Mark Rolfe has released "Compton Bay," an ethereal new instrumental single ahead of his upcoming album "The Isle of Wight." The Nottingham-based composer, academic, and Lorna songwriter handles entirely everything for this project through his DIY label Winnetka Records. You hear him acting as the solitary architect of this ambient universe tracking the guitar, cello, clarinet, piano, and percussion himself, all while handling his...

If you’ve ever tried to catch a seagull mid-flight with a butterfly net, you’ll understand the elusive joy that Funky Blackman's "The Beach" EP serves up. Not that there are any feathered friends involved, directly. But the feeling? Yeah, it’s there, a fleeting, beautiful awkwardness. https://open.spotify.com/album/5Sk7pagwbS02FPhsKKAzOb?si=QYWmoCruQv2lw3xMISpLJQ This isn’t some synthesized shoreline; forget the stock wave sounds. This is a memory, maybe yours, maybe his, re-assembled. He’s...