Listening to Arnold J.’s new single, "Muddy Waters," isn't quite like anything else swirling around right now. It arrives with the gentle insistence of incoming tide, pulling you into its specific gravity. Arnold J., Ghanaian-born and now Canada-based, weaves a sound tagged as alt-country and folk, but those labels feel thin, like trying to contain smoke. There’s earthiness, sure, but his soulful vocal lines...

You may be the best couple in the world one minute and then be complete strangers the next. That is the rapid transformation in many partnerships today. Abby Carroll, in a song titled "Lovers To Strangers," appears saddened over the entire situation, as evidenced by the tone of her voice. The poetic tone of this piece of songwriting is touching and the music compliments the message...