Robbie Rapids drops "Class 2 Rapids" onto the table like a heavy set of keys to houses you used to live in, but can’t quite remember the address of. This Atlanta-based Gen X rocker has assembled a collection that feels less like a polished studio product and more like a glove compartment mixtape that has survived three car wrecks and a cross-country move. It...

Listening to RIOT SON’s new single, “Loneliest at Best,” is a curious exercise in emotional time-travel. The sound pulls you back to the early 2000s, to a time of angular guitars and heartfelt, frayed-collar vocals. It has that nervous, shimmering energy of indie rock that always sounded best on a pair of wired headphones, the beat prodding you forward even as the lyrics confess...