The Staves and yMusic release The Way Is Read, a new album stemming from a collaboration at Justin Vernon's Eaux Claires Festival, digitally on November 24, on vinyl December 1. "We wanted to feel like instruments and join in with some of yMusic's existing work," says The Staves's Emily Staveley-Taylor, "using our voices in ways we hadn't previously explored." Rob Moose of yMusic adds: "It was as much a thrill to hear songs emerge organically over sections of intricate chamber music as it was satisfying to strip songs of the instrument that created them in order to craft new connective tissue." The groups perform at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis and on A Prairie Home Companion in December. Pre-order the album to download the track "Trouble on My Mind" now; see a video for the song here.

Natalie Merchant's hit 1995 song "Wonder" now opens Wonder: Introducing Natalie Merchant, a new collection on streaming services. The set include singles and fan favorites, beginning with "Wonder" from her debut solo album, Tigerlily, and closing with the 2015 recording of the song for Paradise Is There: The New Tigerlily Recordings. A new film Wonder, based on RJ Palacio's 2012 best-selling novel inspired by Merchant's song, opens November 17. Watch an excerpt from the documentary Paradise Is There about the song here.

Laurie Anderson has been awarded the insignia of Officer of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. French Cultural Counselor Bénédicte de Montlaur, presenting Anderson with the award in a ceremony at the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in NYC in October, said: "For your outstanding contributions to the art world through performance, art-making, writing, musical composition, filmmaking, and invention, it is my honor to present you with the Order of Arts and Letters."

Fleet Foxes have released a new behind-the-scenes (and from-the-stage) video of their recent US tour of songs from their new album, Crack-Up. You can take a look at life on the road in the video, directed by Sean Pecknold, here. The band begins a European tour at Iceland Airwaves this Saturday, followed by shows in Switzerland, Austria, Croatia, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, UK, Sweden, and Norway. These performances will be the band's first European headline shows in six years. 

Conor Oberst stopped by KEXP in Seattle during a recent tour stop in the city to perform four songs from his new albums, Salutations and Ruminations, and talk with host Troy Nelson about the music. You can watch the session here. Oberst also performed on PBS's Bluegrass Underground with The Felice Brothers as his backing band. The set was filmed live at the Volcano Room, a subterranean amphitheater 333 feet below McMinnville, TN, at historic Cumberland Caverns.

Robert Plant spoke with WFUV's Paul Cavalconte for FUV Live. Their conversation will air tonight and can be heard now at wfuv.org. Plant's new album, Carry Fire, has been named WFUV's New Dig. "Carry Fire is a vibrant collection of songs that speaks powerfully to this era, its politics, and its contradictions," says WFUV's Darren DeVivo. "It's also a testament to Plant's artistry; over the past decade, he's released some of the strongest albums of his solo career. Few musicians have been able to constantly transform themselves quite like Plant, with such ease, grace and inspiration."

Robert Plant was a guest on the Charlie Rose show on PBS/Bloomberg News last night. He spoke with Rose about his new album, Carry Fire, what it means to be a front man, and more. You can watch the interview here.

Fleet Foxes were the musical guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS last night. They performed "Fool's Errand" from their new album, Crack-Up. You can watch the performance here. The band recently concluded an extensive North American tour and begins a European run at Iceland Airwaves on November 1.

Congratulations to Audra McDonald, who will receive the 2018 Eugene McDermott Award in the Arts at MIT at a gala in her honor on April 14. The award, which includes a $100,000 cash prize and an artist residency, celebrates individuals who continue to achieve the highest distinction in their fields and who will produce inspiring work for many years to come.

Portuguese singer Mariza has returned to the US to give a number of intimate concerts, going back to her roots to perform special acoustic sets of stripped-down traditional Fado as it would be heard in a small club in Lisbon. The tour includes a four-night, eight-show residency at SFJAZZ Center's Joe Henderson Lab, and concerts in Brooklyn, DC, New Jersey, Chicago, Boston, and New York. Songlines has named her Artist of the Year and called her album Mundo "an unalloyed triumph."

Pat Metheny has once again been named Guitarist of the Year in the DownBeat Readers Poll. "The results of this year's Readers Poll are an indication of the incredible variety and depth of talent on the jazz scene today," said DownBeat Editor Bobby Reed. Metheny released two albums on Nonesuch last year: The Unity Sessions ("Brilliant," Times of London) and Cuong Vu Trio Meets Pat Metheny ("A complete success," All About Jazz).

Randy Newman was on the public radio show A Prairie Home Companion, hosted by fellow Nonesuch artist Chris Thile, broadcast live from the show’s home base, the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, MN, on Saturday. Newman performed three songs from his new album, Dark Matter—"Putin," "Sonny Boy," and "She Chose Me"—and was joined by Thile and the house band to perform two of his classic tunes, "It's Money That I Love" and "You've Got a Friend in Me." You can watch several here.