NPR Music

Sampa The Great. Moses Boyd. Kaitlin Butts. Guest host Lars Gotrich breaks down the best new albums out Friday, Oct. 30 with DJs from around the NPR Music network: Jewly Hight from WPLN in Nashville, Matt Byars from WUOT in Knoxville and Raina Douris from World Cafe in Philadelphia. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round. The Starting 5(02:00) Album No. 1- Kaitlin Butts, 'Hello, Honky Tonk'(08:52) Album No. 2- Sampa The Great, 'Nu Zamrock'(16:48) Album No. 3- Kali Malone, 'Burning Song'(22:42) Album No. 4- Moses Boyd, 'Songs For Sinners'(29:34) Album No. 5- P***, 'you made me / skin on linen'(37:52) The Lightning Round- 2nd Grade, 'Girls and Boys'- NØ MAN, 'Between the Sword and the Neck'- DIIV, 'ZIRP!'- Takuya Nakamura, 'Shape The Future'- Joyce Moreno, 'Never Too Soon'Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist.Credits:Host: Lars GotrichGuests: Jewly Hight, Matt Byars, Raina DourisAudio Producer: Noah CaldwellDigital Producer: Dora LeviteEditors: Elle Mannion, Otis HartExecutive Producer: Suraya MohamedSpecial thanks to Sheldon Pearce and Felix ContrerasSupport public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

It’s been an unprecedented year for arguing about “fake” music, and it’s not just AI. From bot-powered ticket sales and social media campaigns to manufactured artist identities and an endless wave of complaints against nepo babies, 2026 feels like a turning point in the timeless debate about authenticity in music.This week on All Songs Considered, NPR Music’s Ann Powers and Isabella Gomez Sarmiento join host Robin Hilton to break down how we’ve reached this point, what it means, and where we go from here.Tell us what you think with a review on Apple or Spotify wherever you listen to podcasts.Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: [email protected] public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

More than any song we’ve covered yet in this series about songs that persist in culture, "Crimson and Clover" is a stealth classic. Maybe you heard it in 1968 after its rough mix was leaked by a radio station and it became a top-40 hit. Maybe you only know it from a popular rock ’n’ roll cover in 1980s, or when it became a singalong in an emo song in the 2000s. Maybe it’s not even the lyrics that you recognize, but those three heavy, insistent chords. But it’s a song that’s stuck around, that feels endlessly replayable, and that helped inspire the new name for this NPR Music series: “Over and Over.” This week on Over and Over, NPR Music critic Ann Powers and editor Daoud Tyler-Ameen discuss “Crimson and Clover” by Tommy James and the Shondells, from 1968. Check out more episodes on songs that keep coming back by looking for “Over and Over” in the NPR Music podcast feed. Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one by signing up at plus.npr.org. Follow NPR Music coverage and the Tiny Desk Concerts at npr.org/music.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

With the arrival of the first new Olivia Tremor Control album in nearly 30 years, we attempt to make sense of the sprawling, enigmatic collective behind it known as Elephant 6.NPR Music’s Lars Gotrich joins host Robin Hilton.Special thanks to Greenwich Entertainment, C.B. Stockfleth and Rob Hatch-Miller for use of audio featured in the 2022 documentary, The Elephant 6 Recording Co. Featured artists and songs:(00:00) Intro with “A New Day” by The Olivia Tremor Control(03:00) The Elephant 6 story in 60 seconds with “Black Foliage (Animation 2)” by The Olivia Tremor Control(04:28) The Apples In Stereo: “Tidal Wave”(07:34) Robert Schneider on the creative process, from the documentary ‘The Elephant 6 Recording Co.’(12:39) The Olivia Tremor Control: “Love Athena”(16:17) The Apples In Stereo: “Glowworm”(18:14) Neutral Milk Hotel: “Ghost”(22:13) Elf Power: “Embrace The Crimson Tide”(26:08) of Montreal: “Gallery Piece”(29:25) The Gerbils: “Glue”(33:54) The Instruments: “Song for Thomas”(37:01) Beulah: “Score From Augusta”(39:35) Great Lakes: “A Little Touched”(41:21) Dressy Bessy: “I’m Still Here”(51:12) The Olivia Tremor Control: “Meeting Ourselves”(53:39) The Olivia Tremor Control: “Path of the Parallels VI - Last Occupants”(55:15) The Olivia Tremor Control: “Leaf”(57:41) The Olivia Tremor Control: “Begin Now!”Tell us what you think with a review on Apple or Spotify wherever you listen to podcasts.Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: [email protected] public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

The Tiny Desk’s magnetism is its intimacy. We strip back lights and a big stage and get to see artists speak honestly about who they are directly to an audience around the world.This becomes all the more profound during our El Tiny takeover of Latin Music Month, where artists whisper truths and share secrets about community, country, pain and family. Often on production days, artists share with us the importance of each individual song — the stories behind them and why they needed to be played in such an honest space.So, this week on Alt.Latino we wanted to let you all in on the secrets. Alex Ferreira, Draco Rosa and Los Tigres del Norte shared in their own words, what their Tiny Desk songs meant to them. Hopefully, learning what’s behind the songs will help each show mean a little bit more for all of you, too.Artists and songs featured in this episode:Mon Laferte, "No Le Regales Tu Corazón"Alex Ferreira, "Monte Adentro"Draco Rosa, "Vagabundo"Los Tigres del Norte, "Somos Más Americanos"You can watch the Tiny Desk Concerts featured in this episode here.This podcast was produced by Noah Caldwell. Suraya Mohamed is the executive producer of NPR Music.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

At almost exactly the midpoint of our conversation about the fifth album made by his band, Fontaines D.C., Grian Chatten told me, “It's an interesting time to be a self.” We'd been talking about the themes on 'Dopamine Chamber,' which comes out on Oct. 16, and could serve as a soundtrack to the era we live in now, what Chatten calls our “glorious age of distraction.”It's also an interesting time to be a rock band in the mainstream, and that’s where Fontaines D.C., which formed in 2014, definitely lives these days. The Irish quintet’s next tour has them in stadiums and arenas, and the one guest on 'Dopamine Chamber' is pop's universal “it” girl, the Spanish singer Rosalía. The 2024 album Romance took Fontaines to another level, earning them two Grammy nominations and their best sales ever, with hits like the sweet and earnest “Favourite.” Following it up, Fontaines didn't take the easy way. Instead, they explored new sounds to create a captivating sonic travelogue that somehow connects the decadent beauty of old Europe with the narcotic ethereality of cyberspace.Things really gel for Fontaines on 'Dopamine Chamber.' Using vintage synthesizers and studio effects, the band builds on the hypnotic energy that's always been its calling card to make something huge and seductive and haunting. I was lucky to speak with Chatten about his evolution as a storyteller and his place within a band that's always growing, but which remains utterly true to itself.When they were making 'Dopamine Chamber,' Chatten’s bandmates recorded the instrumental parts of the songs first, and then Chatten went off on his own to write and record lyrics. This interview worked the same way — I talked with Chatten on his own, and with bassist Conor Deegan (who goes by “Deego”) about how guys who have been playing together since college have taken their bashing punk sound all the way to the stratosphere. - Ann PowersCredits:Host: Ann PowersAudio Producer: Noah CaldwellEditor: Jacob GanzExecutive Producer: Suraya MohamedExecutive Director: Sonali MehtaSupport public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

Cameron Winter. Troye Sivan. Remi Wolf. Host Stephen Thompson breaks down the best albums out Friday, Oct. 9 with DJs from around the NPR Music network: Tshego Letsoalo from KALW in San Francisco, Aurora McGuckin from MVYRADIO in Massachusetts and Jewly Hight from WPLN in Nashville. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.The Starting 5(00:39) Album No. 1- Cameron Winter, 'Live at Carnegie Hall'(07:30) Album No. 2- Troye Sivan, 'She's the Best'(14:45) Album No. 3- Remi Wolf, 'Mud'(21:11) Album No. 4- Jess Williamson, 'A Mile South of Heaven'(27:20) Album No. 5- Danielle Ponder, 'Everything Has Changed'(34:40) The Lightning Round- Dawn Richard, 'creole culture'- Margo Cilker, 'Little White Cross'- Imperial Teen, 'All Over You'- heavensouls, 'cantu of the sower'- Joyce Wrice, 'Machiko'Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist.Credits:Host: Stephen ThompsonGuests: Tshego Letsoalo, Aurora McGuckin, Jewly HightAudio Producer: Noah CaldwellDigital Producer: Dora LeviteEditors: Elle Mannion, Otis HartExecutive Producer: Suraya MohamedSpecial thanks to Ann Powers and Sheldon PearceSupport public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

A super deluxe box set of The Beatles' legendary 1965 album Rubber Soul has just been released with brand new mixes, demos and outtakes that show The Beatles breaking up with the past, their fans and everything people knew and loved about the band. In this conversation with All Songs Considered host Robin Hilton, Giles Martin, the producer behind the new mixes and son of late Beatles producer George Martin, talks about why Rubber Soul was such a pivotal album for the band, how the music was changing, and why it sounds “reasonably bleak.” Martin also explains how the AI tools he used to update the mixes work, how he preserved the original spirit of Rubber Soul and more.Tell us what you think with a review on Apple or Spotify wherever you listen to podcasts.Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: [email protected] public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

Jazz has often been called America's musical gift to the world. This week's guests remind us not only of the well-documented ways that Cuba revolutionized that gift, but also how it blossomed in South America.Chilean tenor saxophonist Melissa Aldana and Cuban pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba stopped by after their recent Tiny Desk performance to chat about their own personal histories with jazz and its lineage in their respective countries. The memories Rubalcaba shares about Havana's jazz scene in the 1980s adds another layer to a story we've talked a lot about on Alt.Latino. And Aldana looks back on her youth learning music from her father and grandfather, both of whom were Chilean jazz pioneers.The conversation also covers the music they played at the Tiny Desk, which comes from their recent album, 'Filin,' a reexamination of a Cuban musical movement that lasted from the 1940s through the '60s. Ultimately, this week's episode is time spent with two master musicians to hear how their lives and experiences contribute to their mutual appreciation and love of jazz.Check out Melissa Aldana and Gonzalo Rubalcaba's Tiny Desk Concert here.This podcast episode was produced by Noah Caldwell. Suraya Mohamed is the executive producer of NPR Music.Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

Leon Bridges. Blondshell. Joy Oladokun. Host Stephen Thompson breaks down the best albums out Friday, Sept. 18 with DJs from around the NPR Music network: Erin Wolf from Radio Milwaukee, Jewly Hight from WPLN in Nashville and Liz Warner from WDET in Detroit. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.The Starting 5(00:53) Album No. 1- Blondshell, 'Violins'(07:43) Album No. 2- Julia Jacklin, 'The Gem'(15:13) Album No. 3- Joy Oladokun, 'Hope Is A Heavy Thing'(22:33) Album No. 4- Leon Bridges, 'Happiness Anytime'(28:52) Album No. 5- Protomartyr, 'Hotel Usona'(34:04) The Lightning Round- Space Afrika, 'Quiet Storm'- claire rousay & Martyna Basta, 'hotel room'- Tinashe, 'Popstar'- Mary Gauthier, 'Reckoning'- Axel Boman & Superpitcher, 'Tell It To The Mountain'Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist.Credits:Host: Stephen ThompsonGuests: Erin Wolf, Jewly Hight, Liz WarnerAudio Producer: Noah CaldwellDigital Producer: Dora LeviteEditors: Elle Mannion, Otis HartExecutive Producer: Suraya MohamedSpecial thanks to Sheldon Pearce and Ann PowersSupport public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

Our latest mix of the week’s best new songs swings from the shoegaze rock of rising LA band untitled (halo) to Bach’s “Air on the G String” performed by pianist Víkingur Ólafsson. We’ve also got singer Lizzy McAlpine’s breathtaking ode to her late father, the laid-back grooves of polymath Sen Morimoto, the extraordinary voice of Scottish singer Beth Taylor and more.NPR Music’s Tom Huizenga joins host Robin Hilton.Tell us what you think with a review on Apple or Spotify wherever you listen to podcasts. Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: [email protected] artists and songs:(00:00) Intro(02:05) Sen Morimoto: “Chewing Gum”(09:27) Víkingur Ólafsson: “Air on the G String” (Johann Sebastian Bach)(16:56) Lizzy McAlpine: “The crowd”(25:51) Beth Taylor: “My Lagan Love”(33:49) untitled (halo): “easy rider”(41:58) inti figgis-vizueta: “Samara (maple seed) mvmt. III - find roots”Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

Beck. Carly Rae Jepsen. Beabadoobee. Host Stephen Thompson breaks down the best albums out Friday, Sept. 18 with DJs from around the NPR Music network: Robert Moore from 90.9 The Bridge in Kansas City, Amelia Mason from WBUR in Boston, and Brian Burns from WUNC in Chapel Hill. Plus, a handful of of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.The Starting 5(01:01) Album No. 1- Beck, 'Ride Lonesome'(07:10) Album No. 2- beabadoobee, 'Pylon'(13:01) Album No.3- Carly Rae Jepsen, 'Day and Night'(21:32) Album No. 4- Tove Lo, 'ESTRUS'(28:22) Album No. 5- Rhiannon Giddens, 'Hope is the Thing with Feathers'(34:18) The Lightning Round- Jake Xerxes Fussell, 'The Old Beloved Path'- Jóhann Jóhannsson & Adam Wiltzie, 'Friendship Survival Guide'- YENDRY, 'Como agua'- Krallice, 'Scour Order'- Son Lux, 'Out Into'Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist and see our Long List of notable releases on NPR.orgCredits:Host: Stephen ThompsonGuests: Robert Moore, Amelia Mason, Brian BurnsAudio Producer: Noah CaldwellDigital Producer: Dora LeviteEditors: Elle Mannion, Otis HartExecutive Producer: Suraya MohamedSpecial thanks to Anamaria Sayre, Lars Gotrich and Robin HiltonSupport public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

We’re back with another round of the best new songs out now, including the universe-splitting “Blister Sunrise” from M83, Shygirl’s bone-rattling, euphoric track “Alyse,” subversive funk from Asher White and more.NPR Music writer and editor Sheldon Pearce joins host Robin Hilton.Tell us what you think with a review on Apple or Spotify wherever you listen to podcasts. Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: [email protected] artists and songs:(00:00) Intro(02:02) M83: “Blister Sunrise”(07:51) Shygirl: “Alyse”(15:13) FKJ & Labrinth: “Little Little Voice”(22:21) Renny Conti: “Leaving the Zoo”(30:57) Asher White: “My Day at the Casino”(38:36) Rachel Chinouriri: “Make Believe”Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy