Paris-based indie art-rock project Books Of Moods has just released their debut album, "Dreams". Guided entirely by Hugo Sailer, a self-taught singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and fiercely independent one-man studio, the record arrives as a hazy, beautiful shock to the system. Sailer wrote, performed, produced, and directed the accompanying visual universe from the ground up. I’ve spent the last few days letting these tracks sink into...

Some tracks do not ask for your attention politely; they kick the door off the hinges and demand you listen. That is exactly what happens the moment you hit play on "So Close," the latest alternative rock single from New York City's own Kim McClay. It hits with the same sudden, dizzying clarity as seeing your ex post a hard launch on Instagram. You know...