Mountain Woman Music: End of Summer

September is here! And it's the start to my favorite time of year, and my favorite weather, and my favorite smells... Fall! Over the long weekend we had a lot of errands to run, and things to do... and every once in a while I would have to pause and take a deep breath... because I could smell my first small hint of September in the air! The first time it hit me was when I was running up some stairs in the avenues to retrieve my new apartment key for my new apartment, the trees surrounding my new apartment building had a smell of maturity about them, it smelt like late late summer, and it made me happy. The second time was when we decided to go on a drive up to Little Elk Lake in the jeep... we drove through four canyons (Big Cottonwood Canyon, Midway Canyon, up Norway Flats, and down Provo Canyon), Heber City in Wasatch County is already slowly being swallowed up by red leaves changing on the hills, we drove with the windows down to breath the last of summer in. But, the best fall smell of Labor Day Weekend was last night, after two trips to Home Depot where I bought close to sixty fall mums to plant in the front yard. Mike had to hook up the wench on his jeep to pull six stubborn bushes out for me... and after they had been pulled, I spent a few hours listening to awesome music and getting my hands dirty as the sun went down. The evening was chilly, I was covered in dirt, the air smelled of recently turned soil, and Mike made me a honey vanilla chamomile tea to sip on the front step... that moment was a good smelling fall moment.

Andie will be home from Alaska later this month, I'm sure she is feeling bitter sweet about her Alaskan adventure ending... she has had an amazing time up there. Her and I have put together an "End of Summer" playlist for your enjoyment - required listening to all Proper Mountain Woman out there! Fall time is my favorite time to listen to good music... hopefully some of these tunes will be new to you:

1. Shadow of a Man by Neulore - this song just gets me. I was introduced to this song by a friend and ended up buying their whole album. It's my Alaska summer jam. They have a great sound and I love this guy's voice, especially in the songs 'Garden Gates' and 'Eve'. I love them. (a)

2. It's Thundering and It's Lighting by We Were Promised Jetpacks - August brought some great thunder and lightning storms here in Utah, I was woken up a couple times to bright flashes in my bedroom and the dark thunders. I went outside a few times in the middle of the night to watch them, these sort of Utah-August storms remind me of summer coming to an end. I love this song by We Were Promised Jetpacks is so good. The vocalist reminds me of Brand New, or Taking Back Sunday, which I listened to on repeat as a teenager, so this song also has a nostalgic feel to it for me even though I just barely started listening to it. It's good. (w)

3. Your Rocky Spine by Great Lake Swimmers -  I love love love this song! I was playing this song the other day while I was walking through the rain with the misty mountains above me. Perfection. (a)

4. Shake It Off by Taylor Swift - It's pop, it's upbeat, and, you guys, I'm only human... why wouldn't I love this song? Especially when Andie sent us all a music video of herself dancing to this song around her apartment and bus housing in Alaska. It's so happy, Andie looked so happy! I'm sure Taylor's music video is alright too... but my sister Andie sure has great moves. (w)

5. Don't Wait by Mapei - no explanation needed. Listen. Enjoy. (a)

6. Emmylou by First Aid Kit - such a sweet song for the end of the summer, and the beginning of a colder season. First Aid Kit is a folky indi duo, two sisters from Stockholm, the first lines of this song... "oh the bitter winds are coming in and I'm already missing the summer, Stockholm's cold but I've been told I've been told to endure this kind of weather"... the lyrics go on to say "I'll be your Emmylou and I'll be your June, if you'll be my Gram and my Johnny too". I love the references to these old country singers, especially sung from two girls who don't have an american country heritage... it makes me happy for some reason. This song is wistful and perfect for the end of this season. (w)

7. Paradise by City and Colour - I don't know how this song found it's way on to my iPhone, but I love it. I find myself humming it all day, and singing it when there is no one on my bus with just me over my mic. It's got that vibe that sounds so good while I'm driving through the rain. (a)

8. Platinum by Miranda Lambert - many proper mountain woman decide to darken their hair in the fall for a warmer look, but Miranda Lambert tells us that "what doesn't kill you, only makes you blonder"! I freaking love this song, it's hilarious and upbeat. Reminds me of the old country my grandma probably rocked to cleaning the house. If you need a good power woman song and you like twang... you need this song blowing through your hair on your September drive. (w)

9. Wrong Club by the Ting Tings - I love the ting tings. and when Jeffery showed me this song I wasn't sure how i felt about it at first. Now it's all I listen to. (a)

10. Man Like That by Gin Wigmore - just started listening to this chick, she's my new favorite. Every proper mountain woman should become familiar with her. (w)

Peace and Pine Trees,
Whitney Joy



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Past Mountain Woman Music Lists:
January 2014
February 2014
March 2014
April 2014
May 2014 - 'Best of 2006' Edition