Fall is cool.

I mean things are cooling off from a glorious summer now gone, sure. But, fall really is cool, especially when you add new tunes to the mix. This is what I’m suggesting, as I did last year. Because this is the second annual Fall Into Tunes, a selection of new songs that you must hear this autumn season.

So, here are 16 songs to help you build your autumn playlists, from different points of the musical spectrum, and from near and far.

Lend me your ears!

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The Last Internationale  – “Life, Liberty And The Pursuit Of Indian Blood

Let’s start things off with New York, New York’s Last Internationale, a three-cornered, politically motivated rock assault as informed by garage punk and blues, and featuring former Rage Against The Machine drummer Brad Wilk. He joins bandmates Delila Paz on lead vocals and guitar, and bassist Edgy Pires. This track is a featured song on their most recent record, We Will Reign Out, a release with yet another Rage connection – Tom Morello, who executive produced.  For more information, check out thelastinternationale.com

The Wind & The Wave  – “With Your Two Hands”

Austin Texas duo The Wind & The Wave present a unique line in no holds barred hyper-country stomp. Dwight Baker  and Patricia Lynn is the titular Wind and Wave respectively, having found each other on the scene, and interested in fashioning an approach that touches on their drive to create a new sound while drawing from their experiences in performance and in production. This song comes from their newest record, From The Wreckage. To find out more, you can investigate thewindandthewave.com.

Rüfüs Du Sol – “Sundream”

If you’re still pining for summer days now past, then this track by Australia’s Rüfüs Du Sol should invigourate your summery longings. Drawing from a background in music production, the sound this trio creates is downtempo dance music that incorporates electronics and live instruments. It’s a perfect addition to a soundtrack to wind down your thoughts of summer, and prepare you for the first cooling days of Autumn. Find out more about them, read this interview with Rüfüs Du Sol here.

Ula Ruth – “Shake It Off”

New York-based rock quartet that’s come out of the Connecticut suburbs Ula Ruth presents this shimmering guitar rock anthem designed for radio play, and suggesting something of a Manic Street Preachers vibe. The song is taken from their most recent EP Restless nights.You can learn more about them and about the new EP at ularuth.com.

Goodnight, Sunrise – “Liar Liar”

Goodnight, Sunrise from Toronto channels late ’70s Blondie, and Joan Jett, carrying the sound of up-front rock ‘n’ roll with a slice of ’60s garage punk into the 21st century. The band is otherwise defined by the dual vocal talents of David Kotchberg also on guitar, and Vanessa Vakharia who plays keyboards too, and most remarkably – keytar. The two are backed up by Paul Weaver on drums. You can find out more about their new release Bridgeburner at Goodnightsunrise.ca.

The City and The Sea – “Venture“

If you’re looking for a BIG song, one with a bold sense of scale and with all kinds of hooks to boot, this could be the one for you. This one is the newest single from Hamilton Ontario’s  The City and the Sea. You can download it at Thecityandthesea.com.

The Tallest Tree – “Boat”

Twee-indie greatness with boy and girl singing is the perfect addition to your early autumn soundtrack. This one from  Mexico-Canada collaboration The Tallest Tree is all of that. It’s an effervescent pop song sprung from the pens of Dawn (from Dundas Ontario) and Armando (from Mexico City) now a married couple after criss-crossing the continent for a time spent in writing and romancing. Learn more about them on their Facebook page.

Nikki W – “Transparent Hands”

Now we come to the precocious talent segment of this list. Nikki W is a 16-year old singer and songwriter, originally from London, Ontario. This song reveals a keen eye for lyrical nuance and a keen ear  for sounds that hearken back to an age of synth-wielding New Romantics, with additional comparisons to Lana Del Ray and Metric. This song comes from her debut record Sad Generation. Find out the skinny at Nikkiw.com

Long Faces – “Leave It There”

New Jersey’s Long Faces touches on on ebullient pop music with an appealing fading summer feel destined to help define your upcoming fall season playlist. The band is a new one, having formed last year. But between them, they’ve got thirty years experience in writing and playing cleverly conceived guitar rock. This song is their newest single from their upcoming debut record Old Friends. Learn more about that release, and about the band at longfacesmusic.com

Mount Sharp – “Icarus”

For that subterranean “fuzzcore” sound with some jagged edges, and some appealing electric piano that serves as a sonic emollient to the ferocity of guitars and drums, Brooklyn-based trio Mount Sharp has got the goods aplenty. This song comes from their newest EP Weird Fears, and serves as the first single. Catch up to their latest movements at hellomountsharp.com.

The Nautical Miles – “Shadowside”

Folk-rock with a dark side may be one of the ways to describe the sound of The Nautical Miles, a band based right here in Vancouver. This song is taken from this year’s Ode To Joy, the material of which they presented at the 2014 Vancouver Folk Festival, after writing it in locales as far flung as Bogota, Bruno Saskatchewan, and – yes – even Timbuktu in Mali. To get the full story, check out  thenauticalmiles.com.

Ryan Carr – “You Can’t Stop Progress”

The all-consuming money-driven times in which we live never sounded so good thanks to Toronto-based singer-songwriter Ryan Carr and this song taken from his album Progress. After spending time in London, England (that’s where the word “whinge” comes from in the lyrics, no doubt …), Carr gathered his jazzbo buds together to make his brand of alternative roots music, which you can learn more about him at ryanawcarr.com.

Sister Speak – “Chicago Dream”

This one is a live take of a single by Canadian-originated, San Diego-based Sister Speak, recently completed an opening slot with Chris Isaak. The song is full of alternative rock appeal, with a unique kind of folk-rock flavouring, appearing on their recent album Rise Up For Love. Get the latest from them on sisterspeakmusic.com.

Ransom and the Subset – “Anna”

This tune touches on a number of musical points on the map, from jagged Gang of Four angles, to buoyant power pop melodicism, with lyrical hints of regret and melancholy to make for an appealing tune fit to flow out of car radios. Ransom and The Subset hail from Seattle, with this song “Anna” being their initial foray in presenting this unique concoction of pop music to the world. Learn more about them at ransomandthesubset.com, along with their soon to be released debut full length No Time To Lose.

Rob Drabkin – “Don’t Worry About Me”

And speaking of melancholy (that doesn’t spill over into the world of self-pity …) comes this song by Denver, Colorado songwriter Rob Drabkin. Touching on a soul-influenced sound, balanced against an organic orchestral-folk backdrop, this tune may be the most autumnal on the list. The song is featured on Drabkin’s new record Little Steps. Catch up to him at Robdrabkin.com.

The Wax Girl – “Sleep Disorder”

And to take us home, here’s a post-rock excursion from Toronto-based composer and producer Alex Wright, aka the creative mind behind musical entity The Wax Girl. This track is taken from his new EP Anosmic. You can learn more about the new EP at landofthewaxgirl.com.

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A cornucopia of autumn tuneage, as promised!

What are your favourite tracks? Do you have some new discoveries of your own that you’d like our readers to find out more about?

Get ye to the comments section! After you’ve finished listening, of course.

Enjoy!