"Country Dreams," the new album from Soul Provider, arrived... and, well, it didn't arrive on a golden chariot pulled by unicorns. It just showed up. Sixteen tracks of pure, unadulterated country – or, at least, that's what they're calling it. There is a lot of Americana in it. There's a definite flavor, a sort of sonic stew of love, loss, hope, and resilience. Think...

Keeping going can sound deceptively simple as advice. Digging For Kanky complicate that idea on “Raining Stones”, their single. The Manchester trio put the cost of endurance in view. Their focus is not heroic triumph, but the pressure of carrying on when life has closed in. That makes this an alternative music release with a serious social charge. It does not settle for a motivational slogan. Instead,...