"Unique is almost always an overstatement. Not when it comes to David Byrne," Kelly Corrigan, host of PBS's Tell Me More, says of her guest. "Even if you crossed Andy Warhol with Kurt Vonnegut and added some Mr. Rogers, you still wouldn't quite capture his idiosyncratic magic. He has been creating weird, wonderful art with singular precision for fifty-some years." You can watch their conversation—about his childhood, his career in music, bringing American Utopia to Broadway, and more—here.

Jeff Parker’s solo guitar album Forfolks is due December 10 on International Anthem / Nonesuch Records (CD om December 17). The album includes interpretations of Thelonious Monk's “Ugly Beauty” and the standard “My Ideal,” plus six original compositions: two earlier tunes, “Four Folks” and “La Jetée,” and four new loop-driven, stratiform works that marry melodic improvisation with electronic textures. As Parker says: “I am trying to create a sonic world for me to wander around in.” Watch the video for “Suffolk,” directed by Cauleen Smith, here. Parker will co-headline a US tour with Steve Gunn in December and next spring.

Ben LaMar Gay has shared a new single and music video for “Aunt Lola and the Quail,” a new song off his upcoming album, Open Arms to Open Us, out November 19 on International Anthem / Nonesuch. You can watch the video, by Chris Strong, here. Gay will give a special album release performance at Public Records in Brooklyn on January 18 as part of NYC Winter Jazzfest.

Singer/songwriter Cécile McLorin Salvant makes her Nonesuch Records debut with the release of Ghost Song on March 4, 2022. The new album features a diverse mix of seven originals and five interpretations on the themes of ghosts, nostalgia, and yearning. Salvant says, “It’s unlike anything I’ve done before—it’s getting closer to reflecting my personality as an eclectic curator. I’m embracing my weirdness!” A video for the album track “Ghost Song,” written by Salvant, can be seen here. Nonesuch Store pre-orders of the album include an exclusive, limited edition signed artwork by Salvant while they last. Cécile McLorin Salvant is on tour in Europe now and will play four shows at SFJAZZ in February and two nights featuring the music of Ghost Song at Jazz at Lincoln Center in May

David Byrne was on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert last night to discuss David Byrne's American Utopia on Broadway, share some of his drawings, and teach Colbert a few low-impact dance moves. Byrne was then joined by his fellow cast members to perform the Talking Heads tune "I Zimbra" from the show. You can watch both here.

Lake Street Dive continues its annual Halloween tradition of costumed cover-song videos with a performance of Hall & Oates' "You Make My Dreams (Come True)." You can watch it here.

LIFE ON EARTH, the Nonesuch debut of Hurray for the Riff Raff (aka Alynda Segarra), due February 18, is a departure for the Bronx-born, New Orleans-based singer/songwriter. Its eleven new "nature punk" tracks on the theme of survival are music for a world in flux—songs about thriving, not just surviving, while disaster is happening. The album was recorded during the pandemic with producer Brad Cook (Waxahatchee, Bon Iver, Kevin Morby). While making it, Segarra drew inspiration from The Clash, Beverly Glenn-Copeland, Bad Bunny, and the author of Emergent Strategy, adrienne maree brown. "A major step forward for one of today's most vital artists," exclaims Uncut. "The first great album of 2022." Pre-order to download the track "RHODODENDRON" now—you can watch the video here—and get a limited-edition print autographed by Segarra, while they last. Hurray for the Riff Raff tours North America this spring; international dates coming soon.

Devendra Banhart was the special surprise guest on the Halloween Spooktacular episode of Office Hours Live with Tim Heidecker. Once the Halloween costume comes off, they discuss some recent and favorite concert-going experiences, and Banhart—whom Heidecker calls "a genuine legend of the new millennium"—closes out the hour with a performance of "Weatherman," a song by Heidecker's group Heidecker & Wood. You can watch it here.

The Staves' Camilla and Jessica Staveley-Taylor were the musical guest on WNYC's Get Lit with All of It, the book club series with All of It host Alison Stewart, via a virtual gathering from The Greene Space. The featured author on the episode is Lauren Groff, who discusses her latest novel, MATRIX. The Staves performed songs from and spoke with Stewart about their new album, Good Woman; you can watch it here. The Staves will tour North America in early 2022. 

Ben LaMar Gay shares a new video for “Mestre Candeia’s Denim Hat,” off his upcoming album Open Arms to Open Us, out November 19 on International Anthem / Nonesuch. An homage to improvisatory and rhythmic elements of the Brazilian “Partido Alto” tradition, “Mestre Candeia’s Denim Hat” sees Gay lay a Chicago-style free-jazz synth raga over a swinging, fractured march. The title is a nod to the insight and style of master sambista and partideiro Antônio Candeia Filho. You can watch the video, directed by Andrea Rodea and Erik Mares of the Mexico City based Rhizomes Films, here.

Ben LaMar Gay has released “Oh Great Be the Lake," the second single from his upcoming new album Open Arms to Open Us, out November 19 on International Anthem / Nonesuch. The new track is a ballad penned by Gay to his memories of jumping off the rocks into Lake Michigan on Chicago’s Southside; you can watch the video by Chris Strong here. Supported by delicate, minimal flute accents by Rob Frye and wordless backing vocals by Ayanna Woods, Gay croons encouragingly, repeatedly: “Learn how to swim.” This song also birthed the album title, which is taken from the lyrics in the second verse.

Punch Brothers’ newest album, Hell on Church Street, is due January 14, on Nonesuch Records. It is the band’s reimagining of, and homage to, the late bluegrass great Tony Rice’s landmark solo album Church Street Blues, with songs by Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, Bill Monroe, and others. Preorders from the Nonesuch and Punch Brothers stores include a limited-edition print signed by the band while supplies last. An in-the-studio video of the band playing “Church Street Blues” may be seen here. Punch Brothers tour North America in support of the album beginning in January, with show in Seattle, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Boston, and many more.