Presenting new and significant music
and the artists who create it.
Top Ten CDs Of 2008
David Dye looks back at the 10 albums that best kept him interested through multiple listens.
Current Show
Decemberists' Colin Meloy On 'Hazards Of Love'
Meloy is turning out to be one of this decade's most recognizable songwriters, both solo and with his main band, The Decemberists. Here, he talks about the group's forthcoming The Hazards of Love; it's the rock opera many have long expected from the band.
()Recently on World Cafe
Shooter Jennings: Revisiting Waylon's Music
In an interview with host David Dye, Shooter Jennings talks about Waylon Forever, a collection of songs he recorded with his father Waylon in 1995. Shooter then revisited the material with his backing band, The .357s, to release a ramshackle revival of his father's classic outlaw country.
()The Heavy: Gritty Soul Out Of England
The Heavy brings back vintage R&B with rich retro-soul instrumentals and gritty lo-fi sampling. In a session with host David Dye, the band explains how its sound developed, and even previews a new, unreleased song.
()Jolie Holland: Haunting Songs From The Road
Jolie Holland has been called one of America's finest musical poets. Her words find communion with her music, with roots in folk, traditional country, jazz and a hint of the blues. She performs sad, beautiful new songs in a session from WXPN.
()Joan Baez Sings For 'Tomorrow'
On Day After Tomorrow, Joan Baez's first album in five years, she takes on songs written by composers as diverse as Steve Earle, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits and Patty Griffin. Here, the legendary folksinger plays songs and discusses her early Quaker influences, as well as her experience meeting Martin Luther King Jr.
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