Gus Defelice. The name itself feels like a well-oiled machine – intricate, precise, and humming with a purpose I'm not entirely sure I grasp. “Starlight,” a lone single in a world of albums and playlists, pulses like a freshly discovered constellation. You know, the kind where they announce the official findings and then all the maps start printing with the new location…except this constellation...

Janet Devlin’s new single, “Houston,” arrives as a gleeful contradiction, a two-stepping Americana anthem for the sovereign state of one. It has all the upbeat, country-rock fixings for a roadside sing-along, yet its heart is miles away, floating in a self-imposed, wonderfully stubborn vacuum. The track opens, and you’re ready for a communal good time; instead, you find yourself at a party where the...