Inochka’s new single, "Intertwined," is the auditory equivalent of noticing the dust motes dancing in a single ray of late-afternoon sun, realizing an entire day has passed you by. This is music that occupies a space, filling the quiet corners of a room with a kind of beautiful, bruised resignation. The track drifts in on a bed of lo-fi atmosphere and gentle guitar, carrying...

Maverick Smith’s “We Make Fire, They Make Smoke” lands not with a thud, but with the distinct, satisfying crackle of something catching alight. It’s a title that carries the grit of the Ohio Valley in its consonants, a resolute statement from a band – Paige Bosic on commanding vocals and rhythm guitar, Sean Boynes sculpting soundscapes on guitar, Jim Courtney’s intricate drumming, Charlie Kovach’s...