As usual, I awoke this morning with two cups of coffee and a bagel. As I opened my front door to start my day I was blasted with a feeling that makes me smile each year – the realization that autumn is on its way. The fall has always been a nostalgic time for me, so I felt compelled to list some essential albums for the approach of this time of year.Sloan-Navy Blues

If Nirvana never surfaced out from the underground, opening the Pandora’s Box that was grunge, Sloan (along with similar not-afraid-of-melody bands such as Teenage Fanclub and The Lemonheads) would have. And the 90s would have been a whole lot different than we remember. Released in the late summer of 1998, this record is the apex of these Canadian rockers’ careers. From 1991 to 1997 the Sloan blueprint of rock evolved from the shoegazing drone of My Bloody Valentine and Ride to more friendly Beatle-esque adventures in pop. Navy Blues retains much of the sing-a-long aspects of their middle period while mixing in a distinct Todd Rungdren piano influence and revved up riffage and guitarmonies a la Kiss and Boston. This is a great party album that will keep the rock chicks and intellectuals at bay until the keg returns refilled.

Elliott Smith-XO

Also released in August 1998, Elliott Smith’s XO sees the reclusive singer-songwriter branching out with a much bigger sound. His predominantly minimal approach explored through his previous indie catalog sees the divine touch of a big studio and major label money. The sound is lush without being over produced and slick enough without disappointing long-time fans. It’s the perfect album to blast as you rake the leaves accumulating on your front yard.

Ryan Adams-Heartbreaker

OK, so last year the world met Ryan Adams via his first bat in the big leagues, Gold. While critics verbally fellated him, his media presence rose faster than his oversized ego. It’s a sad thing that his first album after disbanding alt-country heroes Whiskeytown, Heartbreaker, didn’t get the attention that Gold received. The title of this record is perhaps the most fitting since The Band’s The Last Waltz. Despite the in-studio banter about the Morrisey and the Dylan and The Rolling Stones rip-offs, Heartbreaker is a sad, sad album chock full of songs about lost love and the void of hope. Be prepared to weep silently to yourself at 2 a.m. while braving the cold autumn winds.

Beck-Mutations

Also known as the greatest (and only?) psychedelic lullaby album ever, Mutations was technically not the follow-up to his electro-dance-disco smash Odelay, but a side project that was supposed to be released on the tiny label Bong Load. David Geffen probably wet himself when he heard the masters and decided to release it on Geffen instead. With acoustic guitars, horns, tricked-out harpsichords and bubbly analog synths Beck created a masterpiece somewhere between Love’s Forever Changes and sea shanty sung by a chorus of monks and junkies. Word on the street is that his soon to be released Sea Changes is a jump back to the song oriented structure of Mutations than the funk of Midnight Vultures.

So don a sweater, snuggle up with your sweetie, put on your favorite fall album and smile, smile, smile until winter makes her sinister presence felt.

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