NPR Music

What's an anthem? It's a stirring call to arms or an expression of collective emotion. Sometimes it's a recognition of injustice, a representation of an oppressed group, or an inspirational message of hope. But it always captures something much larger than itself — the spirit of a community, unified in its common feeling or cause, like the time a gay men's choir sang "Make Them Hear You" at a rally in Tennessee. Or the time counter protestors sang "This Little Light Of Mine" in Charlottesville, Va. to a group of white nationalists. On July 4, NPR kicks off its American Anthem series. It'll eventually feature 50 different anthems picked by NPR staffers, music scholars, artists and listeners. In anticipation of the series, we dedicate this week's episode of All Songs Considered to anthems. We're joined by NPR's Elizabeth Blair, producer of the American Anthem series, as we reflect on the soundtracks to our collective experiences.

This week's best new releases includes Drake's highly-anticipated double album, Scorpion, Florence + the Machine's tentative turn toward optimism with High as Hope, previously unheard and unreleased music from jazz legend John Coltrane and much more. Featured Albums: Drake: Scorpion, Jim James: Uniform Distortion, The Innocence Mission: Sun on the Square, John Adams: Dr. Atomic, Florence + The Machine: High as Hope, The Milk Carton Kids: All The Things That I Did And All The Things That I Didn't Do, John Coltrane: Both Directions At Once. Other notable releases for June 29: Let's Eat Grandma: I'm All Ears, Gorillaz: The Now Now, The Essex Green: Hardly Electronic, Charles Lloyd & The Marvels + Lucinda Williams: Vanished Gardens, Protoje: A Matter Of Time, Tropics: Nocturnal Souls.

On this week's episode of All Songs Considered, the pressure's on. To give a kind of guide to future interns, current All Songs intern, Cat Zhang has begun secretly evaluating Bob and Robin to develop her own NPR Music team ranking. One major criteria? Music selection. Full playlist: 1. The Decemberists: "We All Die Young," 2. Shy Boys: "Evil Sin," 2. Ovlov: "Stick," 3. An Horse: "Get Out Somehow," 4. Tom Gallo: "Tell Me The Ghost," 5. Bermuda Triangle: "'Till The End of Days," 6. Hauschka: "Tami Meets Richard," 7. Bryce Dessner, Justin Vernon & S. Carey: "Music For Wood And Strings"

On this week's episode of New Music Friday, All Songs Considered's Robin Hilton chats with NPR Music's Ann Powers and Rodney Carmichael, along with jazz critic Nate Chinen from WBGO about the most exciting new releases for June 22. Albums include the intense, industrial rock of Nine Inch Nails, the new joint project of Lecrae & Zaytoven and the wildly ambitious, shape-shifting jazz of Kamasi Washington. Featured Albums: Nine Inch Nails: Bad Witch, Birdtalker: One, Lecrae & Zaytoven: Let The Trap Say Amen, Priscilla Renea: Coloured, Kamasi Washington: Heaven And Earth, Death Grips: Year Of The Snitch. Other notable releases for June 22: Arp, Zebra; Bebe Rexha, Expectations; Dawes, Passwords; Khemmis, Desolation; Gang Gang Dance, Kazuashita; Jack River, Sugar Mountain; Panic! At The Disco, Pray For the Wicked.

Last June, NPR Music's Lars Gotrich tweeted just one word: "roséwave." Then, a follow-up that was more like a challenge: "Y'all can already list 5 bands for which roséwave rings true, c'mon." He wasn't exactly describing a genre — more a lifestyle that deserved (or, perhaps, inherently contained within it) its own soundtrack.Rosé wine, the pink varietal that was once a punchline, has become ubiquitous in the summer months. Roséwave defies easy definition; it's meant to be felt, not understood. "It's unapologetic enjoyment for something maybe a little basic, but makes you feel good," one enthusiast offered.Last year, when we published the first official roséwave playlist, its patron saints were HAIM, Lorde and Migos. When we re-launched roséwave this summer, that title went to artists like Kacey Musgraves, J Balvin and Dua Lipa, who have all given us summer-ready tracks that pair perfectly with pink drinks.Of course, that's just the beginning. Just as many varieties of grapes can make rosé, many genres of music fall within the loving embrace of this style. In this special episode of All Songs Considered, NPR Music's official roséwave correspondents — Lars Gotrich, Lyndsey McKenna and Marissa Lorusso — fill you in on how to shade your summer pink with this new soundtrack.

On this week's show we share your picks for the best new artists so far in 2018, along with a couple of our own: Robin's is MILCK, the Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter who writes empowering, cathartic ballads, while Bob chose Niklas Paschburg, an innovative young German composer and pianist whose music was inspired by the Baltic Sea. Full playlist: 1. Sudan Archive: "Nont For Sale," 2. serpentwithfeet: "Whisper," 3. Shame: "Concrete," 4. Thunderpussy: "Thunderpussy," 5. Jorja Smith: "Tomorrow," 6. Haley Heynderickx: "The Bug Collector," 7. MILCK: "Black Sheep," 8. Niklas Paschburg: "Spark," 9. Snail Mail: "Pristine," 10. Superorganism: "It's All Good"

On this week's New Music Friday, All Songs Considered's Robin Hilton is joined by NPR Music's Ann Powers, Rodney Carmichael, and Stephen Thompson for a quick run through the best new releases for June 15. Highlights include Christina Aguilera's Liberation, a monument to self-empowerment with contributions from Kanye West and Anderson .Paak; the trippy, futuristic debut of pop producer SOPHIE; and a deeply emotional solo project from Lincoln Park co-founder Mike Shinoda. Featured albums: 1. Christina Aguilera: Liberation, 2. Arthur Buck: Arthur Buck, 3. Jay Rock: Redemption, 4. SOPHIE: Of Every Pearl's Un-Insides, 5. Buddy Guy: The Blues Is Alive And Well, 6. Mike Shinoda: Post Traumatic. Other Notable Albums For June 15: Chromeo, Head Over Heels; Culture Abuse, Bay Dream; Marissa Anderson, Cloud Corner; Johnny Marr: Call The Comet; Olivia Chaney, Shelter; Welles, Red Trees and White Trashes; Yuno, Moodie

Death Cab For Cutie is back with some pretty great new music. The band has just announced that a new album is on the way called Thank You for Today. And in this special episode of All Songs Considered, singer Ben Gibbard shares and talks about the first single, "Gold Rush." "Gold Rush" is a song that looks at how neighborhoods change. For Ben, that's Capitol Hill in Seattle, where he's lived for the past 20 years. In our conversation, he talks about how and why he'd wanted to write this song for a while. "As I've gotten older," he says, "I've become acutely aware of how I connect my memories to my geography and [how] the landscape of the city changes. I'll walk down Broadway and walk past a location that used to be a bar I'd frequent with friends, or somewhere where I had a beautifully intense conversation with somebody that I once loved very much. The song is not a complaint about how things were better or anything like that. It's an observation, but more about coming to terms with the passage of time and losing the people and the moments in my life all over again as I walk down a street that is now so unfamiliar."

This week's All Songs Considered begins with Robin's warm, buttery sugar cookie – Bob bets Robin will share the cookie as a reward for playing "What is the Body," the new exhilarating art-rock single from Donny McCaslin the acclaimed saxophonist whose band backed David Bowie's Blackstar. Robin followed with Sad Baxter's "Baby," a deceptively bouncy song off of the Nashville band's new EP So Happy. Full Playlist: 1. Donny McCaslin: "What About The Body," 2. Sad Baxter: "Baby," 3. M. Ward: "Bobby," 4. Sorry: "Twinkle," 5. Angelo De Augustine: "Carcassonne," 6. Culture Abuse: "Bee Kind To The Bugs"

All Songs Considered's Robin Hilton is joined by NPR Music's Ann Powers, Lyndsey McKenna, and Sidney Madden to talk about June 8's standout albums. Highlights include the candid, introspective rock of Snail Mail, the jazzy, laid-back R&B of British singer Jorja Smith, the sultry pop of Lykke Li, and more. Featured Albums: 1. River Whyless: Kindness, A Rebel 2. "Serpentwithfeet: Soil 3. Snail Mail: Lush 4. Dierks Bentley: The Mountain 5. Jorja Smith: Lost & Found 6. "Lykke Li: So Sad So Sexy. Other notable releases for June 8: Kanye West & Kid Cudi: Kids See Ghosts, Sugarland: Bigger, Angelique Kidjo: Remain In Light, Erin Rae: Putting On Airs, Lily Allen: No Shame, Ana Egge: White Tiger, Dave Matthews Band: Come Tomorrow, YOB: Our Raw Heart