Before listening to a single note of Suris’ new album, “Pertinax”, I spent a few minutes just looking at the word. Pertinax. It has the distinct ring of a Stoic philosopher’s last defiant utterance or maybe a type of beetle known for its unusually stubborn shell. What a curious flag to fly for a collection of songs in an age of fleeting distraction. But...

"Cuentito," a single from Tone Ranger (Alex Simon) collaborating with Vecinoz (Tati Bohorquez and Giovan Michael), shimmers like heat rising off desert sand. It’s Latin-Pop, but with an insistent pulse that makes you want to move, even if you’re sitting in a dentist's waiting room. I wonder, are dentist waiting rooms a type of desert? They certainly feel that way sometimes. https://open.spotify.com/album/2JRCJZRRBjXI9IufqMHjIc?si=r3H7zIm7SdyCp3P2ESWs3Q The lyrics, drawing inspiration...