Vol. 11 - Autumn

AUTUMN

Yes, you'd be right. This shit is mad late. Like, on a seasonal level. The BB machine should be back up and running in full capacity soon. Chris picked this theme, for the record. Sorry for taking so long, duder.

Tyler: Bill Withers - I Don't Know

Autumn in Mexico sure ain't the same as autumn in Seattle. I'm on vacation. Which for me means lots and lots of public transit and looking at leaves. After a few days with the headphones on in imagining leaves to be rojo rather than verde, I settled into a distinct Bill Withers groove. The most reluctant of soul stars, Withers' voice rumbles out strong enough to send the leaves spinning around you, it seems. 'I Don't Know' is a slow burn as inevitable as the season that changes the most.

Aesop: Die Kreuzen - Cool Breeze

Die Kreuzen's "Cool Breeze" is the sound of autumn, its solemnity, its chill, and it's vague sadness. The sound of things that wither and die, the sound of shorter days and the crunch of leaves beneath your heavy feet as you trod on towards the white death of winter.

Asa: Katatonia - Day

Sometimes, autumn enchants me with its rusted beauty. At others, I just love listening to the rain in safety of my dorm room. The guitar tone in "Day" is the aural equivalent of raindrops- shimmering, splashing, and running down to the wet ground below.

Jason: Dismal Euphony - An Autumn Leaf In The Circles Of Time

There was a time about 12-13 years ago when I would walk about a mile to a bus stop, catch the bus, ride it for about 15 minutes, then get off and walk another mile into work. I would do this everyday. This was Northeast Minneapolis. During this time I was heavily into symphonic black metal. Not overly pompous trite like Therion, and before bands like Dimmu Borgir and COF went so commercial it was ridiculous. These records were the progenitors of that crap, but had a lot of merit, especially at the time.

At that time, Dismal Euphony was one of my favorites, and their album "Autumn Leaves" was on my Walkman many times on those daily trips to work. When I hear this song now, it doesn't seem quite right without the sound of crunching leaves under my boot and cars passing by.

Jess: Witch - Psychotic Rock

A 2008 golden, Witch’s Parazlyed set the perfect autumn sun. In "Psychotic Rock," guitars melt in amber tones. The acid riffs paint the sky, changing summer colors from gold to mustard, or sherbet pink to purple plum. At 2:45, Witch drip the sun like magma and I can imagine kids flinging fall leaves in the air in slow motion. Then the kids parade like monsters as J Mascis pounds a march at 3:28. Playful yet mysterious, colors swirl into a hot mess, like a Pollock masterpiece fucked in the ass. What’s left is feedback, kids unconscious from sugar overdose, and a smoking leaf pile.

Hasan: Evoken - Antithesis of Light

Evoken are purveyors of the funeral doom metal genre, they really show off the beauty of this style of music by taking it further--progressing album after album, and adding their own spin to the genre. Now, there's plenty of Evoken tracks that could of fit with this theme like Into the Autumn Shade, but that would of been too easy!

Plus, I believe that the atmosphere and depth found in Antithesis of Light is better than some of the other potential tracks. The fact that the sun sets early incongruence with the start of the Autumn season is not the only reason behind why I chose Antithesis of Light. Believe me though, I really fucking hate seeing the sun go down so early. When I hear the slow pounding synth and harsh vocals in this track, I envision dark clouds sending slow falling rain and leaves being drifted away by a violent wind. I can also envision myself walking through the muddy and leaf covered paths in the woods, watching the sun go down and feeling the air get colder, and feeling more and more isolated from everything.

Adam: Frijid Pink - House Of The Rising Sun

I’m not entirely sure why I chose this, but it just feels right. When I think of autumn I tend to think of maturity. When I think of maturity I think of dads. When I think of dads I think of dad-rock, which is how we find ourselves at “House Of The Rising Sun” by Frijid Pink.

True, I could have picked the Animals’ original version of this song, as its definitely more dad than the fuzzed-out cover by Frijid Pink, but this version just seems to hit my autumn spot more. Really, I could have just chosen to archetypal dad-rocker of Phil Collins, but I’ll spare you. It may be blasphemous, but I prefer this psychedelic version of the classic Orientalist tale to the rockin’ original.

Just let the chill feedback and weed smoke and/or acid flashback envelope you.

Chris: Klabautamann – Rabenmorgen

Autumn is probably my favorite time of year. I really love everything associated with autumn, which for me, also includes black metal. I first got into black metal a fall once long ago, particularly because of Klabautamann. They're sort of a folky, proggy black metal outfit from Germany. Someone posted their song “Forlorn Sea” on a forum I was frequenting, and curious, I checked it out and was amazed at how closely it fit the season’s mood, and my own mood. I checked out some of their other stuff and found this song, “Rabenmorgen” of their 2003 Our Journey Through the Woods, to be even more autumnal. Even as I’m listening to it right now, I can hear the trees shivering leaves away and the crows calling off in the distance.

Bitsy: Sons & Daughters- Rama Lama

A lot of significant transformations take place during the autumn season. The once green leaves transform into brilliant hues of yellows, reds, and oranges, longer days transform into shorter ones, and in accordance with Sons & Daughters’ “Rama Lama,” it also transforms men into murderers. Well, at least the one mentioned in this song. Clicks, drips, whistles, (and not to mention one beautiful lady bassist) create what could be considered a pretty eerie murder ballad. Rest assured while listening to this track you can let the leaves fall—and the dead bodies too.

Download the Autumn mixtape HERE.