Ethan Hawke and Patricia Arquette, stars of the Richard Linklater film Boyhood, were the guests on NPR's Fresh Air, talking with host Terry Gross about their roles in the groundbreaking film. "We were being offered a job no two actors had been offered before in the history of acting," says Hawke, "to get to create a character and use time as our clay, to shape somebody the way life shapes us." Hear the interview here.

Rhiannon Giddens's take on "Black Is the Color," from her forthcoming solo debut album, Tomorrow Is My Turn, is featured on NPR Music's Songs We Love. On the new album, "Giddens takes songs strongly linked to iconic female performers ... and somehow comes out owning them," says World Cafe host David Dye. On "Black Is the Color," often linked to Nina Simone, "Giddens celebrates and soars. She's confident in her instincts and her abundant talent, and she should be."

Filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson is on the latest episode of WTF with Marc Maron. He talks with Maron about his life and all of his films, including his latest, Inherent Vice, which expands to additional US theaters this weekend. Nonesuch Records released Jonny Greenwood’s soundtrack to Inherent Vice in December and has released their previous collaborations, There Will Be Blood and The Master, as well as Jon Brion's soundtrack for Anderson’s Punch-Drunk Love. Tune in to WTF on Thursday for Maron's interview with Boyhood director Richard Linklater.

Robert Plant is the guest on the latest episode of WBEZ's Sound Opinions, discussing his new album, lullaby and... The Ceaseless Roar, which MOJO has just named one of the Best Albums of 2014. You can listen to the episode and watch the full interview here. Plant also spoke with The Quietus about the new album, which the site calls "his most fully realized solo album to date" and "a superb melting pot of influences ... Plant is forging ever forward while still retaining the exploratory vision that made his former alma mater such a unique proposition."

Robert Plant was a guest on BBC Radio 6 Music’s Radcliffe and Maconie this afternoon. He and his hosts discuss his new album, lullaby and... The Ceaseless Roar, his “amazing education in music” growing up, the songwriting process, the formation of The Sensational Space Shifters, and more. Listen to the conversation here. Plant and the band perform a sold-out show at the Roundhouse in London tonight, as part of their 13-city sold-out tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Sam Amidon's new album, Lily-O, was featured on NPR's All Things Considered last night. "Amidon reinvents American folk songs," says host Robert Siegel; the new album "showcases his ability to transform music." NPR reviewer Banning Eyre says: "Every little unexpected twist shimmers with originality ... His highly personal approach opens a window on the American past and lets us feel it like nothing else around." Listen to the NPR review here. The Morton Report's Bill Bentley says Amidon's vocals "reverberate directly inside the soul." He is "stepping forward with a creative curve that no one else is really doing."

Sam Amidon is the guest on today's episode of NPR's World Cafe. He is joined by guitarist Bill Frisell, who is featured on Amidon's new album, Lily-O, to perform four songs from the album: "Walkin' Boss," "Blue Mountains," "Your Lone Journey," and a web-exclusive take on "Groundhog Variations." The two also talk with World Cafe host David Dye about recording of the new album in Iceland and more. You can watch their performance of "Walkin' Boss" below and hear the complete session at npr.org.

Conor Oberst stopped by KEXP 90.3 in Seattle on his recent US tour. He was joined by Jonathan Wilson, who co-produced his new album, Upside Down Mountain, and his band to perform four songs off the album and a Bright Eyes tune and to talk with host Cheryl Waters. "We love everything he does," says KEXP. You can watch the session here. Oberst will perform at two holiday-season benefit shows in December: Holiday Cheer for FUV in NYC and the KCSN Benefit in Northridge, CA.

David Byrne spoke with BBC Radio 6 Music's Radcliffe and Maconie earlier today in advance of tonight's press night of Here Lies Love, his musical with Fatboy Slim, at the National Theatre’s Dorfman Theatre in London. The production has been in previews there since late last month and has its official opening night tomorrow, October 14. He discusses the origins of the show and shares some clips from the original New York cast album, released earlier this year, and talks about some future plans. You can hear the interview here.

David Byrne is in London as his musical with Fatboy Slim, Here Lies Love, is in previews at the National Theatre’s Dorfman Theatre, set to open officially on Tuesday, October 14. He stopped by the BBC studios to chat with BBC Radio 2’s Jo Whiley for the special program An Evening With … David Byrne, in which he shares the stories behind the musical, spins some tunes that inspired some of the songs of Here Lies Love, talks about his early career with Talking Heads, and more. You can listen to the interview here.

Robert Plant, who kicks off a North American tour Thursday and performs on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Friday night, spoke with CBS This Morning earlier this week. "He is known as the 'Golden God,'" says CBS. "And he's not showing signs of stopping ... On his tenth solo album, lullaby and... The Ceaseless Roar, Plant weaves world music with blues, bluegrass, and a lifetime of adventure." You can watch the interview here. You can also hear his interview with WNYC's Soundcheck. "Plant has lived a few lives in his five decades of music-making," says WNYC."And, at least occasionally on his latest record ... his voice conveys the sound of a voyager meditating on his many travels."

Laurie Anderson and Kronos Quartet's David Harrington were guests on WNYC's The Brian Lehrer Show to discuss their first-ever collaboration, Landfall. Anderson and Kronos perform the piece, which was inspired by her experience of Hurricane Sandy, for the Nonesuch Records at BAM series through Saturday, September 27. Landfall, says Lehrer, is "both a timeless meditation on loss and other themes and a very timely one for hurricane season and this week of the climate march and climate summit." You can listen to the interview here. Later this season, Anderson and Kronos Quartet perform Landfall in Columbus, Austin, and Chicago.