Every year, it's the same old tunes. Literally. Turn on any radio station after Thanksgiving, and you're sure to be overwhelmed by the endless warblings of "sleigh bells jingling ring-ting-a-ting-a-ling too" and " baby it's cold outside." This is the time of the year for Michael Buble and Mariah Carey, for all your favorite bands to be releasing winter albums featuring covers of the same ten songs, just maybe with a different bass line or an unexpected vocal run halfway through.

So, in the spirit of the holiday season, here are five holiday songs that may sound familiar, but have been given a little twist to make them special - like hot chocolate with a lil Kahlua for a kick. Enjoy!

1. "Baby It's Cold Outside (Consent Remix)" by Megan Jones and Luc Rinaldi

It's really not much of a surprise to anyone anymore that "Baby It's Cold Outside" is an iffy song to sing at a holiday party - sure, it's kind of cute, I guess, and the tune is rather repetitive and gets stuck in your head for hours on end. But then when you look closer at the lyrics and realize that the woman is repeating several times that she desires to leave the guy just keeps pressuring her and pressuring her to stay, even to the point where she's asking, "hey, what's in this drink?"...well, let's just say that some people might think a better name for this song would be "Baby, It's Date Rape Inside".

So, Megan Jones and Luc Rinaldi rewrote this holiday favorite to be a little more suited to the times. The result is a creative, and slightly funny new take on what had previously been a problematic fave. While it's unlikely this version will be heard on the radio anytime soon, it's a nice alternative anytime you feel like picking up a guitar and heading to the holiday open mic night at a coffee shop or something. A catchy holiday song with a good message - what more can you ask for?

Rating: 6/10 for creative lyrics, but sometimes it's hard to catch what they're saying.

2. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Trap Remix)" by Trap Music Now

I'm going to be totally honest and say that I had no idea what to expect when I clicked on the Youtube link. And then I had to pause the video for a good five minutes because I was laughing so hard.

I'm not the world's greatest authority on trap music. As a matter of fact, the only thing I know about it is what my best friend describes as "slightly embarrassing, the kind of music I roll up my windows for when I play BTS's "Baepsae" in the car so people don't think I'm a loser." Nonetheless, I thought this was an entertaining remix, even if after a while it got a bit repetitive. I'm sure there's better trap remixes out there, but I'd recommend this one just for the "beat drop" and the sheer shock factor.

Rating: 7.5/10 for genuine laughter and a sick beat.

3. "Aussie Jingle Bells" by Bucko and Champs

O-kay...so I'm totally unfamiliar with what Christmas is like in Australia, but apparently it involves riding around in a "rusty Holden Ute" and "dodging kangaroos". If anything, give it a listen to just to hear "Jingle Bells" sung in an Australian accent.

In reality, though, Australian Christmases are kinda like the ones in the U.S., only it takes place in the summer instead of the winter. Instead of blizzards, they have to deal with massive brush fires. But, on the bright side, they get to go to the beach and barbecue on Christmas, and I'm sure sandmen don't melt as quickly as snowmen!

Rating: 7/10, for having the line "Kelpie by my side / Singing Christmas songs / It's summer time and I am in / My singlet, shorts, and thong."

4. "All I Want For Christmas Is You" by Gabbie Hanna and Jon Cozart

...basically.

It's like as soon as Thanksgiving (hell, even Halloween to be honest) ends, everyone sudden becomes knockoff Mariah Careys and knows exactly what they want for Christmas. Unfortunately, this particular song gets overplayed. So. Damn. Much. In grocery stores. In coffee shops. Government offices. On the radio. You go anywhere during November and December and you WILL hear this goddamn song. If it get bad enough, you might even develop an allergic reaction to it.

So, although this parody is fairly clever and entertaining, it does get points off simply because "All I Want For Christmas Is You" is still probably up there with "Friday" and "Gangnam Style" on the List of Most Annoying Songs Ever.

Rating: 8/10 for kickass vocals and saying what we're all thinking: "All I want for Christmas is you...TO GO AWAY."

5. "The 12 Pains of Christmas" by Bob Rivers

Oh man, this one brings up memories...I'd like to think that all these people live in one house and have to deal with these annoyances all together. For me, the real MVP of this song is the poor guy trying to string up the lights: "NOW WHY THE HELL ARE THEY BLINKING?"

But seriously. The holiday season can be a nightmare for some people. Crowded shopping centers, sky high expectations, dealing with family...yikes. But at the end of the day, let's hope that there will be peace on earth and goodwill towards men anyway...somehow...

Rating: 8.5/10 for being too true.

BONUS: "Christmas Eve - Sarajevo 12/14" by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra

BUCKLE UP KIDS I'M ABOUT TO TELL YOU ABOUT MY FAVORITE CHRISTMAS SONG EVER IT'S GONNA BE A WILD RIDE.

So, most likely you've heard this song before. It's like "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and "Carol of the Bells" but better, featuring both a rock band and an orchestra. Needless to say, the song goes hard - it's not your traditional Christmas ballad, not something you'd use to lull your sleepy children to bed at night. It's purely epic.

And the story behind is part of the reason why. See, "Christmas Eve - Sarajevo 12/24" is referencing the Bosnian War. From 1992 to 1996, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina was under siege by Bosnian Serb Army. The city was bombed and torn to ruins - much like we hear about in the news today about Aleppo, when you think about it.

During that time, there was a man by the name of Vedran Smailović, who was a classical cellist. Despite the danger, he began playing the cello in the bombed out ruins of buildings in Sarajevo, and also performed at funerals, despite the threat of snipers. The above picture is of Smailović playing in the ruins of the National Library in 1992.

The story of "The Cellist of Sarajevo" has inspired many musical works since then, including "Christmas Eve - Sarajevo 12/24". The cello heard playing in the beginning of the song is supposed to conjure the lonely image of a cellist playing in the ruins of a city, on Christmas Eve by himself. It's a sweet melody, very peaceful, but also very sad.

Then, when the rest of the orchestra and the rock band kicks in, that's supposed to be the war - the bombs, the shooting, all the violence that took place. Yet, even so, throughout the piece there's also bits of piano, reminiscent of the cello, even as the song goes on to become louder and more intense.

The producer of the song, Paul O'Neil, said in an interview that "the song basically wrapped itself around [Vedran Smailović]. We used some of the oldest Christmas melodies we could find, like "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and "Carol of the Bells" part of the medley (which is from Ukraine, near that region). The orchestra represents one side, the rock band the other, and single cello represents that single individual, that spark of hope."

Long story short - this song is utterly beautiful. Not only in it's composition, it's performance, but also the story behind it is just totally amazing.

Rating: 100000000000000000/10