Since October of 2019, Angel Olsen has never really stopped releasing stuff. That’s when the great All Mirrors came out, which was then followed by its counterpart Whole New Mess. Both were in turn compiled and expanded recently with the Song Of The Lark And Other Far Memories boxset. Then, back in May, she teamed up with Sharon Van Etten for the absolute (wistful) banger “Like I Used To.” And after all that? Angel Olsen is about to release an EP of ’80s covers!

The EP is called Aisles. It’s out in August and features Olsen singing songs by OMD and Billy Idol. It’s somewhat unexpected coming from her, and it seems that’s part of the point. “I know it’s not really in my history to do something unintentional or just for the hell of it, but my connection to these songs is pretty straightforward, I just wanted to have a little fun and be a little more spontaneous, and I think I needed to remember that I could!” she said in a statement. Olsen made the EP in the winter of 2020 with co-producer and engineer Adam McDaniel. “I needed to laugh and have fun and be a little less serious about the recording process in general,” she added. “I thought about completely changing some of the songs and turning them inside out.”

Along with the announcement, Olsen has shared her take on Laura Branigan’s version of “Gloria.” Compared to the bouncy synth-disco of Branigan’s version, Olsen’s is slowed down and atmospheric, not too far removed from the synthier songs on All Mirrors. “I’d heard ‘Gloria’ for the first time at a family Christmas gathering and was amazed at all the aunts who got up to dance,” Olsen said. “I imagined them all dancing and laughing in slow motion, and that’s when I got the idea to slow the entire song down and try it out in this way.” Check her cover out below.

TRACKLIST:
01 “Gloria”
02 “Eyes Without A Face”
03 “Safety Dance”
04 “If You Leave”
05 “Forever Young”

Also! Aisles is the first release on Olsen’s new Jagjaguwar imprint somethingcosmic. Here’s her comment on that:

I’m very excited to be introducing somethingscosmic, an imprint that will serve as the home for all my covers, collaborations, and one off singles. In this time away from touring I have been inspired to create more, and somethingscosmic will give the me flexibility to release when and how I want to with the help from my longtime partners at Jagjaguwar. The hope is that it will become a place for all of my creative endeavors, music and otherwise.

The Aisles EP is out digitally 8/20 and physically 9/24 via somethingscosmic. Pre-order it here.