Opinion | Brat summer is over — it’s time for adventurous autumn

Are you up for an adventure this autumn season? Curating a fall playlist or any playlist related to a specific season is a fun thing to do, and if you do not have a playlist for this amazing autumn season coming up, make one!

One of my favorite fall playlists that  I’ve made has a title that comes from my favorite song of all time — “It’s Not a Fashion Statement, It’s a Deathwish” by My Chemical Romance. This song is definitely a fall song — maybe more specifically that time when fall is just about to enter winter. What makes it this way you may ask? Honestly, the yearning sound the song gives — yearning for some sort of change. The emotion in the vocals, the complexity of the lyrics and the sound of the instruments — especially the guitar — tie everything in the song together.

I’ve had this specific fall playlist since 2020. My first song on it is, of course, “Sweater Weather” by The Neighborhood. A fall playlist isn’t a fall playlist without that song.

As the playlist goes on, it features bands like Modern Baseball, Turnover, Real Friends, Microwave and Title Fight. These bands really bring the sad fall vibe to the playlist. To be completely transparent, most of the songs on this fall playlist are quite sad — fall is my favorite season of all time, even though I tend to listen to sadder music during this time. 

Turnover shows up a lot in this playlist. The band’s entire album “Peripheral Vision,” one of my favorite albums of all time, is very fall-coded. I mean, I listen to this album any time of the year, but during the fall, it hits differently. 

I also have some country/folk throughout this fall playlist. It features Zach Bryan and Tyler Childers, but I listen to these artists year-round. I absolutely adore these two and can binge listen to them for days on end. Their music fits into every season. Some songs by these artists fit more specifically with the different seasons, but I can put together other playlists for that.

I have another fall playlist that I made recently. I am still adding songs to it, but the vibe is slightly different. In this one, I’ve got Joni Mitchell — I’m so glad she’s back on Spotify. I’ve been listening to Joni Mitchell a lot recently. She’s the type of musician that I just don’t get tired of. Her voice is absolutely incredible and the lyrics get me every time.

A few other bands on this playlist include The Beatles — another band I’ve been listening to a lot lately. I never grew up listening to The Beatles. Maybe I got into their music a little too late, but they’re amazing. I also included Fiona Apple’s album “When The Pawn…”  — if you love “Paper Bag,” you need to listen to the rest of this album!

Overall, autumn seems to be the season where I tend to go on an adventure with my music taste. It ranges from country/folk, to emo, to indie and more. There are so many different kinds of music that fit in well with this season. Having a fall playlist is a fantastic idea if you already associate specific bands and artists with seasons. 

Do you love fall? Do you love making playlists? Email Irene at inm24@pitt.edu with some playlist suggestions!