Ava Valianti represents something increasingly rare in contemporary music: genuine precocity without artifice. This Massachusetts artist, who is only fifteen years old, handles general themes with a level of emotional depth that is shocking. She shows that youth can bring out the best in complicated human experiences, rather than hiding them. "Distant," her sixth single, functions as a sonic archaeology of friendship's dissolution. The track excavates layers...

With Paul Gehl and his latest single "Train to Nowhere", we are invited into a sonic space that feels suspiciously like the inside of a pressurized cabin just before the oxygen masks drop. It is fascinating to consider that Gehl, an artist hailing from Luxembourg City, has roots in the disciplined worlds of classical and flamenco guitar. You might expect delicate fingering or warm...