Paula Mejía

Over the last few years, hardcore has transformed from an underground subculture into a mainstream phenomenon. Scowl is one of the unwitting torchbearers for this paradigm shift, but their success hasn't come without tension.

The artist's radically inventive new album produced with Justin Raisen plays like an apt distillation of what it's like to live right now.

The film's dreamlike score, by the French duo Air, sounds the way high school feels: frustrated, isolated, fearful and hopeful all at once. Under social distancing, it's not hard to relate.

Chastened since the turn of the millennium, the streaming revolution has now revivified the recording industry — at least, those at the top of it. What are the alternatives, then?

Alice Bag was foundational in building what punk rock became, and her second solo album shows what it's still becoming.

Vargas' ability to tap into the depths of the human spirit using just a guitar and her voice is exemplified by her 1994 album of original material and Mexican classics.

The range of Sinatra's presence on Nancy & Lee, at times overwhelmed with love and, at other turns, defiantly alone, is why this continues to be a go-to for confused lovers everywhere.

In the metallic first single from Hiss Spun, out Sept. 22, Wolfe is at her most commanding and climactic yet.

Two Montréal underground dance mainstays capture the sound of your heart practically thudding out of your chest.

Stetson's ability on the saxophone borders on the supernatural. Hear his forthcoming album before its release on April 28.