Empty Pinata – remember LA Rodriguez? – serves up the single "Bonfire," and honestly, the air changes slightly when you play it. It’s less like passively listening and more like discovering a singed diary page fluttering down a quiet street. The music itself is this curious contradiction, wrapping harrowing emotional shrapnel in the comforting gauze of indie-pop, flecked with soft rock warmth. A strangely...

To understand the profound depth of Amana Melome's new album, "Recalibration", one must first appreciate the legacy she carries. As the granddaughter of Jimmy Woode, the legendary bassist who was the youngest member of Duke Ellington's orchestra and who performed alongside icons like Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald, Melome' is heir to a monumental tradition in American music. Her latest work is not a simple continuation...