If the Pac-Man arcade cabinet at the corner of a musty Scottish pub could talk, it might recount something akin to Rok's self-titled odyssey. Nigel Dunn, the one-man conductor behind this electrified locomotive, paints in phosphorescent streaks of emotion while clutching an aesthetic pulled straight from the neon abyss of ’84. Yet, “Rok” isn’t content with cosplay. No, this album doesn’t merely wear the...

The fiercely independent, Idaho-raised rapper nick! channels a deeply overstimulated, restless frequency on his new EP, "GEEKED!". Born in 2006 and building a fervent following entirely without industry co-signs, he occupies an interesting lane in new-wave underground hip-hop. His music sounds precisely like the brain chemistry of an internet-raised creative processing the blinding speed of newfound success. He writes and produces melodic, hard-hitting rap...