Autumn is my favorite season. You can make arguments for the trio of competitors for the spot, but the crisp air of dusk, ever-present whiffs of spice, hoodies that hold the perfurme/cologne of its previous owner (For better or for worse) and the crunching of dried leaves underneath your Timbs is all the evidence you need to present to win the argument. No time period is more ripe for reflection, fresh direction and nostalgia as late September through November. So back when Yaves FKA Street Pastor promised a collection of music for each season on the excellent In Summer's Ear EP (Still available for free download here on Dasouth) last August, I was most looking forward to the collection in my hands right now. "In Autumn's Ear" also serves as Yaves second release on his new label home, Xist Music, following the quality History in Progress released last spring. 

The album opens with "In Autumn's Ear," a steady breeze of diet synth and what sounds like live drum taps. It's a typical album introduction of Yaves that fans who've been down with the Columbus, Ohio emcee since his earliest days will expect, to some degree, and enjoy. Typical Yaves is rarely a bad thing and his flow and off the cuff bars perform their duties effortlessly in an album highlight. "A Billion" is a lean cut whose lack of a thicker sound hurts the production. Yaves trademark wordplay is absent for a majority of the song, all adding up to a paint-by-the-numbers picture. "Everywhere" has the distinction of a guest spot by the talented Eshon Burgundy, but with a familiar beat and a general unexciting presentation, generic is the sticker it gets tagged with. "The Ceiling (Trill)" is the 'AC Cool' of this project i.e. a beat so airy that it floats from lack of (acknowledged) stress and a Yaves flow so chilled it doesn't even think about sweating. I dug 'AC' so I'm not mad at this song, but it doesn't score any points for originality.