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Stephen Thompson Stephen Thompson is a host, writer and reviewer for NPR Music and Pop Culture Happy Hour. He appears frequently on All Songs Considered and NPR newsmagazines.
Washington, DC - May 03, 2016: Stephen Thompson CREDIT: Matt Roth
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Stephen Thompson

Thursday

Patrick Watson: Tiny Desk Concert
Michael Katzif/NPR

Tiny Desk

Patrick Watson: Tiny Desk Concert

With a gifted backing band on hand to help flesh out three songs from Adventures in Your Own Backyard, Watson conducts a swirl of interlocking loveliness that still finds room for surprises, from a singing saw to a microphone that makes his voice sound as if it's bouncing off some faraway satellite.

Patrick Watson: Tiny Desk Concert

Listen · 14:44
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Sunday

First Listen: Japandroids, 'Celebration Rock'

Japandroids' new album, Celebration Rock, comes out June 5. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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First Listen

First Listen: Japandroids, 'Celebration Rock'

Celebration Rock is the sound of a band streamlining its boundless energy in an effort to craft the awesomest possible moment, in the moment, only to top it seconds later.

Hear 'Celebration Rock' In Its Entirety

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First Listen: Kelly Hogan, 'I Like To Keep Myself In Pain'

Kelly Hogan's new album, I Like to Keep Myself in Pain, comes out June 5. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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First Listen

First Listen: Kelly Hogan, 'I Like To Keep Myself In Pain'

The singer and prolific go-to collaborator steps into the spotlight for the first time in 11 years, recording songs written just for her by M. Ward, Andrew Bird, Stephin Merritt, Vic Chesnutt, Robyn Hitchcock, and more.

Hear 'I Like To Keep Myself In Pain'

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Monday

Yann Tiersen: Tiny Desk Concert
Doriane Raiman/NPR

Tiny Desk

Yann Tiersen: Tiny Desk Concert

The French singer and multi-instrumentalist just released a new album called Skyline, and it captures his aesthetic perfectly: Its rich, buzzy, liltingly eccentric pop music is constructed from lots of sweet, intricate pieces.

Yann Tiersen: Tiny Desk Concert

Listen · 13:27
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Sunday

First Listen: Regina Spektor, 'What We Saw From The Cheap Seats'

Regina Spektor's new album, What We Saw From the Cheap Seats, comes out May 29. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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First Listen

First Listen: Regina Spektor, 'What We Saw From The Cheap Seats'

Spektor has a remarkable gift for gut-level connection, and for drawing a straight line from her idea-packed head to thousands of bleeding hearts. On her new album, even her weirdest moments come in service of warmth that's as kind and necessary as an old friend.

Hear 'What We Saw From The Cheap Seats'

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First Listen: Sigur Rós, 'Valtari'
Courtesy of the artist

First Listen

First Listen: Sigur Rós, 'Valtari'

Valtari's collection of gorgeous, moody sound-washes fits right into the band's remarkable catalog. Timeless and utterly distinct, it could have come from Iceland circa 2000 or the prettiest spot on Mars circa 2080.

Hear 'Valtari' In Its Entirety

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First Listen: Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros, 'Here'

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros' new album, Here, comes out May 29. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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First Listen

First Listen: Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros, 'Here'

Here finds singer Alex Ebert and company ruminating on and celebrating the aftermath of salvation. It's another collection of sweet songs that search, seek and ultimately revel in the best of what they find.

Hear 'Here' In Its Entirety

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First Listen: The Walkmen, 'Heaven'

The Walkmen's new album, Heaven, comes out May 29. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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First Listen

First Listen: The Walkmen, 'Heaven'

The Walkmen's intriguing evolution continues on Heaven, which sounds big even as the band finds more and more comfort in performing at a whisper.

Hear 'Heaven' In Its Entirety

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Thursday

Sunday

First Listen: Kimbra, 'Vows'

Kimbra. Thom Kerr hide caption

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Thom Kerr

First Listen

First Listen: Kimbra, 'Vows'

The New Zealander's U.S. debut is a simultaneously booming and spangly concoction — a huge, brash showcase for a voice that soars, squeals and coos over whiz-bang arrangements. These songs fuse modern pop, old-school soul and slick R&B in ways that sound smart and sleek.

Hear 'Vows' In Its Entirety

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Friday

Spiritualized In Concert

J. Spaceman performs during Spiritualized set at The 9:30 Club on Thursday, May 10. Michael Katzif/NPR hide caption

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Live in Concert

Spiritualized In Concert

Spiritualized, led by Jason Pierce (a.k.a. J. Spaceman), has experienced agony, recovery, redemption and two near-death experiences in its 13 years as a band. Watch it explode into space-rock bliss.

Spiritualized Live From The 9:30 Club (full concert audio)

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Sunday

First Listen: Best Coast, 'The Only Place'

Best Coast's new album, The Only Place, comes out May 15. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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First Listen

First Listen: Best Coast, 'The Only Place'

The Only Place doesn't just advance the band's irresistible garage-pop formula. It perfects it, while singer Bethany Cosentino captures countless girl groups' gift for employing sunny pop as a shield for pathos.

Hear 'The Only Place' In Its Entirety

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Monday

Hospitality: Tiny Desk Concert
Emily Bogle/NPR

Tiny Desk

Hospitality: Tiny Desk Concert

The New York band Hospitality makes music that's unmistakably friendly and welcoming — it's hug-and-a-handshake pop that lives up to its name by jangling and chiming comfortably. The group doesn't overwhelm so much as it wears listeners down with a subtle charm offensive.

Hospitality: Tiny Desk Concert

Listen · 10:04
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Sunday

First Listen: Sara Watkins, 'Sun Midnight Sun'

Sara Watkins' new album, Sun Midnight Sun, comes out May 8. Aaron Redfield/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Aaron Redfield/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen

First Listen: Sara Watkins, 'Sun Midnight Sun'

As accessible and comfortably sweet-voiced as Watkins' music is, the former Nickel Creek member is smart enough to spike it with surprises — the swooping strings in "The Ward Accord" or the churning, slow-burning electric-guitar grind in "When It Pleases You."

Hear 'Sun Midnight Sun' In Its Entirety

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