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...

Listening to Loup Miracle’s new EP, “Back To You”, feels a bit like trying to navigate by stars through a suddenly unfamiliar city. The French outfit, steered by Vincent Leservoisier alongside Paul Douvier and Miguel Romero Sulbaran (with input here from Pierre Szabo and Issara), crafts art rock that’s simultaneously groovy and deeply unsettling. These three songs thrum with the push-and-pull of modern existence...