Some musicians don't simply make music for the sake of expressing themselves; they also do it to comfort listeners and bring them together. Among the rare breed of artists who can also empathise with their audience is the outstanding Christine Tarquinio. Christine's inventiveness is not limited to her projects; she makes it her duty to educate people about how she creates art. This kind of...

Robin James Hurt’s “A Song, A Story Told” arrives with a sound you can almost run a thumb over, like worn corduroy. In an age of sterile, diamond-polished productions, this album is a defiantly handmade thing, tracked onto vintage cassette machines. The result is not a flaw, but an ingredient. A faint, persistent hiss breathes alongside the instruments, a ghost in the machine who...