I confess, my first encounter with MAAME’s new single, “Daydreaming,” was one of deceptive serenity. Here is a track that slides into your awareness with such poise, a self-assured piece of modern R&B that knows its way around a groove. It’s only on the second pass that you realize the serene space it creates is filled with a low, anxious hum—the sound of a...

Listening to Brandon White’s new single, “BiG FiSH”, is to understand a very specific, architectural kind of pressure. It’s the feeling of having shoulders too broad for the doorway, a voice too resonant for the room. White articulates not just the frustration of being a large talent in a small scene, but the creeping paranoia that comes when the pond life starts to nibble,...