Ava Valianti represents something increasingly rare in contemporary music: genuine precocity without artifice. This Massachusetts artist, who is only fifteen years old, handles general themes with a level of emotional depth that is shocking. She shows that youth can bring out the best in complicated human experiences, rather than hiding them. "Distant," her sixth single, functions as a sonic archaeology of friendship's dissolution. The track excavates layers...

David Alex-Barton has just dropped his new single and music video, "Crush", and the track operates with a deeply frantic, delightful energy. The New England-born, Nashville-based singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer has a knack for genre collision, carrying the restless pedigree of Boston power pop punk legends The Outlets and the country rock swagger of Tattoo Cowboy. This time around, he’s steering headfirst into...