Accessibility links
Song Of The Day Listen as reviewers share their favorite songs. Discover music from artists both new and old.

Song Of The Day
The Dynamites: A Celebration Of Resurrection

The Dynamites. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

The Dynamites: A Celebration Of Resurrection

Soul music is rooted in gritty perseverance, so pairing up stalwarts Bettye LaVette and Charles Walker works on so many levels, it's a miracle it hasn't happened until now. "Yours and Mine" is an exhilarating affirmation of the power to prevail.

'Yours and Mine' by The Dynamites feat. Charles Walker and Bettye LaVette

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154591097/154597807" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Trailer Trash Tracys: A Shoegazer's Dream

Trailer Trash Tracys. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

Trailer Trash Tracys: A Shoegazer's Dream

"Candy Girl" sounds like a shoegazer's modern take on Berlin's "Take My Breath Away" — the song that soundtracked the makeout scene in Top Gun. Cool but still beautiful, it's touching, revealing and almost painfully intimate.

Candy Girl

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154591900/154598354" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Elephant Micah: Message In The Mystery

Elephant Micah. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

Elephant Micah: Message In The Mystery

Ambiguous words, delivered with earnest passion, lend special power to "Airline Living." It's the sort of song that's sure to force different meanings onto different people, depending upon their place in life and state of mind.

Louder Than Thou

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154591806/154598348" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
The dB's: After A 25-Year Absence, A Vital Return

The dB's. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

The dB's: After A 25-Year Absence, A Vital Return

In "That Time Is Gone," guitarist, part-time lead vocalist and pop-music legend Peter Holsapple lays bare the anxiety of re-assembling an act that was never much more than a cult phenomenon.

Falling Off the Sky

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154591724/154597997" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Waxahatchee: A Love Song, Without The Love

Waxahatchee. Ryan Russell hide caption

toggle caption
Ryan Russell

Review

Waxahatchee: A Love Song, Without The Love

In few words, "Be Good" profiles two people who love and trust each other deeply, who share their dreams and secret shames, but who would rather shotgun beers together than make out.

American Weekend

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154675504/154598230" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Squarepusher: Pushing Every Envelope

Squarepusher. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

Squarepusher: Pushing Every Envelope

"Dark Steering" flirts subtly with the sounds of modern dubstep, mixing them with atmospheric squeals and detailed drum programming. The result is an unbelievably fitting soundtrack for a life-or-death motorcycle race through neon-lit city streets.

Ufabulum

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/153624671/153637866" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Tim Fite Finds The Essence Of Innocence In 'Teenagers'

Tim Fite (left). Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

Tim Fite Finds The Essence Of Innocence In 'Teenagers'

In his strangely affecting, minimalist rock paean "We Are All Teenagers," Fite sketches out a spare electric riff with a reverb-y '50s rock air as he nails the adolescent unease that lingers into adulthood.

We Are All Teenagers

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154156545/154158948" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Death Grips: 'Footage' Of The Hip-Hop Apocalypse

MC Ride of Death Grips. Jonathan Magowan hide caption

toggle caption
Jonathan Magowan

Review

Death Grips: 'Footage' Of The Hip-Hop Apocalypse

From The Money Store, "I've Seen Footage" seems to run the beats from Tone Loc's "Wild Thing" and Salt-n-Pepa's "Push It" through a rusty meat grinder. Meanwhile, MC Ride catalogs the paranoia and police brutality that drove him to the insanity the song exemplifies.

I've Seen Footage

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154372584/154158933" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Zammuto: Beyond The Books, A Restless Imagination

Zammuto. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

Zammuto: Beyond The Books, A Restless Imagination

Singer-songwriter Nick Zammuto spent most of the '00s as one half of the experimental folk duo The Books. In "Idiom Wind," working at the head of a new project, he tells the story of a man who needs to get his hands dirty.

Idiom Wind

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154155573/154158932" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
The Honeydogs: A Retail Solution For Heartbreak

The Honeydogs. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

The Honeydogs: A Retail Solution For Heartbreak

The hook in "Broke It, Buy It" is insidiously catchy enough to ricochet through your head for days. Levy concludes with the implication that our inability to accept our failings causes more unhappiness than the failures themselves as we chase retail solutions — "we broke it, so we buy it."

What Comes After

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154162614/154162477" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Andrew Cyrille: Haitian Fascination

Andrew Cyrille and Haitian Fascination. Stefania Zamparelli hide caption

toggle caption
Stefania Zamparelli

Review

Andrew Cyrille: Haitian Fascination

In "Marinèt," Cyrille and master percussionist Frisner Augustin collaborate on a breezy but intense Haitian folk tune, focused on Alix Pascal's gentle twoubadou guitar and Augustin's exacting but joyous chant and maman drumming.

Route de Freres

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/154089897/154078154" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
In Trance 95: The Old New Wave

In Trance. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

In Trance 95: The Old New Wave

The late-'80s song "Presidente," recently reissued on a "minimal wave" compilation, sounds both dated and futuristic. With discontented vocal samples and drum machines creating a sinister backdrop, it closes with a stately march that practically glides across headphones as it ends.

Presidente

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/153625120/153636256" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
BADBADNOTGOOD: A Moody Jazz-Hop Think Piece

BADBADNOTGOOD. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

BADBADNOTGOOD: A Moody Jazz-Hop Think Piece

A Toronto-based jazz trio whose approach to the genre has angered aficionados and grabbed the attention of young fans, BADBADNOTGOOD carries on jazz's rich tradition of reinvention and provocation in "UWM."

'UWM (feat. Leland Whitty)' by BADBADNOTGOOD

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/153928153/153637591" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Chuck Prophet: Tawdry, Tattered Glory

Chuck Prophet. Charlie Homo hide caption

toggle caption
Charlie Homo

Review

Chuck Prophet: Tawdry, Tattered Glory

Few can turn tales from the outer limits into catchy songs quite like Prophet does in "The Left Hand and the Right Hand." He's as original as the oddball characters he brings to life.

Temple Beautiful

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/153625283/153636167" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Turing Machine: End Of The Road

Turing Machine. Michael Vadino hide caption

toggle caption
Michael Vadino

Review

Turing Machine: End Of The Road

In the aftermath of drummer Jerry Fuchs' 2009 death, Turing Machine recorded its third and final album in his memory. Even at the end of the band's career, "If It's Gone (It's On)" is a sprawling testament to growth.

If It's Gone (It's On)

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/153296821/153278099" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Eliza Rickman: A Cockeyed Pop Song

Eliza Rickman. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

Eliza Rickman: A Cockeyed Pop Song

"Pretty Little Head" is simple yet intricate, a contradiction which helps give it the feel of a nursery rhyme that's just starting to teeter off the rails. All the while, the arrangement works hard to keep listeners from finding their bearings for long.

O, You Sinners

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/153296147/153282800" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Sonnymoon: The Sunnier Side Of Mortality

Sonnymoon. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

Sonnymoon: The Sunnier Side Of Mortality

In Sonnymoon's "Just Before Dawn," Anna Wise's ethereal vocals float across a palpitating soundscape. "Every night, you should have someone to hold," Wise sings, "to tell you that you did okay when your mind is against you."

Sonnymoon

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/153227271/153240755" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Deep Sea Diver: Density And Depth

Deep Sea Diver. Matthew B. Wignall hide caption

toggle caption
Matthew B. Wignall

Review

Deep Sea Diver: Density And Depth

A bittersweet gem, "Weekend Wars" provides a fine showcase for Shins guitarist Jessica Dobson. The song puts Dobson's powerful, tremulous voice to its paces in an ebb and flow of sharp guitars and flourishes from her more-than-capable bandmates.

'Weekend Wars' by Deep Sea Diver

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/153114386/153146178" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Diplo Cranks Out An Unending String Of Hooks

Diplo. Shane McCauley hide caption

toggle caption
Shane McCauley

Review

Diplo Cranks Out An Unending String Of Hooks

"Express Yourself" incorporates elements of New Orleans bounce, a dance-friendly style of hip-hop that relies on driving, up-tempo beats and repetitive call-and-response vocals. In the process, each element of the song manages to lodge itself in your head at the exact same time.

'Express Yourself (feat. Nicky da B)' by Diplo

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/152945525/152920255" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Sidi Toure: A Reverent Smile In Song

Sidi Toure. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

toggle caption
Courtesy of the artist

Review

Sidi Toure: A Reverent Smile In Song

"Ni See Ay Ga Done," from the Malian singer's new album Koïma, is warm and connective, transcendent of whatever short fence language could attempt to place around a song.

Ni See Ay Ga Done (It Is To You That I Sing)

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/152848740/152837993" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Browse the section archive or search npr.org