Most of the music I tended to lean towards in my formative years was music that I deemed “cold weather music.” Like all of the seasons, fall has a specific feel to it, a distinct atmosphere about it. It almost breathes with tiresome age; it seems to be slowly closing its eyes, resting and waiting for a long sleep while the lilting hands of death are outstretched and grabbing for the remnants of the scarce signs of life remaining within the light and the color. Not only do these feelings influence my musical choices but they have also provided some of my more enjoyable life experiences. This list attempts to portray the feeling, and soundtrack the progression, of the autumn season while providing personal experiences that have influenced the development of each of our appreciative, personal musical evolutions.
Evan
My Bloody Valentine: Loveless
In my opinion, this is the definitive listening experience of all time, and possibly my favorite album of all time. Not only are these songs drenched in sonic reverb, washes of distortion, and pitch bending tremolo picks, but they are drenched in nostalgia. Kevin Shields masterful production techniques and guitar manipulations literally dropped my jaw when I first heard it. Ever second of every song is perfection. In the same league as Pet Sounds, Revolver, and Ok Computer, Loveless reaches and surpasses any preconceived notions of how music is created and listened to. There’s a reason why no one has been able to catch up to this album. I always reach for this when the weather starts to get colder and I start thinking about the past. It just seems to fit perfectly with the overall feeling the cold air brings.
Belong: October Language
Another album awash with reverb and distortion. October Language by Belong is probably one of the loudest and most epic ambient albums ever created. With strong ties to shoegaze and drone, this album evokes nostalgia in a similar way as the aforementioned genres. Ear pounding songs like, “I Never Lose, Never Really,” “October Language,” “Remove The Inside,” “All Equal Now,” and “The Door Opens The Other Way” are set against and strewn with vast expanses and somber, droning songs like, “Red Velvet Or Nothing,” “I’m Too Sleepy,” and “Who Told You This Room Exists.” This album is perfect for a cold autumn night.
Blur: 13
Along with Radiohead, Blur was a band that opened me up to new and more interesting music. Not only through their recommendation but also through their example. I was introduced to Blur as most Americans were, through “Song 2.” I first heard this song when I purchased Fifa ’98 for Playstation. Although “Song 2″ was my introduction, the first album by Blur that captured my attention was 13. I listened to this album nonstop and loved it entirely. This album opened me up to Blur’s back catalog as well as Graham Coxon’s solo efforts and they remain one of my favorite bands of all time. A great album to soundtrack a cold and rainy fall day.
Radiohead: Amnesiac
As mentioned above, Radiohead and Blur were pivotal bands in my younger years that helped encourage me to search for better music. Being a teenager during the rise of boy bands, pop stars, and generic nirvana rip offs was quite hindering to someone with minimal music experience save the knowledge passed down from my parents. When I was introduced to Radiohead and Blur it sparked a thirst for music that has yet to be satisfied. While Kid A was the album I was brought into first, Amnesiac was completed at the same time and some of the songs could be found on the the internet; file sharing had just started getting big and amnesiac was my first foray into this immediate accessibility. Songs like, “Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors,” and “Like Spinning Plates” captured my imagination, while “Pyramid Song,” “I Might Be Wrong,” and “Knives Out” captured my inspiration. Radiohead have always been a cold weather band for me and whereas Kid A falls more into a winter setting, Amnesiac has always fallen into the nostalgic feelings of autumn.
Sigur Rós: Takk…
Sigur Rós is one of the many bands that I found through Radiohead, and one that I have consistently enjoyed from the first moment I received Ágætis byrjun for Christmas. Like Radiohead and a few other bands, Sigur Rós is a group in which I love every single piece of music they’ve put out, and although I generally place them in the winter section, Takk… was the album with warmer songs. This isn’t necessarily my favorite album by them, but it is my favorite one to listen to during the fall. “Glósóli” starts with what sounds like the crunching of fallen leaves underfoot and continues into the most incredibly epic climax I’ve ever heard. I remember calling out of work to see them at the end of Summer in September, right as it was starting to get cooler out, during their tour for this album and it being one of the best concerts I have ever been to.
Converge: Jane Doe
The very first metal band that I fell in love with was Converge. They opened the door to many other metal bands and many other different styles of metal. I started listening to Converge through their album When Forever Comes Crashing and I loved the lo-fi, grittiness of it and their earlier album, Petitioning The Empty Sky, but the shift into legendary status came with their third release, Jane Doe. This album marked a distinct change in the band’s sound. They became more concise, tighter, and heavier without compromising the grittiness of their earlier albums. Like the shift from Ok Computer to Kid A, Jane Doe represents a revolutionary change. This album is definitely one that encompasses fall for me.
Between The Buried And Me: The Silent Circus
Around the time that I started listening to Converge, I also started listening to Between The Buried and Me, and like Converge, Between The Buried And Me are still one of my favorite metal bands today. Their impact is also similar to Converge in that they have opened me up to more progressive and experimental metal whereas Converge opened me up to heavier hardcore styles and the black metal genre by way of Jacob Bannon’s raspy, demon-inflected, blackened vocal delivery. The Silent Circus was perfection to me, as far as metal albums go. I was an instant fan with their self-titled debut album, which also fought for the spot on this list, but The Silent Circus won out in the end because this was fall of 2003 for me. Released in late October, this album remained in my stereo for the remainder of the year, solidifying itself as an album steeped in the autumnal atmosphere.
Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works Volume 2
Along with Brian Eno’s Apollo: Atmospheres And Soundtracks, this album introduced me to ambient music. Some of the most beautiful and sorrowful songs are found on this release. Songs like: “Rhubarb,” and “Lichen” will still reduce me to feeling like I have died and shifted over into a pensive state filled with thoughts and recollections of the happiness of life, coupled with strong nostalgic emotions and longings for the life that has now passed and remains out of reach, the latter of which remains on my list of the greatest songs of all time. This album is creepy, haunting, beautiful, and chilling; it has everything that makes an album perfect for fall.
Alcest: Souvenirs d’un autre Monde
This album and this band just clicked for me when I heard them. It was an immediate incorporation, and this album, in my opinion, is one of the greatest shoegaze albums since Loveless. Merging black metal and shoegaze is something that has become rather popular in certain areas of metal lately, which is kind of strange considering the combination caught me off guard at first, but this album, and the prior EP, are the ones that started it all. Neige, the main man behind the music, has stated that this music was intended to take the listener on a journey through memories of his childhood where he was transported to a fairy land, and in honor of Samhain, a journey to fairy is mandatory.
CKY: Infiltrate. Destroy. Rebuild.
Being a hellbent teenager, I watched the CKY dvd’s over and over again. Bam Margera did influence me when it came to metal music, including his brother’s band CKY, or Camp Kill Yourself. I remember saving up to buy their second musical release and walking to the record store after school to pick it up on the day it came out. It didn’t get a great reception by music elitists but I love this album and every song on it. There was no better album to listen to in the fall of 2002, hanging out with “smiley” friends in a wooded graveyard in South Jersey.
Deerhunter: Microcastle/Weird Era Continued
I would say, possibly one of the greatest indie albums since Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain. There isn’t another band that is entrenched in nostalgia more than Deerhunter and this album is perfect for a nice, sunny fall day. I get lost in this album, in these songs, in these melodies.
Elliott Smith: Either/Or
I remember working at a movie theater that was in the same complex as my local record store and walking over during my lunch break and buying my first Elliott Smith album. His second, self-titled, album was my introduction and he has since been one of the biggest influences on my music. Either/Or was the second album I bought and still remains my favorite, along with the self-titled. Elliott Smith’s music has always reminded me of the somberness and reflectively thought induced longings of fall.
HIM: Razorblade Romance
Along with CKY, HIM was another band that was brought to my attention through Bam Margera. I have always said that HIM was a guilty pleasure of mine, but I believe that almost sallies their reputation for people unfamiliar with their work. I have moved beyond caring what other people deem as good or bad music and HIM is a great band and this a solidly addictive album. Goth-tinged metal music is always going to remain in the cold weather music section for me, and this album is the genre’s crowning achievement. I have enjoyed all of their albums, especially their latest, and they put on one of the best live shows I have ever seen, so get off my back.
Katatonia: The Great Cold Distance
Melancholic, ethereal vocals overtop catchy metal progressions and riffs is a recipe for greatness in my book. Katatonia are a great band and this is my favorite album by them. Perfect for a cold autumn day while the sun sets beyond the horizon, splintered by the branches of trees.
M83: Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts
The only other band that could challenge Deerhunter for the title of most nostalgically expressive band would be M83, and come to think of it, they might actually win, it’s a tough call. From the moment I heard “Run Into Flowers,” I knew this was my new favorite group. If you want to read more about this album, check out my review.
Pixies: Doolittle
Still, one of the greatest albums of all time. Much has been said and written about this album and its effects, so there’s not much else I can add besides the fact that I have always loved it and loved listening to it during the fall season.
Poison The Well: You Come Before You
Rounding out my beginning metal listening experience is Poison The Well. Along with Converge and Between The Buried And Me, Poison The Well was one of my early favorites. Before Derek Miller eviscerated ear drums with his current band, Sleigh Bells, he was doing it with Poison The Well. This was his last album with them before he left and it’s also my favorite. I love The Opposite Of December and Tears From The Red, but You Come Before You is stronger, looser, and more interesting. “Apathy Is A Cold Body,” is my favorite track on the album and my favorite Poison The Well song period. Great for driving around on cool autumn night with the windows down.
Boards Of Canada: Music Has The Right To Children
I picked up this album in early fall on a warm day, and the warble of those haunting synths, staggered drum beats, and vocal loop distortions gave me chills. After being introduced to Boards Of Canada through a friend, I never listened to electronic music the same. It was hard to decide between this album and Geogaddi, but this one seems to fit better in cooler weather.
…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead: Source Tags & Codes
This was one of my favorite albums during my early high school years. Songs like: “It Was There That I Saw You,” “Another Morning Stoner,” “How Near How Far,” and “Relative Ways” were instant classics. I can remember listening to it outside my friends house in the fall with our hoodies on, it felt perfect. The album is great as a whole and great for rocking out to on an afternoon drive on a crisp, cold, sunny day.
Devin Townsend: Ziltoid The Omniscient
I have recently entered the insane world of Devin Townsend and his music and am loving every minute of it. When your talking about “the wall of sound” effect, it goes without saying that Devin Townsend does it better than most people out there today, and Ziltoid The Omniscient is a perfect example. This is a great tongue-in-cheek album with spoken word parts that are funny (Ziltoid, an alien comes to Earth in search of the best cup of coffee in the galaxy and when he doesn’t get it, a war ensues between him and the humans) and parts that are downright beautiful (“Hyperdrive” and “The Greys”). It’s progressive metal at its best and it has been occupying all of my music listening time during this current fall season.
Chris
The Smashing Pumpkins: Adore
As any seasoned Folkways reader will know, I have a great interest in the way that environment affects the experience of listening to music. The season of Fall is one of my favorite times to listen because you are able to listen to folky acoustic music to accent the deep color of the changing leaves or chilly electronic-tinged music to accent the bare trees that make way for the oncoming winter. When Evan suggested that we do a nostalgic Fall albums list, I immediately felt some trepidation due to the fact that I did not think I could come up with a full list of Fall albums that are particularly nostalgic. As soon as I sat down to try and write, however, I was struck by the memory of a fairly mild (that is to say specifically Fall-like and not Wintery) Thanksgiving in New Jersey. I was in ninth or tenth grade and I spent the whole morning spinning Adore on my discman. The chilly drum machines and delicate arrangements anchor its presence to the end of the Fall season just as things are beginning to give way to winter and the album is actually enhanced by the chill in the air. When I think of that Thanksgiving this music actually plays in my head as the soundtrack.
When I was in ninth grade, this album sounded really great to me; when I try to listen to it now, it does not quite have the same presence. In spite of this, there are still some songs that are definitely awesome such as the pretty acoustic opener “To Sheila” or “For Martha” the power ballad written for Corgan’s recently deceased Mother. Even the often overlooked “Once Upon A Time” is a really swell pop song. Adore is easily good enough to maintain its reputation as a nostalgic guilty pleasure. Actually I have been listening to it again while writing this review and it sounds pretty great right now… even the single “Ava Adore” which I always found a bit too overwrought. This may have something to do with the temperature finally reaching the low 70s today which is generally as autumnal as it gets in South West Florida.
The Cure: Disintegration
Disintegration. Even the word by itself evokes Fall. As the leaves slowly turn to brown and fall to the ground to crunch and crumble beneath the impending footsteps of those who still live. The death of these leaves… it is beautiful as they explode with colors and dance towards the ground embracing the inevitable emptiness of the world. Yes I am listening to this album right now, why do you ask? What was that you said? The Cure is just goth-tinged synth-pop for teenagers to mope to? Isn’t that what all Rock amounts to?
I got into the Cure in High School somehow or another and I have a lot of great memories listening to their music. In October of 2009, I got to see them perform live and it was a much better show than I expected. They played a sprawling 3 hour set which encompassed their entire career. I recall leaving the auditorium to a refreshingly crisp evening. Somehow, I could smell fires in the distance re-igniting the fall feelings of my childhood.
Disintegration is pretty much a perfect album… so much has been said about it that all that is really left for you to do is listen to it, so just do it already. This record has chilly weather written all over it and for some reason I seem to strongly equate pop-based synths with fall. Anybody have any idea where that comes from?
Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy: Ask Forgiveness
As the summer yawns her last humid breath and the hair on the back of winter’s neck begins to stand up in anticipation of things to come, Fall emerges languidly, seemingly beginning in the evenings. On one such evening, I found myself walking around my neighborhood with my headphones on as I did just about every night. The air was cool against my face and the moon seemed larger and brighter than usual. On this particular occasion, I was searching for something to listen to and it was not long before I came upon Ask Forgiveness by Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy.
Ask Forgiveness is an EP of cover songs performed in the traditional Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy style: delicate acoustic guitar figures paired with hushed vocals. His voice gently sings the world to sleep and the familiarity of the songs bring an air of nostalgia that seems a perfect marriage with the season. “I Came to Hear the Music” is a must listen.
CocoRosie: La Maison de Mon Reve
La Maison de Mon Reve is a key document in the brief musical movement known to many as ‘Freak Folk’. Freak Folk as a genre deals in the business of nostalgia since the melodies are often as simplistic as songs from your childhood. Heightening the mood are odd lyrics which feel akin to the non-sequiturs which are also a paramount of your formative years. When I say formative years, I mean sitting on the brick porch in my parent’s backyard, wearing a light denim jacket and recording nonsensical ‘radio shows’ onto cassette tape with Evan, his younger brother and my younger sister. Our shows were the kind of brilliant and hilarious that can only be appreciated by the people who were there at the time, actually making them.
The Beatles: Beatles For Sale
People have actually argued with me about the validity of Beatles For Sale as a Fall album but for me the choice was obvious. Early in High School, I went and visited Evan and while in his room, he put “Baby’s in Black” on the hi-fi. Through his window, I could see the changing leaves at eye level and the song (and album) has been paired with that time in my head ever since. I do not think that this is an odd link because the cover of the record actually has some blurry oranges and greens which allude to early Fall foliage by themselves. Additionally, the Beatles are wearing coats on the cover. You don’t wear coats in the summer and this record clearly does not have anything to do with winter. The only other option is Fall… or maybe early Spring but those look more like Fall coats to me so I am sticking with my gut. Do you have a problem with that?
Sonic Youth: Bad Moon Rising
In New Jersey, school starts after Labor Day marking it as an event that is linked to Fall. My Freshman year of High School was a time of change as I met many new people and experienced many new albums. I was a music oriented teenager, what do you expect of me? Anyway, in my Biology class was this girl named Danielle. I do not remember talking to her very much with the exception of a few instances in which we ended up in the same lab group and I especially do not remember talking about music with her but evidence supports that we must have spoken about music at one time or another because one day she mentioned enjoying the new Sonic Youth album. Now judging from the time that this was said, I have to imagine that she was referring to Goodbye 21st Century which makes her pretty darn awesome. I told her that I had no heard it and had only a cursory knowledge of their music. The next day she brought in Bad Moon Rising. She told me that this was her favorite Sonic Youth record and said I should give it a listen. When I took it home and tried to listen to it, I found it pretty creepy and hard to get into but something about it stuck with me: I found myself thinking about the album after I had returned it to her. Near the end of October, I decided to give it another try and purchased the album myself (at that time it took way too long to download an entire album over Napster…). Like the Beatles record, it is another instance in which the cover image seems to evoke Fall on its own regardless of the music contained therein. In this case, however, the record creates an atmosphere of mystery which pairs perfectly with Fall and the changes it brings to the world.
Iron & Wine: Creek Drank the Cradle
Like Beatles for Sale, this too is an album that was introduced to me on a Fall afternoon in Evan’s room. Unlike the Beatles, no one would argue this album’s rightful place on a Fall music list. I am sure that you are all familiar with this record and I will not waste words describing or explaining it to you. I will however suggest that you put on your headphones and lay on your back outside with it playing as a soundtrack to the beautiful Fall weather. You can thank me later.
Bright Eyes: Fevers and Mirrors
This is the final album on this list which was AGAIN introduced to me by Evan, during Fall, in his room. This one is a bit different from the others though. This time, I was visiting Evan after moving to Florida. The album opens with a recording of a child reading a story about two friends moving away from one another and I could not help but draw parallels to the situation that Evan and I were in at that very moment. This led way to a brief Saddle Creek phase which I experienced early in College. I saw Bright Eyes perform three times. I still appreciate the albums now but have a hard time listening to them all the way through because I do not really relate with most of the lyrics at this point in my life. When I spin this disc, though, it still sounds like that slightly sad Fall day visiting Evan from my new home in Florida.
Crash Test Dummies: God Shuffled His Feet
It is hard to drive around on a Fall day without hearing “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm” in your head. It just sounds right. When I came home from school and performed an obligatory flip through the television channels before landing on one of the same shows I watched every day, I would always pass by MTV and this video seemed to be in perpetual rotation. The singer’s long hair seemed to have autumn leaves buried in it’s many layers and his strange voice indicated that he meant to keep them there.
R.E.M.: Automatic for the People
This is an album that has stuck with me for a long time. While I knew the singles when they came out, I did not hear the whole album until the beginning of ninth grade. One of my friends was dating an R.E.M. fan who happened to be a close friend of my girlfriend at the time and this record really captured my interest. All four of us were musically minded people and so we spent a lot of afternoons playing albums for each other in one persons’ house or another. Automatic For the People was at the house of the aforementioned R.E.M. fan. We were all occupying different portions of the carpet in her bedroom while incense burned and Christmas light strung around the ceiling added ambiance. I do not remember speaking during the entire play-time. Sure there are a few weaker moments, (I am not a huge fan of Ignoreland), but the moments that hit, hit hard. The dark-folk songs feel like Fall to me, especially “Try Not to Breathe”. There is something so crisp about those folky-acoustic pop numbers as well as a fascination with aging which evokes the special time of year which this list celebrates.
Radiohead: The Bends
I am a bit hesitant to write about another Radiohead album. My Kid A review was a very nostalgic Fall piece but it was met with dissent from some of our readers. The Bends by today’s standards sounds starkly pre-experimental. Radiohead have spent so much of their career pushing the envelope that it is hard to hear how unique and special much of this album is if you were not around when it first came out. This is very misleading however because there are many moments of exploration such as Johnny Greenwood’s nail file guitar solo on “Just” or all the weird effect noises that form the backing bed of “Bullet Proof (I Wish I Was)” that set the stage for what was to come. I was a huge Radiohead fan in middle school and I was positively obsessed with OK Computer. When I tried to introduce this album to Evan, he had a hard time getting into it probably because I picked the worst possible entry point (“Fitter Happier”) for reasons I cannot fathom. It was a song from The Bends, (“My Iron Lung”),however that gave him the in that we were hoping for. Music and Radiohead in particular is a huge part of the friendship that Evan and I have had for most of our lives. I believe that as a band Radiohead pushed us to challenge our own listening and helped to develop the tastes that we maintain to this day. I also believe that without our shared enthusiasm, we may not have remained quite as close in our friendship due to naturally finding different groups of friends to spend time with.
The Fairport Convention: Unhalfbricking
There are some bands that you seem to go through phases with. Certain times of the year, you find yourself listening to them and only them for extended periods of time and then suddenly they are retired until their number is called again. The Fairport Convention has long been one of these bands for me. Usually at some point during the Fall season, I break out their album Lief and Liege. The awesomeness of this record leads me to pull out the other albums I own which include , Unhalfbricking, What We Did On Our Holidays and Full House. I make my way through each album a few times and then I return to Unhalfbricking again and again. The traditional British Folk contained within goes perfectly with the season and the Dylan covers, especially the Cajun “Si Tu Dois Partir” are a joy. On top of that, this album has classic Fall cover which just makes it seem more right somehow.
The Mountain Goats: Nothing for Juice
The Mountain Goats deserve a place on any list for any season. The discography is so huge that it is intimidating to dive into but everyone seems to have their favorite moments. I am naturally drawn to the more lo-fi cassette based work and for this list I have decided to go with one of Nothing For Juice. In all honesty, I could have picked nearly any of the countless records released under the Mountain Goats name but the opening track on Nothing For Juice, “The the Letting Go” is one of my favorite musical moments. If you have not heard the work of John Darnielle, you owe it to yourself to check it out. In fact, you likely will never forget that you did.
Polaris: Music From the Adventures of Pete & Pete
In recent years, our culture has become obsessed with nostalgia. I think it is because there were so many syndicated sitcoms from the 1950s onwards populating the television of our childhood that we now expect the same treatment for the shows that we grew up with. “The Adventures of Pete & Pete” seems to be a popular favorite of most people who grew up during the 90s and with good reason. The show is brilliantly written from the surreal perspective that is only accessible to children or mentally disturbed adults. One of the best parts of the show is the fully realized town of Wellsville which is often scattered with Autumn leaves and jacket-wearing denizens. The show is scored by the band Polaris who probably live in Wellsville full time. They play the kind of 90s alternative rock that sounds immediately familiar yet nearly impossible to recreate. Yes, by and large this music is Fall in suburbia. Songs such as “Waiting for October” do their part to celebrate the season and none would be complete without it.
Bob Dylan: The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan
At this point in the list, I am getting tired of stating that folky guitar sounds like Fall but, well, it does. The reason I chose this album, however, has little to do with that. In October of 2005, Evan came to visit me in Florida and we decided to record some music together on the Tascam cassette 4-track which he brought down with him. When testing the device, we decided to record a cover song and the selection we landed on was “Don’t Think Twice (It’s Alright)” from this very album. Whenever I hear the song I return to this memory and those cool October evenings of 2005.
Uncle Tupelo: Anodyne
Jay Farrar and Jeff Tweedy, the respective leaders of the bands Wilco and Son Volt began as partners in the beloved Uncle Tupelo. Both Son Volt and Wilco have had some great albums (Wilco is actually one of my favorite bands) but when their talents were combined the strengths of each musician were clearly on display. Anodyne is both the greatest and final statement that they ever released together. The album was recorded nearly live while the band was experiencing serious creative differences. Much like the Get Back sessions from the Beatles, this is not evident in the music for the sake of music recordings which emerged. The album comes off like a group of people who love playing together just recording a strong set of songs. The simple beauty and unity which emerges reminds me of the times I have been fortunate enough to record music with friends. There is a serious bond which is formed through the shared endeavor of creation. Somehow, in my life, flashbacks to happy memories such as that seem to always take place in the fall. I am not sure why this is though it is possible that I have seen a lot of television which portrays this ideal. Upon making this statement however, I find myself unable to really find any examples of such a television show in my head… any ideas?
The Incredible String Band: The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter
The Incredible String Band famously gave one of the least popular Woodstock performances. They played spiraling psychedelic folk to an audience that was itching for hard rock and left the stage after a very short set. The audience truly missed out on something magical because of all the weird folk music I have described in this list, this is perhaps the best. The songs are incredibly intricate and the lyrics are so surreal that you find yourself lost in a world created by its musical spell. Songs about “Witch’s Hats” and “Minotaurs” will put you in the mood for Halloween and songs such as “A Very Cellular Song” will want inspire you to dream by the first fire of the season… preferably a bonfire. I love this album and everytime I put it on I am transported to the bizzaro world which ISB inhabits where the leaves are always changing but they never hit the ground.
Galaxie 500: On Fire
Galaxie 500 is one of those bands that all music snobs love now but they were rarely celebrated during their brief lifespan. Any one of their three albums would be ideal fall listening but I chose this one because of the orange colors on the cover and the fact that I believe it to be their strongest release song by song. If you think that you pine for the early 90s but you haven’t heard this record… get ready to learn what pining truly is.
Frightened Rabbit: The Midnight Organ Fight
When I first heard this album, I was so excited by the classic feeling of the songs. They remind me of early R.E.M. in how they are so melodic and simple. The strength is in the performances which are nothing short of passionate but still somehow manage to avoid being overbearing. This record holds a special place in my heart because it is one of the first albums that my gal and I bonded over. Those first few albums are important in a relationship and this is definitely a cornerstone of ours. Now if they would only come and play a show in Florida…
Liars:Drum’s Not Dead
The brilliantly executed tribal elements of Liars’ Drum’s Not Dead are what help the album to stand out head and shoulders above the rest of their discography. The album has a chilliness to it that makes it feel very mysterious and even creepy at times. This is juxtaposed by the tribal and minimalist elements which make it feel earthy and beautiful. Listening to this album is an experience and one which I can not separate from the cool Fall evenings in which it captured my ears’ attention.
