Simona-Valentina’s new album, “Mirrors & Feathers,” arrived much like an unexpected guest at a tea party – one who’s been through a rather significant ordeal but still manages a fascinating, slightly skewed smile. This London-based songwriter, with roots trailing back to Transylvania, offers a collection that feels less like a polished performance and more like eavesdropping on intensely private, courageous conversations, rendered in dreamy,...

There are songs that sound like a place, and then there’s Neil Potter’s "Música El Idioma Del Amor," which sounds like a specific time of day in a specific place you’ve never been. It’s a curious creation, a sonic postcard from a parallel-universe Seville where the flamenco guitarist and the local rock progressive have decided to build something new on a foundation of pure...