A half-dozen cool things in music, from two points of view:

Jay Gabler, Duluth News Tribune arts reporter:

1 Lanue, "Fire in My Mind." This new EP, recorded with producer Alan Sparhawk (Low) in his Duluth living room, feels like the complete actualization of the direction that singer-songwriter Sarah Krueger began to take with last year's full-length Lanue album. It's a worthy entry in the ever-growing library of moody, melodic electronic soundscapes our region has cultivated as a specialty.

2 Gaelynn Lea, "Macbeth" original score. I actually haven't heard this yet from the current Broadway production starring Daniel Craig and Ruth Negga. Lea says there will eventually be a soundtrack release. Fellow Minnesotans Al Church, Jeremy Ylvisaker and Dave Mehling accompanied her on the tracks now playing on the Great White Way.

3 Thumpasaurus, "Struttin'." I can safely say this song is my friends' most hotly anticipated dance floor anthem for my upcoming wedding. An indie funk group with a taste for artsy absurdity, Thumpasaurus has the perfect energy for our nervous release from pandemic lockdowns. A celebration of commando chaps, with an addictive roadhouse piano hook.

Jon Bream, Star Tribune critic:

1 Marissa Mulder, Crooners. In a theater piece as cabaret revue, this New Yorker delivered ⁩ songs, monologues and narration about Tom Waits' career, an enrapturing celebration of his delightful quirkiness, vivid writing and beguiling wit. Mulder sold the songs with expressive eyes, eyebrows and voice, which can be disarmingly girlish but riveting.

2 Odesza featuring Bettye LaVette, "The Last Goodbye." I've long championed comeback R&B stylist LaVette. This electronica duo has repurposed her 1965 hit "Let Me Down Easy" into a disco sensation that emphasizes her emotionally raw vocals as much if not more than the danceable beats.

3 Orquesta Akokan, the Dakota. This Cuban-rooted, New York-based group of a dozen musicians is known for modernizing mambo but they also threw in rumba, cha-cha, conga — you name it — to the delight of spontaneous dancers.

To contribute: popmusic@startribune.com