Inal Bilsel, "Once Upon a Cloudtop Meadow". Honestly, the title alone conjures... well, precisely what the music delivers. It's an album that sounds like the background music for a Studio Ghibli film that doesn't exist yet, but absolutely should. Have you ever seen a cat yawn so widely it looks like it's trying to swallow the sun? That level of surprising delight – that's...

The Madrid-based singer-songwriter Elif Coskun turns a soft, cinematic alt-pop single into a clear-eyed hit of memory, forgiveness, and emotional honesty. Some songs hit because they say the messy thing before you are ready to admit it. Elif Coskun's "The Hardest Part" does exactly that, then lets the feeling hang there. This cinematic single from the Madrid-based singer-songwriter, shocks through care, not anger. That may sound...