Soundcheck

The string quartet known as Brooklyn Rider features the usual two violins, viola and cello. And that’s about all that’s usual with this band. Over the past two decades they have played with Yo Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble, Mexican singer Magos Herrera, Irish fiddler Martin Hayes, and banjo wiz Bela Fleck. They’ve commissioned a bunch of new pieces, and now, to celebrate their 20th anniversary, they’ve released a new record called The Four Elements - a wide range of music from the past and the present which is representative of, or directly inspired by Earth, Air, Fire, Water. And in parallel, the record is also designed to raise the alarm and bring “attention to the powerful forces of climate change which represent the single greatest challenge of our time”, (Bandcamp). Brooklyn Rider plays new works and an older piece, in-studio. Set list: 1. Colin Jacobsen - A Short While To Be Here... - I. Whoa, Mule! 2-3 Colin Jacobsen - A Short While To Be Here... - IV.- The Old Cow Died-V. Little Birdie," 4.Osvaldo Golijov: Tenebrae

Kentucky-based singer and songwriter S. G. Goodman blends a deeply-rooted Americana sound with indie rock and sharply observed tales of life, love and loss. Her songs acknowledge the poverty, violence, and homophobia of the region while celebrating its beauty and the strength to be found in family, friends, and storytelling. Her new album, Planting By The Signs, (due out June 20), is named for an ancient farming tradition that still exists in parts of the South, where the position of the moon as it moves through the signs of the zodiac determines when it’s a good time to plant crops. Goodman previews some of these new songs, in-studio. Set list: 1. I'm in Love 2. Fire Sign 3. Heat Lightning

The brass and dhol-led party band Red Baraat began as a Punjabi wedding band here in New York, but for the past 15 years they’ve brought their raucous energetic dance sound to everyone through a series of well-received albums and their memorable live shows. Drummer and bandleader Sunny Jain, infused the band with the sounds of his upbringing: music of the South Asian diaspora (Bollywood soundtracks, Jain Bhajans (devotional songs), and Bhangra ) injected with go-go, jazz, and rock. Red Baraat plays in-studio to celebrate their 15 year anniversary and the release of their new album, Bhangra Rangeela. Set list: 1. Bhangra Rangeela 2. Thums Up 3. Zindabad

Denver-born songwriter, guitarist, singer, activist, and performer Jill Sobule, is possibly best-known because of her breakthrough hit of “I Kissed a Girl” (pre-dating Katy Perry by more a decade), and “Supermodel,” the anthem from the film Clueless. In her over seven albums, the troubadour has "mused on topics such as the death penalty, anorexia, shoplifting, reproduction, the French resistance movement, adolescence and the Christian right." She has also written music for TV and theater, been active in numerous social and political causes, and been a pioneer in the art of crowdfunding. On her 2018 album, Nostalgia Kills, released on her own Pinko Records, the songwriter/composer tackles adult topics, and looks back without sentimentality to “exorcise some junior high school demons.” The late Jill Sobule and her band joined us to perform some of these songs in-studio in 2018. (From the Archives.) - Caryn Havlik Set list: 1. Where Do I Begin 2. Island of Lost Things 3. I Don’t Wanna Wake Up

Since releasing his first solo album in 2010, William Tyler has become associated with the so-called cosmic country style – his music has tended to be expansive, atmospheric, clearly rooted in Americana but with an experimental edge. Now comes Tyler’s new record, Time Indefinite – an album that might, paradoxically, be his most modern or avant-garde sounding. “Crafted by razor blade and chainsaw, it’s destructive and hopeful, a mirror and a dream, internal and external, unsettled and peaceful, non linear and all at once, analogue and digital, broken and repaired then broken again, surprising and nostalgic, but it’s a product of its time, definitely”, (Jake Davis, via Instagram.) William Tyler, along with producer, engineer, and synthesist Jake Davis play some of the songs, in-studio. Set list: 1. Star of Hope 2. Anima Hotel 3. Concern

The artist, producer, and educator Jlin, born Jerrilynn Patton, first came out of the electronic dance music scene – specifically, the Chicago style of house music known as footwork. But she’s also become a sought-after composer, and one of her works was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Her collaborators include Icelandic pop star Bjork, composer Philip Glass, experimental electronic musician Holly Herndon, dance companies, and lots more. Jlin’s unsettled rhythms, unexpected samples, and surprising sonic effects are layered, and played live (!) when she performs. Jlin joins us to play a set of pieces that draw on her typically bewildering array of sound sources, including a piece in six, “Iris”. Set list: 1. B12 2. Iris 3. The Precision of Infinity

Macie Stewart is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer who’s been a key player in the Chicago music scene, and a go-to collaborator for her string arrangements for pop stars like SZA, or playing with leading improvisers like Makaya McCraven or touring with Japanese Breakfast. Her current project is an album called When Distance Is Blue, full of atmospheric and cinematic works, soundscapes really, that feature prepared piano, field recordings, strings and more. These soundscapes make music out of the places in-between, inviting a careful listen to one's surroundings, and allowing space for the silence and boredom. Macie Stewart, along with violinist gabby fluke-mogul, play some of these works, in-studio. Set list: 1. I Forget How to Remember My Dreams/Tsukiji 2. Mouthful of Glass 3. Murmuration/Memorization

Because she is the daughter of Ravi Shankar, perhaps the most famous Indian classical musician of the past century, Anoushka Shankar is associated with that style of music. But though she plays the sitar, and does indeed play Indian ragas in the style of her illustrious dad, she has also drawn on jazz, flamenco, various world and electronic music traditions, and more. Her new record, We Return To Love, is the conclusion of a trilogy of EPs. The masterful sitarist, film composer, and impassioned activist Anoushka Shankar presents the third chapter in her current trilogy of mini-albums, which explores her fascination with Goa Trance. She and her band perform live at National Sawdust, as part of the Grammy Museum's series, "A New York Evening With". Set list: Stolen Moments, New Dawn, Hiraeth, We Burn So Brightly, Amrita, Daybreak

The fiddler Mark O’Connor is probably best known for his million-selling Appalachian Waltz project – a kind of chamber/folk album with famed cellist Yo Yo Ma and bassist Edgar Meyer. Mark has also written string quartets, concertos, and orchestral pieces – and they all come from the same place as his solo fiddle sets – everything is rooted in the sounds of American music, especially bluegrass. Maggie O’Connor is also a fiddler, and singer, who moves easily between those two worlds, and together, this husband-and-wife team have been touring with a program called Beethoven and Bluegrass. There’s no Beethoven today for this session, but hear some O’Connor classics, old and new, in-studio. Set list: 1. Limerock 2. We Just Happened To Fly 3. Appalachia Waltz

The fiddler Mark O’Connor is probably best known for his million-selling Appalachian Waltz project – a kind of chamber/folk album with famed cellist Yo Yo Ma and bassist Edgar Meyer. Mark has also written string quartets, concertos, and orchestral pieces – and they all come from the same place as his solo fiddle sets – everything is rooted in the sounds of American music, especially bluegrass. Maggie O’Connor is also a fiddler, and singer, who moves easily between those two worlds, and together, this husband-and-wife team have been touring with a program called Beethoven and Bluegrass. There’s no Beethoven today for this session, but hear some O’Connor classics, old and new, in-studio. Set list: 1. Limerock 2. We Just Happened To Fly 3. Appalachia Waltz

Since 1981, Welsh musician Mike Peters has been the voice of the hit-making British band The Alarm. After the band split up in 1991, Peters wrote and released solo work, before reconstituting The Alarm in 2000, (Wikipedia.) Since being diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia in 2005 (he is also co-founder of the Love Hope Strength Foundation), Mike Peter’s career has been largely determined by the cycle of remission and relapse. But to listen to The Alarm’s 2023 album Forwards, and you’ll hear a man whose songwriting is as anthemic as ever, and, yes, determinedly forward looking. Mike Peters played some of these new songs, as well as one of the band’s old hits, on acoustic baritone guitar, in-studio. (From the archives, 2023.) Set list: "Forwards", "Next", "The Stand" Watch "Forwards": Watch "Next": Watch "The Stand":

King Hannah is an indie-rock duo from Liverpool consisting of singer and songwriter Hannah Merrick and guitarist Craig Whittle. Their latest album, Big Swimmer, seems to be the result of Merrick’s observations after touring around the United States, where it wasn’t the big cities or expansive vistas that inspired her songs, but the little moments and conversations and observations – details that inspire songs that can be drily funny, unsettling, or both. She also toggles between a kind of pitched speech and outright singing over moody electrified rockenroll - sometimes fuzz-drenched, sometimes jangly. King Hannah plays in-studio. Set list: 1. New York Let's Do Nothing 2. Crème Brûlée 3. Big Swimmer

Bab L’Bluz is a French-Moroccan band playing a distinctive band of rock, one that’s built on the sounds of North and West African music, and on the Blues. The band was born from the dream of propelling Guembri (the Gnawa's guitar) on the international music scene of contemporary music, and has expanded to include electric mandole and electric ribab. They’ve released two albums on Peter Gabriel’s Real World record label, the most recent of which is called Swaken – kind of a “Losing yourself to find yourself” trance state, (Bandcamp's Swaken liner notes.) Bab l’BLuz plays their “Hot Psychedelic Gnawa Blues!”, in-studio. Set list: 1."Ila Mata" 2."Imazighen" 3."IWAIWA FUNK"

Aotearoa singer/songwriter Marlon Williams’(Kāi Tahu, Ngāi Tai) is a singer and songwriter from Lyttleton, New Zealand. He’s spent this past decade creating a personal blend of country, indie, and folk music; and he’s been an actor, and makes an appearance in the film A Star Is Born. But his new album is something different – maybe not musically, but Marlon Williams is from a Maori family and has chosen to sing in the Maori language on his new record, called Te Whare Tīwekaweka. He’s also the subject of a new documentary film, which follows Williams through international tours to quiet home life, all while working on the album. Marlon Williams chats about his journey with his ancestral tongue, his collaborators, and the process of writing his first te reo Māori album; he plays solo, in-studio. Set list: 1. Aua Atu Rā 2. Kāhore He Manu E 3. Pānaki

Immersion consists of the husband and wife team of Colin Newman, who you may know from the veteran English rock band Wire, and Malka Spigel from the band Minimal Compact. And Nanocluster is the name of a series of collaborations between the Immersion and various guests (Laetitia Sadier, German post-rock duo Tarwater, electronic musicians Ulrich Schnauss and Scanner, and others.) Vol. 3 of Nanocluster features the NY-based ambient country band called SUSS. The veteran musicians of SUSS - Pat Irwin (the B-52s, Raybeats, 8 Eyed Spy), Bob Holmes (numun, Rubber Rodeo), and Jonathan Gregg (the Combine, the Linemen) - combine pedal steel, mandolin, national steel guitar, and other textures with electronics to create their wide open sonic landscapes, (Swim). Immersion and SUSS play music from their open-minded and atmospheric explorations, in-studio. Set list: 1. Khamsin 2. In The Far Away 3. State of Motion

The British cellist, producer, and composer Peter Gregson has collaborated with some of the biggest names in contemporary music, including Max Richter, Gabriel Prokofiev and Jóhann Jóhannsson. His own work includes soundtracks for film and TV, electroacoustic works, and a series of string quartets. Daringly, he has also “recomposed” J.S. Bach’s six cello suites for himself, a cello ensemble, and electronics. His latest album, Peter Gregson, is collection of contemporary songs without words for cello and a modular synthesizer that he built out himself. Peter Gregson plays some of these songs in-studio. Set List: 1. Prism 2. Constellation 3. Vision

The Indian-born tabla player and composer, teacher, and advocate Zakir Hussain, son of Ustad Alla Rahka, who passed away in late 2024, wasn’t just a virtuoso improviser - he was one of the world’s exceptional percussionists, working in many genres, and was the world’s preeminent tabla master. He was a great communicator in many musical languages, including jazz, Afro-Cuban rhythms, Nigerian talking drums, or Indonesian gamelan; he was also a great listener and a bringer of joy (editor can’t help herself.) One of the most exciting ways that Zakir Hussain shared tabla specifically, and percussion more broadly was by way of the Masters of Percussion Tour – which was exactly as stunning and marvelous as a music fan (especially a drum nerd) might ever imagine. Zakir turned the tabla into a global instrument by way of his incredible collaborations, playing with everyone from George Harrison to Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead, from John McLaughlin's Shakti and Yo Yo Ma's Silk Road Project; he’s laid down beats for Scottish fiddlers Charlie McKerron (Capercaillie) and Patsy Reid (formerly of Breabach); played concertos with western orchestras, with and without banjo player Bela Fleck and bassist Edgar Meyer, and performed and recorded with scores of Indian classical musicians. Zakir Hussain enjoyed the different challenges that each new collaborator “will throw at him”. For this edition of the Soundcheck Podcast, Ustad Zakir Hussain joined Pandit Rahul Sharma, the son of illustrious santoor master Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, who established the pedigree of the santoor within Indian Classical Music. Pt. Rahul Sharma has since built on his father’s style, “taking the santoor to new corners of the world”, (Darbar.org). Rahul Sharma has also collaborated widely across genres, having released some 60 albums, split between classical Indian music and more experimental recordings. Rahul Sharma and Zakir Hussain played in-studio in Oct of 2024, just about six weeks before Hussain passed away. - Caryn Havlik Set list: 1. Dhun: Misra Pahadi 2. Dhun Keharwa Sharma explains the roots of the santoor, and gives a quick demonstration of its 94 strings which require precise tuning: Zakir Hussain also gave an intimidatingly fast explainer of some of the syllables of tabla, what the left and right hand might do, with unbelievable and impressive speed: See their performances:

The Nigerian singer, songwriter and bandleader and Seun Kuti keeps alive the Afrobeat tradition founded by his legendary father, Fela Kuti, back in the 1970s. In fact, when Fela died in 1997, it was Seun, his youngest son, who took over the band, now called Egypt 80. Like his late father, Seun Kuti takes on topics like government corruption and corporate greed in his songs, setting his lyrics and his blazing sax solos to an insistent dance beat. Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 play tunes from their most recent album, Heavier Yet (Lays The Crownless Head), in-studio. Set list: 1. Stand Well Well 2. Love and Revolution 3. Emi Aluta

New York-based Ruckus is an early music ensemble that plays with the energy of a rock band. Most early music groups feature instruments like the harpsichord and the viola da gamba, and Ruckus does too, but you’ll also hear synthesizer, guitar, bassoon, bass, and near Eastern frame drums. And on their new album, The Edinburgh Rollick, they focus on traditional Scottish folk songs and dances. Set list: 1. The Gigg Set (Cairngoram Mountain, The Gigg, Lady Charlotte) 2. Robie Dona Górach 3.The Forrests Set (Lord Elcho, Dunkeld House, Forrest’s)

CocoRosie -the band founded by the sisters Sierra and Bianca Casady – blends elements of pop, freak folk and electronic music into a distinctly personal, idiosyncratic sound. The sisters use their voices, electronics, and found sounds – usually the sounds of toys – to make songs that can be whimsical, provocative, haunted, beautiful - sometimes all at once. CocoRosie plays new songs from their latest album, Little Death Wishes, in-studio. Set list: 1. Wait for Me 2. Cut Stitch Scar 3. Paper Boat 4. Give It to the Wind Little Death Wishes by CocoRosie