Monday, September 04, 2006

My Autumn Mix

CD 1:

  1. yo la tengo – autumn sweater
  2. stereolab – cybele’s revelrie
  3. Fiona apple – criminal
  4. echo & the bunnymen – the killing moon
  5. radiohead – airbag
  6. foo fighters – aurora
  7. dave matthews band – #41
  8. train – if you leave
  9. counting crows – daylight fading
  10. string cheese incident – bar stool (live, carnival ’99)
  11. yonder mountain string band – town (live, mountain tracks, vol 3)
  12. Langhorne slim – the electric love letter
  13. sufjan stevens – Jacksonville
  14. modest mouse – bukowski

CD 2:

  1. the long winters – honest
  2. the decemberists – leslie anne levine
  3. neko case - star witness
  4. eisley - marvelous things
  5. band of horses – the great salt lake
  6. jimmy eat world – if you don’t, don’t
  7. pretty girls make graves – this is our emergency
  8. the format – the first single
  9. kings of convenience – I’d rather dance
  10. phoenix – everything is everything
  11. American analog set – punk as fuck
  12. broken social scene – major label debut
  13. the arcade fire – une annee sans lumiere
  14. Benevento/russo duo – soba

Now for the moment I have been waiting for since beginning this Blogging habit. This is my personalized mix of music dedicated to my favorite season: AUTUMN. Most people love summer, but summer is too easy…and I only get sad at the lost innocence of childhood school breaks. My joy in winter is dependent on my ability to ski (something I couldn’t do last year). Spring is an anxious time that comes and goes without a real chance to take it in. But autumn…autumn to me will always be a time of new beginnings. In adolescence, it was going back to school with new classes, teachers, and friends. You got to buy new jeans and sweaters and bundle up for the increasingly chilly evenings. There was football games (even the marching band was an important part of the mix), the Homecoming Dance (although dreadful in some ways), and Halloween (complete with pumpkin patch visits and scary movie nights). The trees turn brilliant colors and the weather gets slowly cooler. It’s a refreshing change from the dog days of August. In Troy, there was the Troy Daze festival in September. Trips to the apple orchard were a must, where you could taste test in fields of trees and buy apple cider to take home. In college, autumn grew up and there was university football games with the obligatory early morning tailgates. Don’t forget the beer and hot dogs! In Spartan Ski Club there was a Fall Bash picnic with disc golf, barbecue, and of course beer. Then came the annual Hayride with a bonfire, cider (usually with rum), doughnuts, and more beer. Autumn is a sad time too, but always in a bittersweet way. The trees die in beautiful fashion. The days get shorter, but allow more nighttime for finding new romance or keeping friendly company. The breezes and rain come with distinctive pleasant smells outdoors.

As for music, there is no time of year with which I associate more music. I have a deep nostalgic connection with so much music that has graced my stereo (or iPod) over the years. Much of it is related to all those wonderful experiences previously described. And if I remember correctly, it all began (at least, for this mix) in the fall of 1997. Radiohead’s album OK Computer was released that year and often filled the space in my friend Rich’s oversized basement. Thom Yorke exclaimed “I am born again” over crisp guitars and haunting synthesizer flashes. Fiona Apple’s “Criminal” was the soundtrack to my first breakup, after my first three-month relationship (which started in September). During the year to follow, I was also listening to a lot of Dave Matthews Band, Counting Crows, and Train. What’s that? You said I’m a douche bag? Well, give me a break. I grew up in the suburbs of Detroit, remember? We’ve already covered this, so let’s get back to my story. DMB’s “#41” reminds me specifically of riding the Magic Carpet Ride at Troy Daze festival in September 1998. Train’s “If You Leave” accompanied my friends and I to an apple orchard in Romeo in October of that same year. Counting Crows’ “Daylight Fading,” although released in 1996, tickled my autumn bone two years later. Stop laughing! Mainstream bands like Counting Crows and REM paved the way for current acoustic indie bands like The Long Winters (who I’ll come back to later on). The final inclusion of my high school listening is the Foo Fighters with “Aurora” from their 1999 album There Is Nothing Left To Lose. The entire album is pure autumn, probably my favorite for the season, with its breeziness and tone of change. I really wanted to include their 1997 song “Everlong” instead, but it didn’t fit as well. That track reminds me of being driven home from a haunted house (Silo X on M-59, for those in the know) in the fall of my 9th grade year. We were only 15 and still needed to bum rides from parents. Not to mention, the Michel Gondry directed video is a sort of dreamy parody of Evil Dead and goes perfectly with the close of October.

The next group consists of songs I discovered and listened to in college. In the fall of my sophomore year, I constantly heard Jimmy Eat World blaring through the bathroom from my suitemates’ stereo (Fred Fukuzawa and Chris Hoelscher, of course). We also drove to see them at Calvin College in Grand Rapids that November. Yo La Tengo and Stereolab are both 90’s bands that I found sometime around junior year (remember, Yo La Tengo is the band for ALL seasons). “Autumn Sweater” kicks off the party with a patchwork of gentle percussion, organ, and bongos. Stereolab is usually more of a springtime group, but I can’t resist the strings and French vocals. I first saw the film Donnie Darko in the fall of 2002, which featured "The Killing Moon." That movie takes place in October leading up to Halloween, and the music is vital. Modest Mouse’s 2004 album Good News for People Who Love Bad News was basically a concept album about death. So what better music for the Halloween season! “Bukowski” must be about the author, but I haven’t yet read anything by him. “Leslie Anne Levine” is the first track from the first Decemberists’ LP. The 12 string acoustic guitar, accordion, and slide guitar are clutch for this time of year. I also saw them at Calvin College in the fall of 2004. Pretty Girls Make Graves exploded on MSU’s Impact FM around November 2004 with this flailing, last grab at autumn before winter comes. Next is a trio of amazing singles from the Impact also from fall 2004. First is The Format, with harmonies and pounding drums for those fading September afternoons. Second is Kings of Convenience, with a song I wish all their music sounded like. Think of A-ha or Tears for Fears, but with acoustic guitars and violins. Third is Phoenix, the French pop band who went from electro pop (album 1), to soft rock (album 2, with the song “Everything is Everything”), to indie pop with garage rock flavor (their 3rd album). But they capture the sadness and beauty of fall like only Frenchies can. The remainders in this group are String Cheese Incident and Yonder Mountain String Band, both progressive bluegrass jam bands who make me wish I was in Colorado for the fall.

Video: "I'd Rather Dance" by Kings of Convenience


After graduation, my source of new music was unavailable. However, I still came across some great artists. Sufjan Stevens and The Arcade Fire became my driving soundtrack while apartment searching in and moving to Chicago. Sufjan strives for complex instrumentation along the lines of Stereolab. Here he includes guitar, banjo, piano, drums, strings, etc etc. The Arcade Fire was an example of a hipster band who deserve the praise they received. “Une Annee Sans Lumiere” (I think that means a night without light, but that’s just a guess) sounds like stuffing yellow, orange, and red leaves with some pumpkin seeds into a stereo. Eisley is a family band of sorts from Texas who make haunting pop music with some of the most beautiful vocals I’ve heard in years. But they’re young and fragile, and could still become entrapped in a mainstream prison.When I was making music with my brothers, we were told by a friend that we sounded like The American Analog Set. They also draw from Stereolab’s droning sound, but have really carved their own unique place. “Punk as Fuck” is perfect rainy day music as the outdoor world inches towards winter. Thank Jesus that someone introduced me to Broken Social Scene’s self-titled album in fall 2005. I fell in love with them during the most lonely and deranged time of my life. My memories of that album, though, are of running on the indoor track at NU overlooking a frozen Lake Michigan scene. So that’s not exactly unpleasant. On “Major Label Debut,” you can almost see the season’s first snow in mid November as a family prepares for a Thanksgiving feast.

Finally comes the group of artists that I’ve been listening to this year, but appreciate more now that autumn has rolled around. I reviewed Langehorne Slim earlier on this website, but he’s a folk singer/songwriter from Brooklyn with an incurable case of the blues. Expect more banjo and acoustic guitar, with saloon-worthy vocals. Band of Horses are the current Sub Pop sensation from the northwest, with an approach like an autumnal version of My Morning Jacket’s music. The Long Winters, also from the northwest, sound like an indie version of Counting Crows. “Honest” is a heartbreaking song about a girl with a crush on the singer of a band. Neko Case is basically a country artist, but her powerful voice and lush arrangements maintain an indie quality perfect for autumn. Last but not least, Benevento/Russo Duo provide music for a winding road with overhanging trees of brilliant colors. “Soba” is a prime example, and sounds just as good on record as it did live at Lollapalooza.

Wow, that was exhausting. I just let out a huge sigh! You may be asking yourself, “Why does this guy waste so much time writing about crap that no one reads or cares about.” Well, I do it because I enjoy it. This music and these ideas are one portrait of me, and I think it’s important. I also made an edit of the Autumn Mix for those who aren’t fans of late-90’s adult alternative or bluegrass. Then I took out a few more to streamline it all, rearranged a few tracks, and PRESTO! You have a “City Friendly” or “College Radio” or “DMBlows” Autumn Mix, depending on how it fits you. Check it out:

Autumn Mix (edit):

  1. yo la tengo – autumn sweater
  2. stereolab – cybele’s revelrie
  3. radiohead - airbag
  4. echo & the bunnymen - the killing moon
  5. sufjan stevens – Jacksonville
  6. the long winters – honest
  7. the decemberists – leslie anne levine
  8. band of horses – the great salt lake
  9. jimmy eat world – if you don’t, don’t
  10. the format – the first single
  11. kings of convenience – I’d rather dance
  12. phoenix – everything is everything
  13. American analog set – punk as fuck
  14. the arcade fire – une annee sans lumiere
  15. modest mouse – bukowski
  16. Benevento/russo duo – soba

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I'm glad that even though you are now a huge indie fan and music writer and way above dave, you still show him (and all of our high school memories) some love on the fall mix. :)