"Prayer Beat" by LOMELI is a slow-burning slice of a vibration born out of some heartfelt, emotive pangs only an artist entangled in a messy love affair with melody and soul could make. The sheer longing in the vocal is enough to make the same face Jay-Z made when Timbaland pressed play on the final "Dirt Off Your Shoulder" beat. Yet, it's the unwavering, tasteful production built on several of the prettiest harmonies this era of neo-soul has offered the world. Now, where's the IDM edit?

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It only took three minutes for a few of the golden leaves to gently annex themselves from the towering oak tree outside of the girl with the view of the park's window. She counted the leaves nevertheless. She even had a laugh over the viral video of a man counting numbers, then regained her composure as this was serious business, counting the number of leaves and all. Autumn was her favorite season, after all. It had been the hottest summer in the planet's history, and the fall felt as calm and crisp on her skin and mood as a freshly cracked open frozen can of soda pop. She could only count a few leaves before they stopped falling, some humorously reluctant to detach from the wood and the bark. When she stopped counting the leaves, her senses alerted her to the sound melting into her studio apartment's walls and floor. It reminded her of days at the lake with him, walks through the park with him, nights watching movies with him, runs up the mountains with him, dawns in the kitchen with him, drives from airports with him and dusks in the dark with him. She caught herself swaying to the song before the vocals came in. Once they did, she started to saunter her way towards the speakers. She caressed them with her palms. She put them together to mutter a silent prayer for more lazy evenings like these to give her more than enough solace to last her a billion lifetimes. That was when he knocked on her door and startled her so much she jumped into the air, face flushed red. She had to grab the corner of her desk to restore her balance before she walked towards the door to open it, to find him there on one knee. They married that fall and were a family of three by the next summer.

On "Pullstring," LA singer-songwriter Lauren Ruth Ward colors her usual glittering approach to Americana in watery pastels. A buzzy, lush guitar arrangement provides a soft cushion for the emotive rasp of Ward’s voice as she reconciles with the weight of the expectations that others have projected onto her. The soft percussion falls like footsteps in the forest, reverberant and felt most viscerally in your chest. Nuance is second nature to Ward. She weighs sentiment alongside reality, describing how we reflect what we know onto the ones we come to love. "What you see / it don’t come from me / your reality pulls my strings," as Ward sings the melody with a hint of tension and sadness, her voice is affected with ease.

Austin-based singer-songwriter Christelle Bofale’s debut single “U Ouchea” is a behemoth coming in at seven and a half minutes. Even at such a length, it never drags. Instead, it meanders from one melody to another with the strength and grace of a river. It is contained but not repressed as Bofale plucks her guitar and the other instruments come in and out as accents. The blues styled guitar riffs, steady bassline, and the gentle patter of perfectly placed drums allow her powerfully smooth, jazzy vocals to be the focal point. Bofale effortlessly switches from breathy and soft high notes to sultry, low notes with a hint of gravel. Her lyrics are just as graceful as she weaves imagery throughout, “You’re out here tight roping / should have left that to the acrobats.” The song showcases Bofale’s range as a songwriter, singer, and musician. Though it goes on for an extended period of time, it never explodes. Instead, it soldiers on slow and steady with little breaks of silence that keep the listener from getting bored. It is persistent in its understatedness. The song feels like getting lost in the night sky floating languidly with no particular destination...just enjoying the journey.

"One by One," the latest release from Canadian folk artist Dana Gavinski, feels like a wandering walk through an unknown landscape. A curious and thoughtful tune, "One by One" makes use of solitude as a point of reflection and contemplation. The inventive shifts in melody and cadence between the verse and chorus instill a sense of movement and playfulness—the spacey, whirring arrangement captures the dizzying inner dialogue that comes alive in all of us in times of solitude. The opening line is a wrenching moment of remembrance, "one by one / I think of how he’s gone / as the sun has drawn from the day." It calls upon the kind of nostalgia that sometimes comes when one takes a step back from the noise of the day to day. When the floodgates of your memory open and the things you’ve tried hard to ignore come back into focus.

“Adeline,” the cozy, new single from indie-folk artist John-Robert, feels like coming home. A gentle synth and soft, warm guitar line open the track, sweeping you up in comfort and nicely setting the mood for what’s to come. The reverb-soaked arrangement compliments John-Robert’s angelic vocal; sweet and clear, it’s a calming force at the front of the track. His falsetto guides you through with ease, and when he sings, you might feel like nothing bad could ever happen to you. The nostalgic lyrics add depth and longing to the hopeful instrumental: “Oh Adeline, take me home / walk me through the barren streets I used to roam / say you never saw us growing old / we can still live young.” “Adeline” is a gorgeous and evocative debut.

Since their humble beginnings, psych-rock project, Crumb, has been making the music of dizzying dreams. After the warm reception of their first two EPs, they are set to release their first full-length album, Jinx. One of the first tracks ahead of the album, “Nina,” invites you into a dazed, ethereal realm that seems to be detailing a hazy brain map. “Nothing makes much sense,” sings vocalist and guitarist, Lila Ramani, as an electric piano descends into the rabbit hole. Ramani is at the helm of the band's hypnotic songwriting. As she describes the distortions of the realities we create for ourselves, cadences swirl around in reverb, anchored by a tittering drum beat. “Nina” is a mystifying track. Pulling back its layers uncovers the surface of Crumb’s smooth consciousness, dripping with kaleidoscopic color and triggered by an expanding mind.

Hembree’s new single “Heart” has an intro that echoes in the ears and the mind. Lead singer Isaac Flynn’s resonant vocals pair well with the diverse, high-energy instrumental backing. There’s a longing in the lyric, a wish for time to turn back. At the same time, the song’s cool and energetic presentation allows listeners to have an ambiguous selection of moods. "Heart" easily entertains—it ebbs and flows, builds and falls, as it takes us on a short, immersive musical journey.