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by WNYC Studios
WNYC, New York Public Radio, brings you Soundcheck, the arts and culture program hosted by John Schaefer, who engages guests and listeners in lively, inquisitive conversations with established and rising figures in New York City's creative arts scene. Guests come from all disciplines, including pop, indie rock, jazz, urban, world and classical music, technology, cultural affairs, TV and film. Recent episodes have included features on Michael Jackson,Crosby Stills & Nash, the Assad Brothers, Rackett, The Replacements, and James Brown.
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The most recent episodes — sign up to get AI-powered summaries of each one.
- 3 days ago51 min
Best of Soundcheck: Steve Earle, Anjimile
Hardships tend to take time to overcome, and some songwriters turn to music to process their emotions as they move from one battle to the next. Two of those songwriters are Steve Earle and Anjimile, who come from very different walks of life. Steve Earle has earned multiple Grammy Awards and an induction into the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville after spending decades reflecting on his experiences as an activist, actor, and a man who happened to go through seven marriages and spend a couple of months in jail for drug possession. Anjimile, on the other hand, was born to immigrant parents from Malawi who were both devout Christians, which made his journey as a trans man a complex situation that kept unraveling as years went by. As Anjimile performs some new songs that explore sexuality, gender, spirituality, and more, Steve Earle plays some of his old hits that document the troubled but full life he has lived, for this edition of Soundcheck. Steve Earle's Setlist: 1.Copperhead Road 2.City of ImmigrantsAnjimile's Setlist: 1.Rust & Wire 2.The Store 3.Waits for MeWatch the live performance videos on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/newsoundsmusic Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- 5 days ago34 min
Song-Maker Somi Refuses to Fit Inside Any Artistic Box, Plays In-Studio
During her two-decade career, the singer, actor, playwright and two-time NAACP Image Award winner Somi has blended the sounds of American and African music – jazz and R&B, but also Afrobeat, folksong, and highlife. Her last album was a tribute to the South African singer Miriam Makeba; that record also served as a companion to an Off-Broadway musical that Somi wrote – under her full name Somi Kakoma, called Dreaming Zenzile.Now a Harvard PhD recipient (the Creative Practice and Critical Inquiry Program), Somi has a new album of original music called What Does It Take To Bloom. Written and recorded between Dakar, Lagos, Paris and New York City, Somi’s latest explores the many facets of self-discovery – questions of becoming and of identity (she is the Midwestern daughter of immigrants from Uganda and Rwanda) – and navigates uncertainty, loss, and change (Somimusic.com). Somi joins us to perform some of these songs, in-studio.Photo of Somi by Knoor The LuoSet list: 1. We're All Falling 2. Ngayaya 3. AiwahWatch the live performance videos on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/newsoundsmusic Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- 1 weeks ago34 min
Australian Singer-Songwriter Grace Cummings Brings a Visceral Twist to Pretty Melodies, In-Studio
Australian singer Grace Cummings is the kind of songwriter who believes in the spontaneity of the creative process. “I’m a loner. I talk to myself a lot,” she says, and amid those internal conversations, she stumbles upon some mistakes that eventually lead to good writing. She’s no longer a stranger to how songs make their way out of her brain, having already recorded four albums. Her latest record, titled Bloodhorse!, is filled with snapshots of her tumultuous emotions, referencing both religious and mythological themes in a grand musical context of orchestral folk-rock arrangements. But when she picks up the guitar or sits in front of a piano for a solo performance, it’s hard to predict how far she’ll stretch her deep, soulful voice into visceral cries that, evidently, can’t be contained.For this edition of Soundcheck, Cummings performs a few songs from her latest record in a way that can only be described as personal, inimitable, and untamed. - Sırma MunyarSetlist: 1.John Lennon 2.I'm Not Crazy 3.FAKE Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- 1 weeks ago51 min
Best of Soundcheck: Guitarricadelafuente, Donnie McCaslin
Blackstar was David Bowie’s last record, a musical farewell, and it featured the sax player Donny McCaslin. In fact, Bowie ended up using Donny McCaslin’s whole band for that album. The experience led McCaslin to expand his already restless musical palette, and on this episode of Soundcheck, he brings his quintet to our studio to play some of his post-Bowie tunes. There's also a visit with Guitarricadelafuente, a rising young Spanish singer and guitarist with a couple of high profile collaborations of his own - with Australian pop star Troye Sivan. He’s also had two hit singles in Spain, and he’ll play songs from his album Spanish Leather, a title borrowed from Bob Dylan. Guitarricadelafuente and his band play an intimate set in our studio.Donny McCaslin Quintet Set list: 1. KID 2. Solace 3. MercyGuitarricadelafuente Set list: 1. Poses 2. MataleónPhoto of (L) Guitarricadelafuente by Pedro J Pacheco, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto of (R) Donny McCaslin courtesy of the artist Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- 1 weeks ago36 min
Ever-Shifting Guitarist Wendy Eisenberg Dares With Homegrown and Poetic Songs, In-Studio
Wendy Eisenberg is a Brooklyn-based guitarist, improviser, and songwriter who uses guitar, pedals, the tenor banjo, the computer, the synthesizer and the voice. They are also a professor of songwriting, and a constant collaborator in many different circles: with the improvising trio Squanderers, an art rock band called Editrix, and the minimalism-inspired guitar quartet led by Bill Orcutt, to name a few. Their latest album, also called Wendy Eisenberg, is full of tracks that almost present as conventional songs, but which actually dance around form and genre. Some of them may be indebted to jazz, and also inhabit the in-between space where folk, pop, outsider country music, and math rock all hang out.OH. And the riffs! Their masterful fingers climb through odd rhythms, spidery melodies, and unexpected progressions, taking sudden swerves and turns while still creating a sense of spaciousness. On the record, the songs also feature contributions from friends and collaborators on pedal steel, strings, synth, bass, drums. Over this all, Eisenberg’s clear voice conversationally addresses time – reflecting on memories, embracing change, growing - while they describe “moving through this new world right now,” (Bandcamp). Wendy Eisenberg plays some of their songs in a solo set, in-studio. – Caryn HavlikPhoto of Wendy Eisenberg by Eleanor PetrySet list: 1. Meaning Business 2. Vanity Paradox 3. Will You Dare Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- 2 weeks ago37 min
Everlast Dishes Out Gritty Humanity in Blues-Rock Style, In-Studio
The artist known as Everlast was the lead rapper in the group House of Pain, whose single “Jump Around” remains one of hip hop’s most familiar songs. But in the 1990s he began adding bluesy guitars to his songs, creating enormous hits like “Put Your Lights On,” his collaboration with Santana, and the plea for empathy called “What It’s Like.” Everlast is still writing songs, and his latest album – his first in eight years, Embers To Ashes, was produced by Yelawolf and recorded in Nashville. It’s a collection of unflinching and moving songs that tell tales of glory grasped and lost, along with hard-earned wisdom and warnings. Everlast plays a stripped-down set in-studio.Photo of Everlast by Lisa FranchotSet list: 1. Losing Man's Game 2. Happy You Can Cry 3. Stones Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- 2 weeks ago50 min
Best of Soundcheck: Annahstasia, Patrick Wolf
It’s common for songwriting artists to process their emotions through composing music. LA-based folk singer Annahstasia spent many years crafting her debut album, Tether, doing just that, without a metronome guiding her: “We’re human beings in a room following our heartbeats and the natural rhythm that we feel together… My production style is essentially like energy doula-ing,” she says. As for English baroque pop experimentalist Patrick Wolf, the making of his latest album, Crying the Neck, as well as other batches of new songs he’s been releasing that ended his decade-long hiatus, was a way to acknowledge that he was “a damaged vehicle”, after losing his mother to cancer and struggling to recover from a hit and run. Both artists are known for their big, often orchestral songs, but on this edition of Soundcheck, they each put on a solo performance, revealing the raw side of their lyrics and melodies.Annahstasia's Setlist: 1.Be Kind 2.SlowPatrick Wolf's Setlist: 1.Enter the Day 2.The Last of England Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- 2 weeks ago38 min
Norwegian Chord Progression Artist Sondre Lerche Sings Acrobatic Melodies, In-Studio
Norwegian singer-songwriter Sondre Lerche defines himself as a “chord progression artist”: “You establish a pattern, and then of course, you have to break it,” he says. This line of thinking is likely what drives him to disrupt the normal sequence of his daily life too, by staying out all night before a recording session, just to tap into the right emotion for a song the next day. Some artists don’t respond well to structure while creating and Sondre Lerche is definitely one of them. Whether he’s exploring acrobatic melodies that push his lungs to their limits or jumping from one genre to another, he seems to put the art first and figure out where he fits in it as a vessel later.Sondre Lerche’s latest album, aptly titled Acrobats, contains a big, cinematic sound, while blending elements of folk, jazz, pop, and rock. But his background in musical theatre becomes more apparent when it’s just him and his guitar, as he addresses the subjects of his songs as though they’re right by his side with unmistakable realism, for this episode of Soundcheck. - Sırma MunyarPS – Sondre Lerche is on tour in North America and Europe this Fall: https://www.sondrelerche.com/tour(Photo of Sondre Lerche by Hilde Solli)Setlist: 1.Little Kids 2.Acrobats 3.How Much of This Was Planned Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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About Soundcheck
WNYC, New York Public Radio, brings you Soundcheck, the arts and culture program hosted by John Schaefer, who engages guests and listeners in lively, inquisitive conversations with established and rising figures in New York City's creative arts scene. Guests come from all disciplines, including pop, indie rock, jazz, urban, world and classical music, technology, cultural affairs, TV and film. Recent episodes have included features on Michael Jackson,Crosby Stills & Nash, the Assad Brothers, Rackett, The Replacements, and James Brown.
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Soundcheck covers topics including Music, Arts, Commentary, Performing Arts, Comedy Interviews. Our AI identifies the specific themes in each episode and highlights what matters most to you.
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