This fall I’m looking forward to carrying along with me all the music I’ve discovered since school started, as well as a few albums I listened to during the summer that are too good to leave behind. In this issue I’ll be sharing my love for a few spellbound female indie-folk singers (Angel Olsen, Sharon Van Etten); a Korean folk-psyche chanteuse (Kim Jung Mi); and some classic, soulful R&B icons (Al Green, Aretha Franklin, Penny and the Quarters). Yes, it’s an aimless mess, but a personal, enchanting and pleasurable one for the ears.

May as well start off with the artist that has not only changed my attitude towards her genre of music but has perhaps changed my young life, Angel Olsen. When I stumbled upon her most recent album Burn Your Fire For No Witness, I listened to nothing else during all of August and most of September. I still listen to her frequently, but figured I should go out into the world of music again if I wanted to continue writing these articles. Angel Olsen is her own, with an additional mixture of a shaky blues singer’s voice and all the softness, charm, and fierceness of Stevie Nicks. I had the pleasure of seeing her live a few weeks ago at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in San Francisco. I stood in the very front and it was the most silent, awe-stricken concert crowd I’ve ever been a part of. Hiding tears under my sunglasses, I got chills with every verse and was happier than I’ve ever been in my entire life. I hope that everyone may get to experience seeing their favorite artist live in concert, in the perfect setting, in the very front. This was mine, and I highly recommend taking the time to listen to one of her albums: Burn Your Fire For No Witness, Half Way Home, or Strange Cacti. You will not regret it.

Another female indie-folk singer that has caught my attention the last couple months is Sharon Van Etten. She has proved to be as genuine and chilling as all the other females in this genre by whom I have recently been enthralled. To name a few others, Neko Case, Jenny Lewis, and Laura Veirs are all equally good in that they feel to great extents and express it eloquently. The album Because I Was In Love by Sharon Van Etten was recommended to me by a friend, and I spent hours listening to her within that day. I then recommended the album to a homesick friend attending Vassar College in New York, where she too listened to it for five hours straight, and in her words, had “already written 2 shitty poems about it and Sebastopol and love and sadness.” So if you’re looking to have some real connections through music, this album is the one to share. Sharon Van Etten’s music evokes open landscapes, loneliness and without being overly earnest, is extremely heartfelt. The elegance of her voice is wrapped in so much rasp and emotion, and I’m thankful to have found her and to be able to pass her on.

Transitioning to a foreign musician while staying somewhat within the same genre, Kim Jung Mi is a psychedelic and harmonious folk-rock singer based in Korea. She was popular during the peak of South Korea’s rock music scene in the early 70s. Her album Now was written and recorded in 1973 and creates a raw, seductive sound with fuzzy, insistent guitar weaves throughout, depending on the mood of each song. The album cover is of an ethereal blue sky with Kim Jung Mi surrounded by flowers on an isolated mountain top. The image so accurately represents the visuals that come with listening, and is a perfect image to represent one of the best psychedelic albums I’ve ever listened to.

As I’ve been preparing for Singing Valentines coming up in the not so near future, I have to consider which song I may do early on. Last year I decided on a jazzy, romantic, and upbeat song covered by Amy Winehouse. It’s extremely fun to evaluate love songs in a way we usually never do, for the special occasion of singing to someone and making them uncomfortable for a whole thirty seconds. Just in time, I’ve been going through a phase of listening to some of the classic, soulful R&B artists that I grew up listening to but didn’t fully appreciate the first time. Within this genre, there’s a lot of love. Aretha Franklin has the preaching capabilities that supply everyone with a happy, feel good, sense of togetherness and she’s sung several song about love. My favorites are “Baby, I love you,” “At Last,” and “Baby, Baby, Baby.” Then there’s the well-known “Let’s Stay Together” by Al Green that has served as the soulful anthem of love for decades. Lastly, I discovered a quirky soul band named Penny and the Quarters last year while watching one of my favorite movies, Blue Valentine. Their song “You and Me” played as two young lovers, Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, danced and shared their disgust at how all couples have the same ole “their song,” and that this one would be different. This song, along with the two others on their only EP (I Cried A Tear, You Are Giving Me Some Other Love) have a tone of sweetness and everlasting love, all the while staying truthful in their lyrics. They are considered one of the “lost” soul groups of the 60s and 70s, and with this mystery and lack of music created by them, my admiration is even stronger.

All the music I’ve mentioned has come with great emotion these last few months, and by sharing it I hope that some of you can experience these things for yourself, or at least think about it when you listen to the lyrics of your own favorite artists.