Autumn Classics: Carefully Selected Exquisite Ballads to Listen to in September

Like this tonightaimyon

Aimyon – Stay Like This Tonight [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO]

Singer-songwriter Aimyon, known for her nostalgic acoustic sound, has won wide popularity.

Released in November 2018 as her sixth single, this song drew attention when it was selected as the theme for the TV drama “We Can’t Become Beasts.” The lyrics are striking, comparing emotions to beer foam and portraying the frustration of hiding our bitter-sweet feelings and true thoughts in everyday life.

The words, which suggest that even a painful situation can turn into happiness with a small change, seem to gently comfort the melancholy heart of an autumn night.

With its light, pleasant beat, it’s a track you’ll want to listen to in the season when you long for connection.

Summer EndKoresawa

Koresawa “Summer End” Official Audio

The end of summer somehow feels a little lonely and makes you long for someone, doesn’t it? That’s when Koresawa’s track gently stays by your side.

You can almost see the scenes where the fleeting summer is overlapped with the “you” who’s no longer here.

It’s a mellow ballad that tenderly captures that helpless, aching feeling of a summer, a love, and a dream that never came true, carried by her smooth, wistful vocals.

This song is included on the mini-album “Summer Love,” released in August 2022, closing out an album packed with summer memories.

Listen to it on a late-summer drive or on your solitary walk home lost in thought, and you’ll feel a surge of affection for the season that has slipped away.

rendezvousshaitoopu

rendezvous

Sheitoupe’s songs are perfect for sinking into a sentimental mood while listening to the cold sounds of autumn rain.

Memories of a lost love and the longed-for reunion—wished for even while knowing it can never come true—are portrayed with a painfully vivid realism.

Vocalist So Sasaki’s languid, honeyed voice entwines with the protagonist’s helpless feelings, tightening your chest.

Released in April 2023, the track resonated so widely that by November of the same year it had surpassed 100 million streams.

It was later included on the album Hors d’œuvre.

A bittersweet and beautiful piece, it gently stays by your side on long autumn nights as you reflect on days gone by.

Crimson-colored sunsetFujifaburikku

Fujifabric – Akane-Colored Sunset

The autumn-tinted evening sky has a way of stirring a certain wistful sadness, doesn’t it? A perfect match for such a scene is a classic ballad by the rock band Fujifabric.

It captures the loneliness of being far from home, and yet the glimmers of hope one still manages to find, resonating with a lyrical melody.

It’s not merely sorrowful—there’s a curious strength to it that lets you look forward just a little, even as you reflect on the past.

After first appearing as a demo on their indie-era mini album “a la mold,” the song was released as a single in September 2005.

It was also used as the ending theme for the TV Kanagawa program “saku saku.” It’s a track you’ll want to listen to on nights when you want to bask in summer memories, or when you wish to quietly sink into your thoughts alone.

bubble; foam; ephemeral (as in something short-lived)wanuka

Utakata / Wa Nuka [Music Video]

As the clamor of summer fades and a hint of loneliness settles in, Wanuka’s songs resonate deeply.

Like bubbles that rise to the water’s surface and vanish at once, they seem to sing of fleeting summer romances and memories.

Beneath the wish to be beautiful lies an inescapable emptiness and bittersweet ache, carried on delicate, subtly Japanese-tinged melodies that press upon the heart.

This work was released in February 2022 and is also included on the first album Aonizai, released the same year.

It’s the perfect track for a late-summer dusk, when the night breeze turns a little chilly and you want to be alone with your thoughts.

It will gently stay by your side as you reflect on the season that has passed.

a balmy autumn daytsukuyomi

Tsukuyomi “Akiharara” Music Video

How about this song for when you want to sink into a sentimental mood on an autumn evening? It’s a track from Tsukuyomi, a narrative music project led by composer Yuri Cannon.

The piece is set against the story of a girl living with illness and the boy who stays by her side, and it sings of fragile feelings that accept a fading fate while striving to live fully in the present, like autumn leaves turning color.

As you listen, you’re drawn into its heartrending world.

The song was released in August 2024 and later included on the concept mini-album “We Call That God.” Its melody is striking—somehow refreshing yet deeply moving.

Savor it as you cherish time with someone precious.

milk teaShimizu Shota

milk tea

When you think of ballads you want to listen to as autumn deepens, many of you might picture songs with warm melodies that really touch the heart.

That’s why I recommend this one by Shota Shimizu! With its memorable electric piano intro, the song is a love ballad that portrays a calm moment where two hearts melt together, like milk slowly blending into tea.

You can really feel his talent for weaving irreplaceable affection out of everyday scenes.

The track was included on the single “My Boo,” released in October 2016, and later featured on the 2017 album “FLY.” If you listen to it on a chilly night with a warm drink in hand, thinking of someone special, you’ll likely find yourself wrapped up in its sweet, gentle world.