You may have heard Lee Bob’s beautiful cover of Nina Simone’s 1968 classic “Peace of Mind,” but he’s also a singer who writes his own songs. You’ll find that cover on his new EP, Free, alongside an intimate collection of songs conceived on a rooftop in Bamako, Mali. We’re sharing the title track, on which you can hear a kaleidoscopic integration of different genres, from folk ballads to Malian polyrhythms. 

Danish-Japanese artist IDA KUDO draws inspiration from her ethnic roots to whirl electronic beats into theatrical drama ripe for the stage. “Okina Nami” means “big wave” in Japanese and is culled from her new EP, Proud. Experience feminine power as she sings, “Rising to the top, Okina Nami, power of a million voices roar. Your strength is strong enough to carry you to shore.”

If Philip Glass or Steve Reich experimented with EDM, we would arguably find their Venn diagram convergence in Floating Points. In fact, Sam Shepherd (aka Floating Points) recently composed his first ballet for symphony orchestra and electronics, Mere Mortals, for the San Francisco Ballet. We’ll get you dancing to your own beat with the twinkly, vibrant track “Del Oro.”  

Since the release of her landmark album I Am Shelby Lynne some 25 years ago, Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, and musician Shelby Lynne has released many beautiful and heartfelt albums featuring her powerful vocals and astute storytelling. Today, we’re sharing a brand new summer anthem with you called “Over and Over,” a soulful reflection on heartbreak and loss. 

If you are a fan of the indie-folk Swedish singer-songwriter and guitarist José González, you will love this next track from Welch flamenco guitarist Billy Sharp, whose masterful picking is elevated by Latin rhythms and indie pop on “Rose Tint.” 

Some 20 years ago, My Morning Jacket’s Jim James, M. Ward, and Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis got together for a revue-style tour that made quick friends. Nicknamed Monsters of Folk by their then-tour manager, the supergroup reconvened five years later and set out to work on their self-titled album together. The eponymous record is being reissued  for its 15th anniversary and features a handful of unreleased tracks, including the trippy Springsteen-tinged sound of “Disappeared.” 

Manu Chao has been practicing more of a pared-down, uncluttered lifestyle that extends beyond material things into his emotional life, going forth with a pure heart and zero pretention. 

“Viva Tu,” or “long may you live” in Spanish, was a rumba written for his neighbors. A collector of “little bits” that eventually piece together into song, this one looks us in the eye with its candid pace and beautiful refrain. Today, while Manu Chao celebrates others, we thank him for all the great music and his forthcoming album, on his 63rd birthday. 

This year, indie darlings Nada Surf mark the 30th anniversary of their debut single “The Plan”/“Telescope” with a new LP, Moon Mirror, to be released in September. 

On “In Front of Me Now,” a thoughtful take on being here now, frontman Matthew Caws asked himself why he hasn’t been present, and gifts us with what sounds like a diary entry. 

Hailing from the coldest part of landlocked Canada, sister trio The Garrys named themselves after their father, Garry, and braid sibling harmonies into their signature “doom-wop,” garage-surf sound, which includes their brother on their latest track “Cakewalk.”

Lisbon-based Nathan Jenkins, the producer and songwriter working as Bullion, is an enduring cult fixture and has a new album called Affection. His brand of warm, shiny pop is as intoxicating as it gets on “World_train,” for which Bullion enlists a perfect collaborator, Charlotte Adigéry, to turn the track into a folky, meandering ditty.