Hearing Olivia Cox and her latest single "Made Friends" feels a bit like realizing your house is a mess and finally deciding that the laundry pile looks quite artistic exactly where it is. It is a soulful, strobe-lit confrontation with the realization that we rarely, if ever, actually have our hands on the steering wheel of life. https://open.spotify.com/track/0eIzAu5njSZeHhcqQQjTbZ?si=b4de856171c346b7 The track dives into the relief of surrender....

I confess, my first encounter with MAAME’s new single, “Daydreaming,” was one of deceptive serenity. Here is a track that slides into your awareness with such poise, a self-assured piece of modern R&B that knows its way around a groove. It’s only on the second pass that you realize the serene space it creates is filled with a low, anxious hum—the sound of a...