Brooklyn-based solo artist E.Z.O. captures a mood of quiet, breezy liberation on his new single, "Fiend." Serving as a bridge from his "2000's vibe" EP to his upcoming album, "Suburban urban", the track draws heavily on the smooth, introspective contemporary R&B of early-2000s icons like Donnell Jones and Jagged Edge. https://open.spotify.com/track/43dVAcm5lsHJoNeUACw9ot?si=5X15P35STAa2Mu_xjUx_8A The instrumental relies on a bright, repeating plucked sequence that dances nimbly across the high...

Janet Devlin’s new single, “Houston,” arrives as a gleeful contradiction, a two-stepping Americana anthem for the sovereign state of one. It has all the upbeat, country-rock fixings for a roadside sing-along, yet its heart is miles away, floating in a self-imposed, wonderfully stubborn vacuum. The track opens, and you’re ready for a communal good time; instead, you find yourself at a party where the...