Awesome, in three parts.

I discovered a natural law on my mission. It is that only the worst music from the US makes it overseas. For the first year or so, pretty much everywhere I went, I'd hear people listening to Miley Cyrus on the radio. Around the second year, she was replaced by Justin Bieber. The various other artists that I was exposed to were better, but not by much.

When I got home, my brother quite kindly introduced me to some of the better things that had happened in my absence. And so I first heard this song.

Welcome Home, by Radical Face

James, meet modern folk rock. Modern folk rock, meet James. It was love at first sound.

Fast forward nearly three months. I am listening to the radio, and I hear something wonderful. Further investigation identifies...

Churlish May, by Johnny Flynn and the Sussex Wit

It was awesome with a British accent. Simple and accessible, yet beautiful and profound.

And almost immediately, I was presented with a new item of excellence.

Roll Away Your Stone, by Mumford and Sons

It turns out I'd heard of this band before. A friend of mine had been listening to it while I was at his house right before I left for BYU, but I was too busy talking to him to be able to pay attention to it. My roommate tells me that Mumford and Sons is actually pretty famous right now. I can definitely see why.

In a world of mass-produced factory-built songs, folk is genuine music, something that can really be described as art. I love it.

SPECIAL BONUS SONG FROM BACK IN THE DAY!!!

I promise, I'm not a hippie. But I can't listen to this particular recording of this song and not be happy. It sounds so awesome...