Music & Culture

"Every few weeks I threaten to leave, but it's been 17 years," Shilpa Ray says of New York. "I'm just going to stay here, I don't know how I'm going to do it."

Music & Culture

Shilpa Ray Takes Us Nightclubbing In New York With 'Door Girl'

2:43pm September 22, 2017

by Karen Gwee

The new album from longtime New Yorker is full of sharp, spirited storytelling in the traditions of Lou Reed and Ray Davies. Shilpa Ray explains Door Girl, track by track.

Bomba Estereo performs a Tiny Desk Concert at NPR's Washington, D.C., headquarters on Aug. 18, 2017.

Music & Culture

Bomba Estereo: Tiny Desk Concert

2:23pm September 22, 2017

by Felix Contreras

Bomba Estereo is not known as a hushed band. Member Simon Mejia said this Tiny Desk performance was the group's quietest, a stripped-down treatment that illustrates the inherent quality of the music.

Music & Culture

Jazz Pianist Harold Mabern Is In Full Command On 'To Love And Be Loved'

2:18pm September 22, 2017

by Kevin Whitehead

Mabern has worked as a pianist for more than half a century. Now he brings brings his confident style and sense of musical history to his latest album, To Love And Be Loved.

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Filmmaker Angus MacLachlan & Musician Jeffrey Dean Foster: Music, Sound, & Story In MacLachlan’s New Film Abundant Acreage Available

2:07pm September 22, 2017

by Paul Brown

The new independent film Abundant Acreage Available makes its North Carolina and New York debuts, we hear a music-filled conversation with the film's writer/director, Angus MacLa

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Music & Culture

Amadou & Mariam On World Cafe

12:07pm September 22, 2017

by Talia Schlanger

Amadou and Mariam are two blind musicians from Mali who met, fell in love with each other's musicianship and became global Afropop sensations. The duo performs music from its new album, La Confusion.

Music & Culture

Dave Douglas On Piano Jazz

11:33am September 22, 2017

Hear the boundary-pushing trumpeter play a tribute to Mary Lou Williams with host Marian McPartland in this 2000 episode.

David Crosby's new album, Sky Trails, comes out Sept. 29. Part of his songwriting process for the album involved a tip Joni Mitchell gave him: write down everything.

Music & Culture

On 'Sky Trails,' David Crosby Recounts His Regrets And Revelations

10:28am September 22, 2017

The revered folk-rock songwriter returns with his third solo album in four years, which meditates on past mistakes and personal growth.

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A still from Giant Claw's "Soft Channel 006" video.

Music & Culture

Giant Claw's Mecha-Chamber Music Will Rewire Your Senses

10:24am September 22, 2017

by Lars Gotrich

Keith Rankin's biomorphic compositions are covered in steel, but made with a beating heart... you know, like RoboCop. Sabrina Ratté creates surreal digital vistas for "Soft Channel 006."

Music & Culture

Songs We Love: Dego & Kaidi, 'Treasure Beach'

9:58am September 22, 2017

by Piotr Orlov

From jungle to broken beat to "future jazz," the two producers' individual and shared history is foundational to much of London's dance music.

"With this album, I don't need to convince anyone that Trump's a racist," Macklemore says on the eve of Gemini's release.

Music & Culture

On 'Gemini,' Macklemore Chooses Personal Deliverance Over Politics

8:42am September 22, 2017

by Rodney Carmichael

After a career built on mainstream hits and being a voice for social justice, Macklemore says he had to prioritize his happiness again.