Maraad’s new album, “BUFF”, is a strange and beautiful paradox, an object forged in the very fire it’s meant to protect you from. Each track is presented as a "buff," a bit of protective magic for the spirit, but the energy humming underneath feels less like a polished shield and more like the faint, determined glow around a figure in a centuries-old altarpiece—somehow both...

Gianfranco Malorgio tackles historical displacement and generational departure on his electrifying new instrumental track, “An Immigrant’s Story.” While the Italian classical guitarist and composer is best known for launching the Gypsy jazz group Hot Club Roma and running independent imprint Papilio Records, his recent creative energies have gravitated toward scoring for films and documentaries. https://open.spotify.com/album/5RdYihwsMzBFWZH3Eosijj?si=MPO2ZBGWQymzKsS95TezgA This latest venture channels that cinematic sensibility into progressive and neoclassical...