Welcome back to Band Practice, where I’m excited to share another one of my meticulously curated, obsessively crafted seasonal playlists—fall edition! As you know by now, I make my playlists with the love of an old-school mix tape, each song selected intentionally (and mixed harmonically) to capture my mood/headspace for the season. Fall playlists are my favorite because they are the true music of my heart: grungy, moody alternative music. Yes, it is less diverse than my other playlists—with nary a pop song to be found—but there are still several flavors of alternative plus rock, punk, post-punk, new wave(ish), etc. I know I’ve said this before, but I don’t think I’ve ever loved a playlist more.
“Wait a minute,” you may be asking, “shouldn’t this be a chill, pumpkin-spice-latte-sipping fall playlist?” To which I say, nay! Fall is a time of decay and, personally, reflecting on my own mortality (my birthday is in the fall and it’s a big one this year). This is not a playlist for relaxing but, to me, it is therapeutic. If you want to yell (a little bit) and rock out, this is for you. It is energetic and dynamic but not too intense. I think it’s fun.
This playlist is a great way to catch up on new music if you have been overwhelmed by keeping up with new albums. (If you’ve been keeping up, you’re still in for a killer playlist.) It is comprised of songs (mostly) from this year that feel like fall to me. It starts with a few songs you have probably heard and then weaves in some deeper cuts. It, of course, abides by my golden rule of playlists: bangers only. It’s a cool 1 hour 38 minutes of unskippable tracks.
While normally I field test my playlists for long drives and walks, I got Covid (first time! do not recommend!) while I was making this, which was limiting. I will say it’s an excellent soundtrack for coloring while being cooped up or watching the light change on a blank wall, and I imagine it will be great for outside of the realm of my apartment. My hope—whenever and however you listen—is that it will feel like one smooth DJ set that you’ll want to keep coming back to.
Links to the Spotify and Apple Music versions are below and, as always, I’ve included annotations about some of my favorite tracks on the playlist. I hope you enjoy it! Be sure to let me know if you do.
Apple Music Link
The annotated playlist
St. Vincent - “Broken Man”
It is important to find the perfect song to kick off a playlist. It, along with the first few songs, sets the tone. If you were to add up all of the playlist’s songs, the opener should be the average of the sum. In this case, that mathematically equates to St. Vincent’s “Broken Man.” It is just the right amount of raucous and sophistication. Those clanking first few notes pique curiosity and when a few beastly guitar strums come in, it’s all over—consider yourself hooked.
Lambrini Girls - “Terf Wars”
I suppose I should add a warning: this song may offend TERFs, which I am totally fine with. Lambrini Girls is a queer, femme punk band from Brighton that I came across earlier this year. They have been touring with IDLES (also featured in this playlist) and are on the rise. This song (from last year) is everything I love about the band: fearless, righteous, full of attitude—doing it all with a humorous slant. Standing up for LGBTQIA+ issues is exactly where punk should be right now. Making me chuckle while doing it seals the deal. The song ends with the perfect outro, “There’s a reason your kids aren’t talking to you anymore, Carol / It’s because you’re being transphobic on Facebook again / Just have a fucking day off.”
Tetchy - “Psychosomatic”
I like Tetchy’s take on grunge and enjoyed their EP from earlier this year. (I hope to hear more from them.) The opening lyrics, “I’m so fucking done being sick in this house,” really captures my vibe lately.
Been Stellar - “Passing Judgement”
This is one of those songs that, when it comes up, is like listening to it for the first time—every time. The rhythm guitar, the bassline, and the jamming on the tambourine are all correct. It gives hints of early Radiohead and other British alternative exports, with a bit of early 2000s emo (the good kind)—and you all know I was an emo kid. Those strained vocals in the chorus—just rip out my teenaged heart, why don’t you?
Molchat Doma — “Сон / Son”
One of my biggest regrets in life is not buying a Molchat Doma t-shirt I found at a thrift store. The thrift gods provided, and yet I ignored it—for what?? To save $15??? The band is from Minsk, Belarus, and their name translates from Russian to “Houses Are Silent.” Their music feels like stumbling across a perfectly preserved artifact of the 1980s—the reverb on the guitars carrying echoes of the post-punk and new wave glory days. If I ever find their t-shirt in the wild again, I’m buying it.
Girl Scout - “I Just Needed You To Know”
I like to save some of the best songs for the last stretch of my playlists and this is, perhaps, my favorite. This song is a behemoth. It stopped me in my tracks the first time I heard it and was immediately kept on repeat. Its relentless energy somehow builds into an avalanche of even more shredding and wailing. I’m desperately hoping they release a full album soon.
I used one of my favorite playlist tricks with this song and the next: ramping the energy up and immediately dropping into a softer, floaty song like a little breath. You may have clocked that I’ve done it a few times in the playlist and this isn’t the last.
EKKSTACY - “Fuck”
Listen. This song is silly, and the lyrics are moderately concerning, but sometimes it feels good to yell “fuck.”
Slow Fiction - “Monday”
One last pummeling song for you. Favorite lyric: “My love is an overflowing bag of laundry / my friends are the dust bunnies in the corners of my bedroom,” which is quoted in the “liner notes” of the playlist. Those dust bunnies, indeed, have been keeping me company.
Francis of Delirium - “Give It Back to Me”
Just as important as an opener is a perfect closer. Unlike “Broken Man,” when I listened to this album, I knew I had to earmark it to close out the playlist. It’s a little bit of low-hanging fruit because it’s the last track on the album, but it’s an epic song—how could you possibly put anything after it? I hope it wraps you up in an indie rock cocoon and tucks you in for the colder months ahead.
Coming up next…
In the next issue, we’ll be back to regular reviews. I’ll share my favorite albums from September and there are already some good contenders. Make sure you’re subscribed so you don’t miss it.
I love hearing what you have to say! If you have feelings about this playlist, questions for me, album recommendations, or any other thoughts, send them my way by leaving a comment or replying to this email.
every single song on this playlist is a banger
Big fan of IDLES, Ibibio + Suki!
Must be that time of the year as I also put together my fall playlist :) https://open.spotify.com/playlist/19HmsWgS9cQNY5IVbbBGXX?si=0fae026f87554ada