MUSIC TIP

Luminescence

Bruce Soord

I have a running count of artists about whom I say, “Why? WHY is this person (or band) not more famous?” Rick Koster Exhibit #349 is Bruce Soord, whose name could be found in earlier Rick Koster Exhibits as the leader of a wonderful band called The Pineapple Thief (#196) and for his “The Wisdom of Crowds” collaboration with Jonas Renske (#250), who is the vocalist for the band Katatonia (#201). Soord’s recently released “Luminescence” is such a beautiful and sonically superb recording. I suppose you’d call this stuff thoughtful art-pop, and the songs are so splendidly written and performed — and apparently ignored by the overwhelming music press and listening public — that Soord must wonder if anyone in the world even has ears.

— Rick Koster

FOOD TIP

Café Sol

488 Main St., Niantic

Apparently, where Café Sol goes, its fans will follow. Mid-morning last Thursday, I was happy to see that the restaurant, in its new location, was almost full — but I was also relieved that there was one table free, which is where I settled in to wait for a friend. The long-running, popular café had to move, since the building where it used to be housed, at 346 Main St. in Niantic, is being torn down to make way for a mixed-use structure. Café Sol’s new locale, at the corner of Main Street and Black Point Road in what East Lyme long-timers still think of as the former Silver Skate, has been overhauled into a cute space that serves as a warm and welcoming spot to have breakfast or lunch. Oh, and, yes, I enjoyed my Popeye (egg, Swiss, organic baby spinach, grilled portobello on multigrain with breakfast sauce).

– Kristina Dorsey

TV TIP

Bosch: Legacy

Season Two

Well, the whole gang is back for a new batch of episodes from this excellent post-“Bosch” spinoff. Season One ended cruelly, with fans waiting and reflecting on the searing finale when Bosch’s daughter Maddie — now an LA cop — is kidnapped. The first focus in Season Dos is to resolve that situation, but there’s much more to worry about since our hero, now a private detective working for ace defense attorney Honey Chandler, has crossed the line as he helps her prove a client accused of murder is innocent. Great stuff with some fine plot twirls, a pair of demonic bad cops, and Maddy possibly having to kill in the line of duty. Mostly, though, I can’t say enough about Bosch’s cohort, the incredibly cool hacker Mo, portrayed with major chops by Stephen A. Chang. He’s without question one of the most intriguing characters in all of television, and that’s saying a lot. Could Chang/Mo soon have his own show?

— Rick Koster