A brief encounter can borrow from the future. A look, a promising night, a partly known name can become a stage on which the mind arranges scenes that have not happened. Jillian Marks builds “You’re Not Mine” around that private act of projection. The original single finds the Vancouver singer-songwriter returning after several years with a piano-led account of desire moving faster than knowledge. Its premise...

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...