Listening to Oxiroma unfold "Hug & Hold the Ocean (Cosmo Symphonic Version)" feels less like pressing play on a digital file and more like opening a window in a submarine that somehow navigates the Milky Way. Roman, the creative force behind the moniker, brings a peculiar discipline to this composition perhaps it’s the Kriya Yoga, or maybe the ghost of his big band trumpet...

Brett L Walker’s new single, “Best Redneck Life,” is a curious and compelling thing. From the opening notes, it leans into its identity with a sound that’s all humidity and frayed denim—a confident strut of swampy, chicken pickin’ guitars that feel both West Coast-baked and Southern-fried. It’s a track that plants its flag firmly in the soil of North Carolina, unapologetic and unconcerned with...