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In this episode: Hauschka's hypnotic music blends electronics with the rhythmic, percussive sounds of prepared piano, using normal household items. The German composer's latest album,... (episode)
<p>Marc Spitz talks with John Schaefer about his book that charts the rise of twee in pop culture and identifies some surprising twee forefathers. </p>
<p>Hear Jamie Cullum perform his signature blend of pop and piano jazz live in the <em>Soundcheck</em> studio.</p>
In this episode: Comedian, actor, and one-man band Reggie Watts joins us to talk about the new season of the IFC talk show Comedy Bang! Bang! Plus, hear him rigs up his loop pedals an... (episode)
Soundcheck host John Schaefer sits with Studio 360's Kurt Andersen and Marc Anthony Thompson (a.k.a. Chocolate Genius) to listen to listener-recorded covers of "Yellow Dog Blues" as p...
Jill Sobule's new album, Dottie's Charms, features songs written by literary superheroes like Jonathan Lethem, Sam Lipsyte, and David Hadju. Hear the singer-songwriter perform selecti...
In this episode: Back in 2002 Andrew W.K. kickstarted a party-rock movement with his debut, I Get Wet. The musician-turned-entertainer-turned-advice columnist and writer Phillip Crand... (episode)
<p>Spotify data storyteller Eliot Van Buskirk has crunched 50 years of summer hits to come up with the defining qualities of a summer song and the ultimate playlist for the summer of 2014.</p>
Hauschka's hypnotic music blends electronics with the rhythmic, percussive sounds of prepared piano, using normal household items. The German composer's latest album, Abandoned City, ...
In this episode: Since she last visited Soundcheck, Sharon Van Etten has opened up for The National, toured as a backup singer with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and recorded a Bruce S... (episode)
For the New York Philharmonic's latest concert series, music director Alan Gilbert has taken inspiration from the visual art world. The NY Phil Biennial programs 21 concerts over 11 d...
Watch the brilliant comedian and extraordinary loop-happy musician construct his hip-hop and soul-infused songs in the Soundcheck studio.
In this episode: Author Francine Prose recently released a novel called Lovers At The Chameleon Club, Paris 1932 -- a kaleidoscopic portrait of one very complicated woman's life and t... (episode)
In this episode: The band Led Zeppelin is no stranger to legal problems stemming from unacknowledged songwriting credits. The latest in a string of lawsuits is over the opening strain... (episode)
The band Led Zeppelin is no stranger to legal problems stemming from unacknowledged songwriting credits. The latest in a string of lawsuits is over the opening strains of their magnum...
<p>The explosive 2001 album<em> I Get Wet</em> is now considered a party rock classic. Andrew W.K. and author Phillip Crandall, author of the recent 33 1/3 book, reflect on the album's staying power.</p>
In this episode: Stephen Malkmus has now released more music as a solo artist than he did with his influential former group, Pavement. Now, he and his band The Jicks have recently rel... (episode)
When Tom Berninger joined his brother's band The National on the road, he brought a camera, and managed to capture the entirety of his conflicted (and hilarious) relationship with his...
There’s one thing that you really don’t need to pay for this summer – and that’s live music. New Yorkers in particular have it made, with free concerts happening throughout the city j...
<p>While the songwriter's sonic scope may have widened, her songs have never been more intimate and revealing. Hear Sharon Van Etten and her band perform tracks from the new album <em>Are We There</em>.</p>
In this episode: Writer David Kinney spent several years following obsessive fans of Bob Dylan for his new book, The Dylanologists. Kinney tells Soundcheck about these uber-fans’ ques... (episode)
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Kinney recently delved into the world of the Dylan super-fan, and wrote about it in a new book called The Dylanologists: Adventures In The Land...
In this episode: Alex Timbers, director of Rocky: The Musical, discusses the challenges of bringing a beloved sports movie to the stage -- plus, we hear about his other projects, like... (episode)
The renowned theater director talks about his work on Rocky The Musical as well as his upcoming projects, including Up Here -- a musical written by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-L...
<p><em>Wig Out at Jagbags</em> is the Jicks' first album recorded since the Pavement reunion a few years back. Hear the group perform in the <em>Soundcheck</em> studio.</p>
In this episode: Memorial Day is a week off, so it’s time to start thinking summer. And every summer has its jams. Writer Rich Juzwiak asked his readers at Gawker: “What Will Your Sum... (episode)
<p>Writer Rich Juzwiak asked his readers on Gawker: What will your summer jams be? He joins host John Schaefer to talk about the songs that will be everywhere in summer 2014.</p>
Yoav Goren composes the music for film trailers...which often doesn't appear in the film's actual score or soundtrack. He's coined the name "epic music" for this genre, and joins Soun...
<p>Hear the singer-songwriter and rocker perform songs from his latest album, <em>Paradise</em>, in the <em>Soundcheck</em> studio.</p>