Helen Hummel: Voice Extraordinaire

It's the monthly Open Mic on an unassuming campus in rural southern Vermont. There's some scattered chairs and tables, and no more than fifty people in the room at any given time. Next up on the list is apparently a local celebrity. The MC refers to her as the college's own "Queen of Open Mic," and I'd have to say I agree. A shy young woman takes the stage with her guitar and waits for the microphones to be adjusted.

She says she can only play one song tonight, and the crowd responds with disappointed murmurs. What comes next is a hypnotic experience, as Helen Hummel's voice washes over us through the ten year old speakers. One song ropes us all in for a few minutes, and when it's over the new silence is painful by comparison.

Helen Hummel - Feet Are Bare

I have a new favorite folk artist.