The Low Anthem were the musical guests on the Late Show with David Letterman last night, performing "Ghost Woman Blues," the opening track off their forthcoming album, Smart Flesh. The band gathered close with Ben Knox Miller on guitar, Jocie Adams on clarinet, Jeff Prystowsky on jaw harp, Mat Davidson on hammer dulcimer, and all four on vocals. Watch it here. The band plays a sold-out show tonight in The Allen Room as a part of Lincoln Center's American Songbook series.

Congratulations to The Black Keys: their latest album, Brothers, has just been certified Gold! The band stopped by the Nonesuch offices in New York  yesterday to receive their Gold records. While in the city, band mates Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney have kept themselves busy, performing on Saturday Night Live and the Late Show with David Letterman. Last night, they stopped by The Colbert Report as "leading scholars on The Black Keys" to help Stephen fill out his Grammy ballot for Best Alternative Music Album, one of six categories in which the band is nominated. Watch the segment here.

The Low Anthem are the musical guests on the Late Show with David Letterman tonight on CBS and will play "Ghost Woman Blues," off their forthcoming album, Smart Flesh. The band promises "a simple affair, possibly around a single microphone!" The Low Anthem performed three songs from Smart Flesh live on WNYC's Soundcheck yesterday, which you can hear here. They perform at The Allen Room in New York Thursday as a part of Lincoln Center's American Songbook series.

The Black Keys continued their late-night television run with another rocking performance of "Howlin' for You," off their latest Nonesuch release, Brothers, on the Late Show with David Letterman last night on CBS, following this past weekend's performance of "Howlin' for You" and "Tighten Up" on Saturday Night Live. Watch the Late Show performance here.

The Black Keys got the new year off to a rocking good start as musical guests on the first Saturday Night Live episode of the year over the weekend, playing two songs off their Grammy-nominated album Brothers: "Howlin' for You" and "Tighten Up." Watch the performances here. The band performs "Howlin' for You" on The Late Show with David Letterman tonight. In more TV news, the band's set on Austin City Limits airs on PBS on January 22, along with Sonic Youth's. You can watch a preview from the show here as well.

Emmylou Harris kicks off the 2011 Sydney Festival ... John Adams Slonimsky's Earbox featured in LA Phil live cinematic broadcast across the US ... Timothy Andres performs with his brother in Connecticut ... The Black Keys are musical guests on Saturday Night Live ... Björk hosts karaoke marathon in Iceland to fight energy company sale ... David Byrne talks Here Lies Love on MPR's The Current ... Randy Newman joins Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra in New Orleans ... The Low Anthem plays close to home ... Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music closes on Broadway ... Allen Toussaint plays Tokyo ... and more ...

The Black Keys are in New York City this week to kick off the new year and the new season of NBC’s Saturday Night Live with host Jim Carrey. This appearance comes after a monumentally successful 2010 for the duo, which they closed out with three sold-out New Year's shows at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom. The Chicago Tribune says the band is an example of "how modern artists can earn mainstream success without sacrificing integrity," their live show exhibiting the "combination of persistence and persuasion that helped the band own 2010."

Wanda Jackson will ring in the New Year on Jools Holland's Hootenanny, airing on BBC Two starting at 11 PM on December 31. The 18th annual Hootenanny will feature Jackson's rendition of Amy Winehouse's "You Know I'm No Good," off her forthcoming album The Party Ain't Over, plus performances from Kylie Minogue, Vampire Weekend, Cee-Lo Green, Roger Daltrey, Toots Hibbert, and Secret Sisters, among many others.

Tonight marks the season finale of The Sing-Off, the NBC a cappella competition, in which all-vocal singing groups vie for a professional recording contract and $100,000; tune in at 8 PM EST to see who wins. Ben Folds has garnered nothing but the highest praise as a judge on the show. He spoke with the Wall Street Journal about Lonely Avenue, his collaborative album with Nick Hornby, which the Journal describes as "a Tin Pan Alley-style collaboration," resulting in "a quirky and loose affair."

Punch Brothers perform on NPR's Mountain Stage ... Emmylou Harris hosts Miracle on Music Row in Nashville to benefit Bonaparte's Retreat dog shelter ... The Mark Morris Dance Group concludes its run of The Hard Nut at BAM in Brooklyn ... Jeff Bridges, the star of True Grit, hosts Saturday Night Live ... and more ...

On January 8, 2011, The Black Keys will kick off the new season of NBC’s Saturday Night Live with host Jim Carrey. This appearance comes after a monumentally successful 2010 for the duo, whose acclaimed release Brothers, recently received six Grammy nominations. Additionally the album was named iTunes’ Album of the Year and Rolling Stone’s No. 2 Album of the Year. The record also tops American Songwriter’s year-end list and is featured on round-ups at NPR, Time magazine, and Magnet, among many others. The duo is also currently featured on the cover of Spin magazine’s Best of 2010 issue as Artist of the Year.

Ben Folds brought his Lonely Avenue tour to NYC on Tuesday for a sold-out show at the Beacon. The tour continues late next month, including two just-announced shows in Missouri and Oklahoma. The Village Voice describes the songs of Lonely Avenue as "stupendously likable." Nick Hornby, Folds's writing partner, made the USA Today's Pop Candy's 100 People of 2010. Folds appeared on the Today show to talk about the album at The Sing-Off; you can watch the segment here.