Donovan Quinn recorded October Lanterns late in the evenings of 2002 and 2003, while living on a horse ranch in Walnut Creek, California. It's a home recorded DIY affair of the bedroom school, a bit off-key and folky, and calls to mind the recorded works of Treacy and Kusworth at their most dour. The mood is dark, maybe even morbid, but there's a sweetness to it that portrays both a sense of humor and nostalgia just beneath the surface.