Seishin Takeno's "Echoes," a sonic postcard from Kanagawa. Nine instrumental pieces, I've been told. Not nine songs, mind you – more like nine shaded windows into a particular kind of quiet. This isn't music that yells; it leans in, like a friend confiding a secret you half-hear on a summer porch. Immediately, you're not so much listening as remembering. Or maybe anticipating. It feels...

Within the first minute of Fedstar's new single "Treat Me Right," it is clear that a great deal of effort was put into the creation of the song. The title of the song suggests that once she is your companion, you are obligated to behave appropriately with her. Who wouldn't want access to the very best treatment? The lyrics of the song appear to be a...