Music & Culture

Music & Culture

Hear Dwight Yoakam Take A Bluegrass Turn With 'These Arms'

11:12am August 25, 2016

by Ann Powers

Yoakam's new project shows this king of modern classic country making a spiritual return to his Eastern Kentucky birthplace for as he rethinks songs from throughout his career within a bluegrass mode.

Music & Culture

First Listen: James Vincent McMorrow, 'We Move'

9:36am August 25, 2016

by Andy Battaglia

A dewy Irishman with a falsetto-flecked voice, McMorrow gives himself an impressive makeover on a stylistically adventurous new album.

Music & Culture

Songs We Love: David Crosby, 'The City'

9:00am August 25, 2016

by Jim Allen

On his striking, sparsely produced solo album Lighthouse, the Southern California legend declares his love for New York City.

Music & Culture

First Listen: Y La Bamba, 'Ojos Del Sol'

7:00am August 25, 2016

by Felix Contreras

On the band's new album, Luz Elena Mendoza's voice is fully enmeshed in the arrangements, which gives her bicultural storytelling an almost otherworldly feel.

Music & Culture

First Listen: Eluvium, 'False Readings On'

7:00am August 25, 2016

by Andy Beta

On its new album, Matthew Cooper's ambient-music project suggests that noise and beauty are interdependent, making room for celestial voices and jet-engine roars alike.

The Frightnrs' new album, Nothing More To Say, comes out Sept. 2.

Music & Culture

First Listen: The Frightnrs, 'Nothing More To Say'

7:00am August 25, 2016

by Oliver Wang

Singer Dan Klein died of ALS earlier this summer, but at least his rocksteady band was able to see its collective vision through on this one sublime album.

As Frankie Reyes, Los Angeles-based musician Gabriel Reyes-Whittaker flips Latin standards into something ghostly and new.

Music & Culture

Simple Idea, Spooky Result: Latin American Ballads Get A Ghostly Makeover

4:31pm August 24, 2016

by Oliver Wang

Frankie Reyes is a Los Angeles-based artist who remakes classic Mexican and other Spanish-language ballads and waltzes using a vintage synthesizer. His new album is called Boleros Valses y Mas.

Music & Culture

Encore: The Science Of Freddie Mercury's Voice

4:29pm August 24, 2016

NPR's Kelly McEvers talks with professor Christian Herbst, who was part of the team that released a study that explores the science behind Freddie Mercury's amazing voice.

Music & Culture

The Thistle & Shamrock: Islanders

3:59pm August 24, 2016

From Shetland and Orkney to the Hebrides, the Isle of Man and Rathlin Island, this week's diverse choice of music is far from insular.

Beth Orton performs live for World Cafe.

Music & Culture

Beth Orton On World Cafe

2:50pm August 24, 2016

Once dubbed a "folktronica" artist, Orton goes all-electronic on her latest album, Kidsticks. Hear her perform live in this session.