When Boston-based indie artist Squirrel Flower (aka Ella Williams) released her rendition of Caroline Polachek’s “So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings,” it had been just two months since her headlining US tour was cancelled. Since then, the future of live music has been strained and uncertain. Artists whose livelihoods depend primarily on shows and associated merch sales will likely have to wait as far as 2021 to get back on stage, and to make matters worse, long-standing venues (including Williams’ local haunt, Great Scott in Allston) are facing closures at every corner. For folks that rely on music and the…

I’ve had the new Phoebe Bridgers record on heavy rotation since it came out on Thursday, and while I’m not yet sure where it stands in comparison to her past work, I seem to keep swinging back to that title track. “Punisher” is Bridgers’ sung letter to the late Elliott Smith, a gesture through the veil at the Portland songwriter she describes as one of her biggest influences, her own signature double-tracked vocals a quiet homage to his. Something about the track feels immediately alluring on first listen, but it’s tough to pin down. …

You know, I have always been an avid listener of music (read: someone who uses music as a coping mechanism), but only now have I decided to do what absolutely no one asked for. Here are write-ups of ONE song on each of the EIGHT albums I loved most this year. I was going to do a top ten albums thing, but honestly, I usually find those excruciatingly boring to read. And so, I choose eight to be my arbitrary number, and I’m focusing on single tracks instead of albums. It might still suck to read (I don’t know you)…