A broken teacup, stained with Earl Grey, hums with the same quiet ache as "Jeg Glemmer Dig Aldrig." Tomas Raae and the ethereal voice of Eline Hellerud Åsbakk craft something fragile, like frost on a window pane – beautiful and inherently ephemeral. It’s a love song, maybe, or a lament. It’s hard to pin down the heart of it exactly, which, I suppose, is...

Listening to Amara Fe’s new album, "SHIFT," is a bit like finding a perfectly preserved suit of medieval armor that’s been custom-tailored by a high-fashion house. It is formidable, gleaming, and entirely without apology. Across the sprawling landscape of its 24 tracks, Fe builds a monument to self-belief so solid it could probably withstand a siege. There is no room for doubt in this...