The first listen of Haus of Sound’s new single, “Mirage,” is like walking into a room where a beautifully ornate vase has just been shattered against a wall. There's a jagged, crystalline energy here, a collision of theatrical drama and raw, modern discontent. Evolving from their 2000s tribute roots, the Everett band has synthesized the best of that era’s angst—the coiled tension of early...

Welcome to Joe Lington, a charming soul singer whose singing can turn any room into a party in an instant. Lington's journey is the stuff of stories. It started with piano classes with Lisa Gold Gervais and ended with him singing solo in a church group. Not long after Lington started to write songs about singers like Sisqo and Keith Sweat, he started to explore...