Record producer Joe Boyd recorded his new album with a group of southern Albanian singers and musicians. It's a record of polyphonic Albanian music that reminds him of his rock 'n' roll youth.
Like the dot-com bust it presaged, the feeding frenzy that took place in the wake of Nirvana's success was an ill-advised search that led, in a way, to Hootie and The Blowfish. Is there a lesson here?
Smither's first album of new songs in six years brought the beloved roots musician to Blue Rock in Texas — and the cameras were rolling throughout. "This video really captures the magic of the week."
Watch the young Russian musician, who The Times of London calls "the most astounding pianist of our age," play a smart, Chopin-focused concert on a grand piano, precisely wedged behind the Tiny Desk.