Take Jack Horton, a Portland-based singer-songwriter whose path to folk-Americana included stops at Japanese law school, Tokyo piano bars, corporate boardrooms, and government offices. His latest EP, "Imperfections," feels like finding someone's private journal set to music. And that someone happens to write really, really well. The five-song collection opens with "Set Me Free," a piano-driven confession that might surprise anyone expecting typical breakup bitterness. Horton...

Seema Farswani’s new single, “Under A Blazing Sun,” shimmers in much like that first blast of heat when you step off a plane somewhere thrillingly unfamiliar – a bright, almost disorienting welcome. The songwriter and producer immediately sets out a clear map of intent: a pop-rock engine chugging with determination, quickly threaded through with the intricate, evocative embroidery of Arabian strings and Middle Eastern...