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When I first brought the news that a subversive, independent facebook campaign was gaining headway in their effort to overthrow a single by Joe McElderry, winner of Britain’s The X Factor, as number one Christmas single in the U.K. pop charts with a Rage Against the Machine song from 1992, I had strong reservations as to whether they would actually succeed in their mission. As the U.K. pop charts closed on Sunday and I heavy-heartedly checked the NME website, who had been covering the battle extensively, my reaction was the same as that of “Rage Against the Machine for Christmas No 1” creator/moderator Jon Morter, as well as many others who had been following the campaign, “F— me, I can’t believe it’s Number One!”

That’s right. When all the single sales were tallied, Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name” received over 50,000 more purchases more than McElderry’s cover of Miley Cyrus’s “The Climb.” The U.K.’s Official Chart’s Company announced that the week’s events have given the RATM song two unprecedented landmarks in chart history; becoming the UK’s first download-only Christmas Number One and notching up the biggest one-week download sales total in British chart history. Not bad for a U.S. single nearly two decades old.

However, the success didn’t come without its share of nail biting and hair pulling. As McElderry’s single was released to physical sale in stores, a purchasing medium which the RATM song was not privy, sales numbers rose to around 9,000 less than the RATM tune and looked as though it would usurp its spot at number one. Also, as McElderry had wished the best in competition and naively mentioned at the start of the sales week how he had never heard of the hard-rock band or the song which was placed in contention with his, later went on record to brandish the tune as “dreadful.”

In the waning hours of the campaign, Paul McCartney, who had performed on The X Factor beside McElderry, gave his support on the side of the RATM song stating that their success would be “funny” and also “prove a [significant] point.”

Simon Cowell, who had spoken up immediately about the usurious campaign calling it, among other things, “very scrooge,” actually showed a respectable amount of humility as he called Morter as the polls were closing to wish him luck and even offering him a job at his production company. Morter explains:

“Simon was very sweet and it was lovely to talk to him. We had a good chat about music in general and just wished each other good luck. I’ve got total respect for him. That was really nice thing to do.”

Jon Morter himself is, perhaps, the most admirable of all the players involved because, as all the dust settled, he was noticeably vocal in the overall mission of the campaign; as a way to raise money for the Shelter charity program (£64,726 or approx. $104,043). He humbly acknowledged the influence of the campaign’s rivalry by stating;

“The whole aim of the campaign was not to dis The X Factor at all. The X Factor fans like music as much as we do so I’ve got absolutely nothing against them…there is nothing sad about being Christmas Number Two. There are thousands of bands across the country who would cut off their right arm to have a Christmas Number Two. It will probably go to Number One next week anyway.”

As promised, Rage Against the Machine will be performing a free concert in the U.K. due to the success of the campaign, although they will most likely not have to apologize for the song lyrics as executives of the BBC had to following a live performance where singer Zach De La Rocha sang the unedited version of “Killing in the Name” after promising to omit the vulgarity. (Really, BBC? You didn’t see this coming? This is the same band who was rumored to have been kicked off the Saturday Night Live set after threatening to take Steve Jobs hostage). 

If I were to announce the release of every Christmas album that will be coming out this year, the amassing levels of “holiday spirit” would have a drastic effect on my liver as I would have no choice but to reach out to other types of “spirits” to drown my disgust at the horribly over-commercialized holiday season. But, there is one album coming out this year that definitely won’t have me wrapping a garland noose around my neck. This season, I will be filling my habitually pessimistic holiday with the pomp of Aqua Teen Hunger Force’s Have Yourself a Meaty Little Christmas.

The characters of the widely popular Adult Swim program have put together an album that takes a stab at the banality of traditional holiday songs. Join Meatwad, Master Shake, Frylock, Carl, and others as they sing their own versions of classic carols filled with their own lack of moral character and conscience. Strangers will definitely inch away from you on the subway as you croon along to tunes like “I Sure Hope I Don’t Have to Beat Your Ass This Christmas,” the highly suggestive “Jingle Bells Deep,” the self-loving revelation of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” and the extra special duet between Meatwad and Anti records recording artist, Neko Case, “Santa Left a Booger In My Stocking.”

Have Yourself a Meaty Little Christmas will surely make for an interesting Christmas season rivaling that time when great-aunt Ginny had that “episode” a took off all her clothes while visiting Santa at the mall. This album is the perfect accompaniment to nights of egg-nog fueled drunk-dials to high school acquaintances in an effort to tell them how much you hate them, want to bang them, or both. Indeed, this is one Christmas album that will have you singing, “Oh, holy…to-NIGHT!”