Sam Ostler’s new single, “Lights,” then. It unfolds less like a sudden, intrusive glare and more like the slow, determined burn of a really good stage light finally finding its mark after a prolonged blackout. It’s pop, yes, vibrant and undeniably contemporary as advertised – clean lines, clear intentions. Yet, there’s a certain satisfying heft beneath the melodic uplift, a feeling that these notes...

The carousel on the album cover of Kyle Davis's "Jericho" spins with a blurred intensity, much like the emotional whirlwind captured within its grooves. This seventh studio effort from the Virginia-based singer-songwriter marks not just a reunion with the team behind his acclaimed 1999 Sony debut "Raising Heroes," but a successful artistic rebirth following personal upheaval. Davis plays these eleven songs with the experience of someone...