Okay, let’s tumble into Apryll Aileen's “Under My Tree,” shall we? It’s not your grandma’s sleigh-bell jingler, not by a long shot. Aileen, this classically-trained pianist, decides to cloak herself in a Christmas-themed R&B haze, like wrapping a finely-made watch in soft flannel. It’s the kind of thing that makes you tilt your head. https://open.spotify.com/track/6BBE2fTRte3f7HW7NZkTwm?si=JDkhIyolRLeIJS9r8m7PVA The song feels like staring at a snow globe, the tiny...

Independent power pop band Chandra has dropped their latest digital single, "Boom," a track that effectively scores the precise fraction of a second when a quiet cosmos collapses to form a brand new universe. Frontman and guitarist Chandra Nair frames true connection as a spiritual, highly reactive ambush. We all know the experience. You go about your week with a perfectly unassuming, guarded exterior,...