The Autumns' career began in 1997, when the band released the EP Suicide at Strell Park and, shortly thereafter, the LP The Angel Pool.

"[5] Word of the LP soon spread to Europe, where it caught the ear of Simon Raymonde, whose band Cocteau Twins was among The Autumns’ primary influences.

He went on to release the band's third and fourth albums––The Autumns (2004) and Fake Noise from a Box of Toys (2008)––on his prestigious London-based recording label, Bella Union.

Kelly lent his vocal and songwriting talents to the album Lover, The Lord Has Left Us (Equal Vision).

Adopting the moniker "The Wolf", he collaborated with Loren ("The Nightingale") and RX Bandits’ Matt Embree ("The Walrus") to produce the Persian-infused track "My Horse Must Lose", as well as the album's closer, "The Heretic."

Kelly also appeared on The Sound of Animals Fighting's third album, The Ocean and the Sun (Epitaph), where he again sang on the closing track ("On the Occasion of Wet Snow").

[12] Awareness of TSOAF's cult status spread when the group performed a series of sold out shows on the West Coast in 2006, which were captured on the live DVD We Must Become The Change We Want To See.

[19][20][21] In 2010, Kelly teamed up with Sugarplastic's Ben Eshbach to write and record an album of richly melodic pop.

[23][24] Kelly then joined forces with Evol Intent's Knick Weiller to produce a short EP entitled Minus Music (2012).