Music & Culture

Prominent Malian Musician Alleges That TSA Destroyed His Instrument

5:04pm February 06, 2020

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

One of West Africa's best-known musicians, Ballaké Sissoko, says that his kora was dismantled by TSA agents while he was traveling from New York to Paris. The agency denies it was involved.

Ed O'Brien of Radiohead performs in 2017.

Music & Culture

Radiohead Guitarist Ed O'Brien Announces First Solo Album, Shares New Song

10:46am February 06, 2020

by Lars Gotrich

Earth comes out April 17 under the name EOB. Radiohead's Colin Greenwood, Portishead's Adrian Utley, Wilco's Glenn Kotche and Laura Marling contribute to the album.

Music & Culture

Anna Tivel On Mountain Stage

9:00am February 06, 2020

by Dave Lavender

Singer and songwriter Anna Tivel performs songs off her album The Question at Mountain Stage.

Fragile Rock performs a Tiny Desk Concert on June 16, 2017. (Photo: Liam James Doyle/NPR)

Music & Culture

The 5 Funniest Tiny Desk Concerts

5:00am February 06, 2020

by Stephen Thompson

Emo puppets, a bonkers dance party, Weird Al unplugged, zany improvisations and a Monty Python veteran all made us laugh behind the Tiny Desk.

This week's episode features songs from The Crannua Collective.

Music & Culture

The Thistle & Shamrock: Debuts

5:10pm February 05, 2020

Hear some of the most exciting emerging songs from the world of Celtic music.

Puerto Rican artist Draco Rosa previews his upcoming album with "Quiero Vivir."

Music & Culture

Alt.Latino Playlist: Meet Us In Our World

3:49pm February 05, 2020

The enigmatic Draco Rosa immediately returns after a Latin Grammy, Lido Pimeinta celebrates the beauty and resilience of Afro-Colombian communities and Orquesta Failde covers a Camila Cabello hit.

Music & Culture

Destroyer Turns Nightmares Into Dreams With The Moody Album, 'Have We Met'

3:40pm February 05, 2020

by Ken Tucker

Led by New Pornographers member Dan Bejar, the band takes inspiration from The Twilight Zone and Edgar Allan Poe to evoke a distressed intensity on its new record.

Queue Listen Now

"People, I've been sad" is Christine and the Queen's first solo single since her 2018 album, Chris.

Music & Culture

Christine And The Queens' New Single Lets Us Know: 'People, I've Been Sad'

1:11pm February 05, 2020

by Cyrena Touros

Chris catalogs the shades of melancholy in her gooey synth-pop single.

Yasiin Bey at Paris Fashion Week in January 2019.

Music & Culture

The Paradox Of Yasiin Bey's 'Negus,' A Rap Album Trapped In An Art Museum

11:31am February 05, 2020

by Mano Sundaresan

The latest album by the rapper formerly known as Mos Def will be heard by very few people — a fact that represents everything fascinating and frustrating about his last decade.

The autobiographical tale of Squirrel Flower's en caul birth, her emergence into the world floating in an amniotic sac, gives her first full-length album its name.

Music & Culture

Squirrel Flower's Debut Finds The Beauty In Transient Things

10:37am February 05, 2020

by Cyrena Touros

Both in sound and scope, I Was Born Swimming centers on impermanence and solitude.