If the Pac-Man arcade cabinet at the corner of a musty Scottish pub could talk, it might recount something akin to Rok's self-titled odyssey. Nigel Dunn, the one-man conductor behind this electrified locomotive, paints in phosphorescent streaks of emotion while clutching an aesthetic pulled straight from the neon abyss of ’84. Yet, “Rok” isn’t content with cosplay. No, this album doesn’t merely wear the...

RISE’s new single, “Lost For Words,” doesn’t sound like the slow, sad end of a relationship; it sounds like the starting pistol for the next phase of a life. Here is an anthem that throws its shoulders back, propelled by a velocity that feels less like running away and more like accelerating toward something certain. Alex Mahoney’s drumming provides a relentless forward momentum, a...