As fall is steadily approaching, it’s never too early to get into that slow, gloomy fall feeling that so many enjoy, and what better way to do that than to listen to songs that compliment the season.
Starting this list off fairly simple is the fuzzy-sounding jazz composition “Autumn Leaves” by Chet Baker. The title alone should be a dead giveaway as to why it is such a good addition to a crisp autumn day, but the song has much more than that. “Autumn Leaves” absolutely shines in its simplicity, perfectly encapsulating a bustling urban autumn scene with only an instrumental. There is really not much to say about this one as it really does simply set the mood of a busy autumn day.
The Doors are no stranger to mysterious and sometimes even eerie composition, mostly accredited to Jim Morrison’s haunting bellowing vocals and Ray Manzarek’s creeping keyboard. As one could have guessed, “The Spy” is no exception. It possesses the psychedelic rock sound of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s that makes it feel right at home in The Doors’ discography, yet sets it apart from most of the songs on the album that it is featured on, that being “Morrison Hotel.”
The song describes an all-knowing omniscient spy that can even, “know your deepest secret fear.” That along with the composition that slowly builds with Manzarek’s keyboarding and Morrison’s vocals until it has crept up on top of the listener and then slowly slinks back away, cements it as a fun, creepy and psychedelic tune for an autumn day.
Next is “Rider on the Wheel” by the late great British folk artist Nick Drake, who has many songs that could be featured as a fall recommendation. Drake’s discography is abundantly acoustic, melancholic and soft-sounding. Even though soft-spoken, many songs feature louder, more outspoken brass horns, more prominently featured in his second studio album “Bryter Layter.” While not as conspicuous as the horns, wind and string instruments are used in a plethora of his work as well.
Considering the distinguished and folky cacophony of most of his other songs, “Rider on the Wheel” may be a surprising selection. The song strictly features Drake’s guitar and soft humming vocals that wonderfully complement each other. The song feels restrained, but not in the sense of potential being held back, rather in the sense of a peaceful melody that knows precisely what it wants to be. The peaceful melody is a necessity from Drake’s discography and one that has quickly risen to one of my favorites from him. The song is a lovely match for late summer and the start of autumn as it encapsulates the melancholic transition between stages of anything within its simple, yet effective lyrics and calming mix of instrument and voice.
“How It Feels To Be Something On” by Sunny Day Real Estate is a slow and dramatic track that goes hand in hand with an overcast fall day. Extremely contemplative and sonically pleasing, it discusses a higher plane of emotion where pain and joy are just as important as the other as well as being hyper aware and attached to oneself. This is beautifully reflected in the song’s composition, with its many musical rises and falls. It starts off slow and thoughtful, slowly builds up, and then comes crashing down again. The vocals, percussion, guitar and bass are all so deliberate and pronounced, adding masterfully to the song’s subject matter of being extremely connected and aware to the self. The gloomy indie rock track is as contemplative and melancholic as you can get, resonating perfectly with an overcast fall day.
The slow-stripped back sound of “To Sheila” by The Smashing Pumpkins makes the track a memorable one and one that is complemented beautifully by a quiet autumn evening. This song in specific and the album on which its featured, “Adore,” are divisive from the band’s earlier work to say the least. “To Sheila” is the first track on “Adore” encapsulates this by losing the electric grungy sound in place of simply Billy Corgan’s vocals, acoustic guitar and light percussion. The lyrics are compassionate and thoughtful, making it a beautiful depiction of empathy. The stripped-back composition annunciates these themes, elevating this song to an intimate and extremely thoughtful melody.
“Don’t Follow,” off Alice in Chains’ third studio album, technically an EP, “Jar Of Flies,” hosts a more acoustic and melancholic sound than what the band is widely known for, that being their grungy-electric riffs. The band is no stranger to darker subject matter, a large quantity of their songs depict addiction, grief, and betrayal but could mostly be masked to the casual listener by their loud electric riffs along with Layne Staley, the vocalist and frontman, and Jerry Cantrell’s, the vocalist and guitarist, harmonic and distinctive vocals.
With “Jar of Flies” softer disposition and acoustic sound however, these themes are on full display and in a way define the project as a whole. “Don’t Follow” is no exception, as it serves as a conversation between two friends, in reality Staley and Cantrell, one who is lost in addiction and self-destructive tendencies, and the other who must begrudgingly separate himself from his friend for his own sake. The song consists of sorrowful acoustic guitar twang and harmonica throughout. The acoustic and more thoughtful nature of this song, along with its heavy themes of separation and addiction, make it an excellent, if yet heartbreaking pick for the fall.
Along with Nick Drake, Elliott Smith could have countless songs to fit this criteria. “Bled White” is of course no exception, with Smith’s double-tracked vocals perfectly complementing the mix of keyboard, electric and acoustic guitar. The song is faster than one may expect to be featured on a list consisting of moodier and more gradual tempoed songs. However still moody, the song is a faster one even for Smith himself. Even though it never stops moving, the song, much less different from the rest of Smith’s discography, is still contemplative. The song depicts an image of a gloomy city that has been “bled white,” and discusses some heavier topics of alcoholism, vulnerability and exhaustion. I think the contrast between the somber imagery and faster more up-beat composition gives this song an extremely unique feeling that resonates with the later greyer months of the year.
“Doubt” by The Cure possesses a more jumpy and punky sound that makes it stand out more within their discography, and even the album on which it is featured, “Faith.” The Cure have plenty of songs that are similar to “Doubt,” which is fairly unsurprising since they have very prominent sonical and historical roots in the genre of post-punk, yet are more heavily associated with goth and goth-rock. This song stands out much more to me because of the contrast between its post-punk sound to that of the slower, more gothic songs on “Faith” and The Cure’s greater discography in general. Does this mean that it’s better than the songs which it contrasts with? No, not necessarily, it is an energetic, catchy, post-punk tune that still retains The Cure’s gloomy gothic style, which to me makes it a good pick for being out and about on a cloudy and dreary autumn day.
The twangy, alternative rock sound of Modest Mouse really shines through with “Never Ending Math Equation.” The song starts off fairly strong, yet still builds until the vocals and guitar come crashing down in a frantic and energetic conclusion. The song discusses existential themes such as insignificance, loneliness and life’s nature/cycle and does so using the metaphor of a never ending math equation to describe the incomprehensible ongoing cycle of life within the universe. Its twangy indie sound and philosophical subject matter makes it a solid pick for fall.
“Antonio Carlos Jobim” is a standout from Heatmiser’s discography and for the fall. The reasons as to why it serves as a good song for autumn, are shared by “Bled White,” which is no surprise since Elliott Smith was the lead vocalist and was a songwriter for the band along with bandmate Neil Gust. The song, named after Brazilian singer songwriter Antonio Carlos Jobim, has easily become one of my favorite Heatmiser songs and one that has been cemented in my mind.
The song has a remarkable progression, as it slowly but surely builds in a way that not many songs I have heard have done. The song basically starts as a whisper, with nothing but a light guitar riff and barely noticeable bass tab, incorporating quiet vocals, courtesy of Smith of course, and percussion. The song continues like this with vocals and percussion momentarily fading in and out until the end of the second verse where the guitar and percussion have an energetic rise leading into the third verse where Smith’s vocals bring this shift all together.
The third and final verse of the song is easily the best and what the whole song has been building up to. The payoff is absolutely wonderful and Smith’s vocals almost even howl and they sound desperate, yet deliberate and angry and completely elevate the conclusion to a whole other level. This gloomy alternative tune is an essential track for a melancholic fall day.
These are just a few of the tracks that I consider essential to fall, there are so many more amazing picks, these however are simply some of my favorites that I’d recommend.
