Minneapolis Veteran John Deering Emerges from Three-Decade Hiatus with Blistering Single That Confronts Hypocrisy Through Gritty, Basement-Recorded Intensity His first song, "Strip Mall Jesus," is not just a throwback to the Seattle movement of the 1990s; it is a raw release of unresolved emotion, wrapped in analogue warmth and delivered with the unwavering honesty of someone who has nothing left to prove. Recording for "Strip Mall...

Listening to Cat Cork’s "Simple Song" is a funny thing; the title is a clever piece of misdirection, a plain brown wrapper on a package containing an entire life. This isn't some breezy, three-chord singalong for a lazy afternoon. It’s the sonic equivalent of discovering a shipwright’s meticulously drafted blueprint, detailing the construction of a human spirit from the first plank of childhood to...