutes, and they use their influences to deconstruct a handful of Christmas readymades, from "The Christmas Song" to Sir Paul's carol on "Simply Cracking." It's an interesting melange of influences -- in addition to their own self-description, they throw in a bit of soundtrack and showtune influence, all frosted with a bit of garage electropop. The title song is fully original, kind of cute, and it could have been part of the Flaming Lips' movie "Christmas On Mars." It's all pretty experimental, but since it's so short it avoids the main pitfall of this kind of music -- it doesn't wear out its welcome. You can stream it and download a couple of the cuts from this link.