Dylan Forshner's new EP, “Hopeless Optimism,” presents itself not so much as a collection of songs but as a series of candid diary entries set to intricately picked acoustic strings. This five-song journey from the Welland, Canada artist begins in a place of palpable internal wrestling, where the lyrics – and Forshner’s delivery – map out the grim territories of being overwhelmed, using substances...

Listening to Harry Kappen's "Be Brave If You Can" is like finding a note someone left for themselves on a foggy bathroom mirror. As the third single from his album “Four”, it’s a quiet turn inward, a personal reminder scrawled in the steam of a hot shower after a long, wearying day. It doesn't shout for revolution in the streets; it suggests one inside...