Holiday Pop is a collection of original Christmas and holiday songs written by Nicholas Markos. Instantly sing-along melodies mingle with sensitive lyrics and fun grooves to create complete record for the holiday season. The soulful Chimney Sneak (via St. Dominic's Preview-era Van Morrison) kicks off the album, which includes other soul-inflected tunes such as Yule Tide Me Over and No Christmas No More. Colored Lights and Gimme Some Christmas showcase a bigger rock sound, while gems like Merry Christmas (With Ice) and The Littlest Christmas Tree are intimate little windows into the spirit of the season. New Year's Eve, a track with great ambiance, is being recorded by Brian Wilson vocalist Taylor Mills for her forthcoming solo record. Nicholas Markos writes and sings his own rock music, his "green-eyed soul." Not a slave to trends, genres, or formats, he simply looks into the heart of music to find what speaks to him. While his songs are compared to the thoughtful and emotive work of Paul Weller, Pete Townshend, Van Morrison, and David Gray ("He's like David Gray without the accent... or with the accent, depending on how you look at it, I guess..." - Swifty Lazar), the songs incorporate a range of elements that reveal both Markos's depth as a musician (in addition to guitar and bass, he was formally trained on viola and saxophone) and his egalitarian tastes. "I'm not concerned with classifying my songs," he explains. "I'm just focusing on making music that speaks to me." On the recordings and in live shows, Markos collaborates with a variety of musicians, including Todd Sucherman (Styx), Howie Kantoff (Blue Man Group, and late of the Poster Children), Eddie Carlson (Frisbie, Poi Dog Pondering), Mark Schwarz (David Singer and the Sweet Science), and Jordan bandmate Marcos Sueiro. Live performance credits include opening sets for Bob Dylan, Curve, Melissa Etheridge, Todd Rundgren, Roger McGuinn, The The, the Violent Femmes, and many others. Nicholas has also performed, produced, and recorded with other artists, including Cath Carroll (TeenBeat), Last Gentlemen (Zoo), and Michael McDermott. SAMPLE PRESS Chicago Sun-Times May 23, 2003 By Jim DeRogatis, Pop Music Critic A slave to no genre, the ridiculously prolific Nicholas Markos brings to mind a hipper underground version of David Gray while recording under his own name (as on the newly reissued solo disc, "Pinata Mondatta"), but he also dabbles in amusing electronic tomfoolery via a disc of diverse remixes of "Ave Maria" (credited to Jordan) and computer deconstructions of classic rock songs on "Let There Be Hits" (attributed to his techno-saboteur alter ego, The Hitmaker). . . . .(www.tierecords.com) DISCOGRAPHY Nice Hits, 2004 (as The Hitmaker) Holiday Pop, 2001 The Usual Tactics, 2000 Epiphany, 1999 (with Jordan) "Lotta Love to Give" on The Unbreakable Chain, 1999 (with Jordan) Scott Burrell (He's My Guy), 1998 Piñata Mondatta, 1996 True Crime Motel, 1995 (with Cath Carroll) Whatever, 1993 Live at the Vic, 1992