Take Jack Horton, a Portland-based singer-songwriter whose path to folk-Americana included stops at Japanese law school, Tokyo piano bars, corporate boardrooms, and government offices. His latest EP, "Imperfections," feels like finding someone's private journal set to music. And that someone happens to write really, really well. The five-song collection opens with "Set Me Free," a piano-driven confession that might surprise anyone expecting typical breakup bitterness. Horton...

The Australian electro-rock veterans "Caligula" return after 25 years with a charged album full of gothic groove, heavy feeling, and late-night replay value. Caligula are back, and "Bloodlines" does not tiptoe into the room. It flicks on the red light, turns the bass up, and lets the shadows start moving. That matters because this is not a quick nostalgia check-in. "Bloodlines", is the ARIA-nominated Australian electro-rock...