Silja Rós sends us “Letters from my past,” and it’s as if one has been handed a velvet pouch of smoothed sea glass, each piece a shard of memory polished by time. Listening feels like sorting through them, the Icelandic musician’s neo-soul and pop songwriting unfurling narratives from what must be deeply personal old diaries. There’s an intimacy here akin to deciphering faded ink...

The opening seconds of Brett Copeland’s single, "I Wanna Live", don’t ask for your attention; they stage a hostile takeover. This is a song that feels less written and more clawed out of a desperate moment, built with the kind of volcanic energy that powers revival tents and bar-room brawls. Copeland’s voice is the main event—a raw, muscular instrument that sounds like it's been...