There is a strangely magnetic pull to Paper Mountains’ released debut album, "An Olive Tree and a Warm Breeze." Toby Lloyd, the music producer, songwriter, and frontman steering this solo project, has stepped away from the background of crafting sounds for others to finally map out his own mind. Leaning into the soul and folk-pop sensibilities of Iron and Wine and Sam Cooke, Lloyd...

“Fields” feels like the kind of track you play when your brain has too many tabs open. Calico Sun is not chasing noise here. The Connecticut project, led by multi-instrumentalist and producer Sam Bahman, is reaching for something calmer, wider, and more lived-in. Released as a stand-alone single while also sitting inside the album Cosmic Revelations, “Fields” has a clear hook for new music fans: nature,...