Okay, so, you’ve got music hitting your eardrums. Sometimes it's like a rogue pigeon landing right outside your window – startling, unexpected, but maybe interesting? Ozzient's “Peace, Not War” single feels a little like that pigeon, only this one’s carrying a tiny, insistent megaphone yelling about, well, peace and not war. Obvious, sure, but when was the last time obvious actually soaked in? https://open.spotify.com/album/4mb3AYjTpp2SN5lzOqy5e0?si=cJzQ6WgVTkWdiKTkvgN1uw This track...

There’s a curious sort of old-soul gravity to Amelina’s single, “Step by Step,” one that defies the pop-rock sheen and the artist’s young age. The track opens with a resolute, almost stern, string and piano line that feels less like an invitation to a party and more like the sound of someone tying their shoelaces before a long journey. This is the sound of...