6 Albums To Help You Welcome Spring

End On End, by Rites of Spring
Since we’re talking about spring this week, this band marks the most obvious place to start: it’s right there in the name! This album is really a compilation of the band’s self-titled first album and the follow-up EP, All Through a Life, showcasing a sound that paved the way for emo, with an emphasis on melody and deeply personal lyrics that was considered unorthodox in 1980s punk rock. In that sense, Rites of Spring marked a period of rebirth, moving away from meathead hardcore without losing the energy and immediacy that drew them to underground music in the first place. Standout tracks are “Remainder,” “Drink Deep,” and, of course, “Spring.”

Raven in the Grave, by the Raveonettes
Danish garage rock duo the Ravonettes are known for their simple, fuzzed-out, effortlessly melodic noise pop, but there’s something about their 2011 album Raven in the Grave that reminds us of a spring thaw. Tracks like “Forget That You’re Young” and “Summer Moon” capture a certain sense of awakening, a stirring after a long period of hibernation. The slower tempos accentuate that feeling, and guitarist/singer Sune Rose Wagner has observed that this album feels more like a soundtrack than anything else they’ve done. Many of the classic Raveonettes trademarks are present here, including guitar tones warm enough to melt leftover snow drifts.

Doolittle, by Pixies
Originally released in 1989, Doolittle represents a spring cleaning of sorts for the Pixies, in that the band’s surreal, dark lyrics and grungy sound were given the clean production quality of a proper pop album. The band had mixed feelings about this at the time, but Doolittle has gone on to become one of their most popular albums, and a perennial favorite of rock critics. Along with more aggressive tracks like “Tame” and “Crackity Jones,” they introduced slower, more melodic material like “I Bleed” and “Here Comes Your Man.” And, in true Pixies fashion, they have songs that shouldn’t be catchy but are, like delightfully weird opening track “Debaser.”

Kerplunk!, by Green Day
If spring is the lead-in to summer, then Kerplunk! absolutely belongs on this list. It was the full-length album that preceded Dookie, and although Kerplunk! is less polished, it predicts the band’s future success with one great song after another. Along with an early cut of “Welcome to Paradise,” which was rerecorded for Dookie, this album contains some serious jams. “2000 Miles Away” starts it off with a catchy synthesis of early Kinks and in-their-prime Ramones, “Private Ale” shows off their gifts for pop hooks and melodies, and “Who Wrote Holden Caulfield” is a rager that ranks among the best songs they’ve written.

Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society, by the Kinks
Speaking of the Kinks, no less an authority than Pete Townshend said this album is “what makes [Ray Davies] the definitive pop poet laureate,” and it’s hard to argue with him. Village Green Preservation Society is the Kinks’ sixth album, as well as the last one recorded by the original lineup, and captures an idyllic version of spring: sunny, warm, perpetually in bloom. Tracks like “Animal Farm” and “All My Friends Were There” are tinted with pastoral nostalgia, and the title track starts off with Simon and Garfunkel-esque minimalism and builds into a rollicking, organ-driven song with a singalong chorus. “Picture Book” has the most urgent rhythm on the album, and is a standout track because of it.

Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica, by the Ronettes
It wouldn’t be a spring album collection without a debut, since spring is widely considered the first proper season of every new year. And there’s no better debut to feature than that of the Ronettes, who released this album in 1964. Their lively girl-group harmonies and approachable lyrics about love and dating, combined with Phil Spector’s innovative “wall of sound” production, made for a lot of hit singles and memorable songs; in fact, “Be My Baby” and “(Walking) in the Rain” rightfully made it onto Rolling Stone’s list of “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.” Other standout tracks include “Chapel of Love” and the lesser-known “I Wonder.”