My autumn soundtrack has been an unsettling rotation of two new albums by veteran wizards of the bizarre and unusual: Tom Waits and David Lynch.

Waits is a veteran musician, with one of those miraculous decade spanning careers that still marches on with integrity and inventiveness. Lynch, master of the surreal and terrifying, released his debut solo record, though he’s been heavily involved in music for his film for years.

I’m a lifelong fan of Tom Waits, the older and weirder he gets, the more I love him. As the years pass his voice gets more gravely and the imagery in his songs veers even more towards the darker and ecstatically bizarre side of life. In short, he seems to be settling more and more into himself; whatever odd impulse he has, he puts it on a record. This doesn’t always mean I love every minute of every album he’s put out in the last few years, but I admire him for his irreverent attitude.

Bad As Me is raucaus at times (like on the title track), sweet at others (as in the lovely Put Me Back in the Crowd) and has it’s fair share of the weird-as-all-get-out pandemonium you expect in a Waits record.

David Lynch uses music in his films in the most arresting, unforgettable way. Like Isabella Rossellini singing “Blue Velvet” in the film of the same name, songs in Lynch films are an indelible part of the films themselves. I must admit, I was wary about a Lynch album, with Paris night clubs, coffee roasting, and all brands of other endeavors, I think we were all hoping he’d just go back to making movies. But he proved me wrong. Crazy Clown Time is vastly varied in tone sometimes dark and rhythmic, sometimes beautifully melodic. I love the first track with Karen O. on vocals, and it is charming and strange to hear Lynch himself sing, albeit through thick reverb and effects. The album is a pretty perfect companion to the quickly darkening days of winter.