Okay, let’s tumble into Apryll Aileen's “Under My Tree,” shall we? It’s not your grandma’s sleigh-bell jingler, not by a long shot. Aileen, this classically-trained pianist, decides to cloak herself in a Christmas-themed R&B haze, like wrapping a finely-made watch in soft flannel. It’s the kind of thing that makes you tilt your head. https://open.spotify.com/track/6BBE2fTRte3f7HW7NZkTwm?si=JDkhIyolRLeIJS9r8m7PVA The song feels like staring at a snow globe, the tiny...

Gary Mictian’s "All I Ever Wanted" has just zapped into my ears, and it’s like being handed a perfectly ripe, glowing fruit by a robot who might also be quietly plotting your emotional unraveling. This London producer delivers a single that struts with that tell-tale Hyperpop swagger; a beat so bouncy it could escape a child’s birthday party, a bassline with a satisfying, almost...