Top 5 'Fallcore' Albums

Fall is one of my favorite seasons, partially because of all the "fitting" music I get to listen to and enjoy in the chilly-beard wielding-plaid shirt wearing-coffee/tea drinking-boots & beanie rocking-cuddling weather. These are my top 5 favorite albums that I've been listening to this Fall: 

5. Jesu- Jesu

I was shown this album not too long ago by the other contributor to my music blog Incurably Optimistic! The first time I listened to it this summer, it was the most desolate, crushing, and heavy music I had ever heard. To this day, throughout it's 8 long and yearning arrangements, Jesu's self titled LP captivates me with its elaborate and resounding atmospheres of loneliness and despair. These sludgy tracks almost sound post-apocalyptic 

4. Have A Nice Life- Deathconsciousness

Speaking of long albums,  Dan Barrett's experimental musical project's debut 2008 release on Enemies List Recordings takes the cake on the coldest, wettest, and idlest Autumn afternoons. Have A Nice Life draw inspiration from Industrial, Shoegaze, and "Post-Metal" musical stylings to create textures you'll find yourself lost and transfixed in. This record is eerily quiet, especially vocally and proves to deliver heavily in reverb and modulated repetition.

3. St. Vincent- Strange Mercy

I usually don't find myself caught up in the hype of big "indie" releases but when I heard this album on NPR I fell in love. The innocence and mysticism of Annie Clark's St. Vincent persona explode in her extremely cathartic and raw 3rd LP. This is definitely one of the most creative guitar-driven, albums I've heard all year and reminds me of the reasons I fell in love with albums like Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished. This colorful and assertive outpour of Clark's most personal narrative yet is a must hear for Fall 2011. 

2. James Blake- Enough Thunder EP

It may be an unpopular opinion, but this is my favorite James Blake release of all time. It sounds here like James Blake managed to escape all the hype surrounding his self-titled debut album released earlier this year. A lot more tenderness and humility is smeared in with Blake's signature Post-Dubstep sound and minimalistic, soul influenced production. Heavier emphasis here is placed on Piano and Voice in Blake's strangely relatable EP.

1. Animal Collective- Sung Tongs

I've yet to conclude that this album is my all time favorite Animal Collective LP, but it definitely holds the most emotional connections for me. Besides all the great times I've had listening to Sung Tongs with my friends, girlfriend, etc., I can't help but remember when I was first introduced to Animal Collective and the themes on this record. Where the band themselves declared that Merriweather Post Pavilion was named after the outdoor venue in hopes to create an experience of what a concert there might be like, this album feels like it accomplishes a similar task. The heavy psychedelic acoustic instrumentation carries tracks about friends, college, and changes in what may be Animal Collectives most emotion evoking release.