desert island all time top five albums for winter.

in winter, certain things happen that can't be avoided. windshields need to be scraped, grandma is repeatedly run over by reindeer, i bake a lot more and shave my legs a lot less, and i listen to certain albums, because, well... i just have to. my itunes library is currently at 13,800 songs, and for almost every single one of those songs, i can imagine a certain drive, a certain night, a certain person that will go with that song permanently in my mind. those things all contribute to why i MUST listen to these albums a LOT in winter.


1. death cab for cutie - the photo album.



i have a mostly-hate-rarely-love relationship with death cab. they have a lot of almost entirely crap albums, but i could never think that the photo album was anything but the best. listen to: 'i was a kaleidoscope,' 'information travels faster,' and if you can find the acoustic version of 'a movie script ending,' that, too. old death cab, how i wish you hadn't changed.


2. radiohead - ok computer



during the winter of tenth grade i went to go see the return of the king with two of my best friends. a boy, who may or may not have been my first kiss, and a girl who was the first friend i made when i moved to florida. in the car we listened to ok computer. they kissed after they dropped me off, and it turned into one of those weird high school things. her sister was walking down the aisle to 'let down' around the same time. i feel like i'm sitting at the south florida/edgewood light every time i listen to it. besides 'let down,' i'd pay attention to 'electioneering' and 'exit music (for a film).'

3. damien rice - o.



in high school, i also spent a lot of time at this place called mitchells coffee house downtown. this rad kid stephen worked there, and i went almost every weekend night and hung out with him, talking about lost, and listening to this album. especially 'amie,' 'delicate,' and 'i remember.' sometimes in 'i remember,' at the part when she says "your mouth, your mouth, your mouth," i cry. don't judge me. it's one of those freakishly moving things.

4. belle & sebastian - if you're feeling sinister



i used to smoke weed and listen to this album. this was a point in my life when i also hated being in utah (90% of why i was getting high), and 'get me away from here i'm dying' was my favorite song. i was into this really quiet kid jayson, but when he got going, he would sing every word to this song, in an octave higher than god intended any man to sing. it was precious. i'm a strange girl that is attracted to strange things. other great songs on the album: 'me and the major' and 'mayfly.'


5. mewithoutyou - it's all crazy! it's all false! it's all a dream! it's alright!



i saw mewithoutyou this summer, on their tour for this album, and they were brilliant. in between songs they asked if we were hungry and then handed us a big brown bag of scones and muffins. it was beautiful. i've liked mewithoutyou for a wicked long time, back in their 'post-hardcore' days, and this album is decidedly different, but i still like it a whole lot. considering it came out this spring and i listened to it all summer, i'm not sure why it's a winter album, but i have an idea. the lyrics of 'timothy hay' talk about december in a way that makes me shiver. that's probably enough. it's my new winter album. 'the fox, the crow and the cookie,' and 'allah, allah, allah' are other swell songs, but this is the album that was hardest to pick out highlights from.

that's that. winter albums. make yourself a mix cd.