Dylan Forshner's new EP, “Hopeless Optimism,” presents itself not so much as a collection of songs but as a series of candid diary entries set to intricately picked acoustic strings. This five-song journey from the Welland, Canada artist begins in a place of palpable internal wrestling, where the lyrics – and Forshner’s delivery – map out the grim territories of being overwhelmed, using substances...

Mark Vennis & Different Place have unleashed "Goodbye to All That", a record that feels less like a standard studio production and more like stumbling across a box of forgotten, mud-stained letters from the front lines, set to a rhythm that refuses to sit still. https://open.spotify.com/album/0uvXq10rlm29SxAdmx8IVQ?si=fai-hk9BQru4curtMTfKIA There is a particular flavor of cynicism that seems to ferment best in the damp air of the British Isles,...