I really believe there is something to the theory that the time of year affects what music we listen to. The eponymous new album by The xx is a great example. I picked this it up late summer, gave it a couple of listens, and threw it into Willy Wonka’s “bad egg” pile.

Fast forward a few months to the grey, desolate, windblown landscape of late November. This song shuffled onto my Ipod and screamed amazing at me with a bullhorn. There is something about its sparse, clean and simple tone that translates really well to this “only fun to be had is drinking a bunch of scotch in an unfinished basement and singing show tunes” time of year. The album has been playing on repeat ever since and has become one of my favorites of 2009. Sometimes you need something like a kick ass tune to get you through the doldrums to the crisp nights on the outdoor ice and the general winter frolicking just around the corner.