Allen Toussaint performs at Joe's Pub in NYC ... David Byrne closes out US tour at Berkeley's Greek Theatre with Devotchka ... Ry Cooder, Nick Lowe take the tour to Italy and Switzerland ... Christina Courtin plays first of two shows in Philly ... Emmylou Harris, Shawn Colvin celebrate Kate Wolf at memorial music fest ... Gidon Kremer, Kremerata Baltica open Latvia's Sigulda Festival ... The Low Anthem plays Glastonbury and Hyde Park ... Brad Mehldau performs in Portugal ... Pat Metheny, Gary Burton Quartet are up for a flurry of festivals ... Punch Brothers play Largo in LA ... Wilco, Okkervil River head to Northern California and Tahoe ... and more ...

Wilco (the album), is due out on Nonesuch this Tuesday, June 30, but NPR is giving fans a preview by streaming the album in its entirety now for an Exclusive First Listen, stating: "[T]he new Wilco record is all about a great band playing great original music on an album filled with great songs." The Independent gives a perfect five stars to the "magnificent" album, which finds Wilco "at the peak of its powers." BBC says the band's latest features "some of their most charming pop rock ensemble playing" and asks, "Best live band? How about plain old best band in the world right now?" The Evening Standard gives the album four stars, with its "carefully crafted, deceptively gentle songs, whose beauty reveals itself by stealth."

The Low Anthem's recent Nonesuch release, Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, has made Paste magazine's list of the Best Music of 2009 (so far), assembled by Associate Editor Kate Kiefer. She dubs it her "favorite discovery this year." Drowned in Sound rates it an 8 of 10. "Part of what makes this album so compelling is purity, and purity, when done well, is hard to knock," reads the review, which hears an apt comparison to Tom Waits. "Just as Waits has the power to infuse you with familiarity with the return of a chord, so do the songs of Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, like an embroidered pillow on an old porch that says 'home sweet home.'"

Oumou Sangare's Seya is out now, and, says NPR's Fresh Air, "it's a landmark. It shows she's not just the finest female singer in Mali, but the African Queen of soul ... [E]very moment of Seya reflects the joyful seriousness—and serious joy—of Oumou Sangare's personality ... Seya presents masterful music and a superb summation of her achievements." NPR also names the album track "Iyo Djeli" the Song of the Day, calling the album "a collection of intricately layered music, buoyant grooves and sage wisdom from one of the most alluring and agile voices in African music today." Time Out New York gives the album four stars, saying, "[W]hat really shines is the sheer vitality that runs through Sangare’s music."

Bill Frisell is the subject of an extensive interview with All About Jazz titled "The Quiet Genius." "If there is a given within the music of guitarist Bill Frisell," says the site, "it's the honest approach in every note he composes and plays. There are no compromises." The article examines the "magical world of creativity" Frisell creates, calling him "one of today's most original and innovative composers" and recognizing "his compositional genius as a painter of sound."

Tune in to NPR's World Cafe today to hear a rebroadcast of Sara Watkins's May 26 appearance on the show. She talks discusses her self-titled Nonesuch debut, produced by Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones, and performs three songs from the new album: "All This Time," "Long Hot Summer Days," and "Any Old Time." "Watkins's self-titled solo debut is a charming mix of new songs and covers," says NPR. "It puts her great instrumental breadth on display as she plays the guitar, ukulele and fiddle in addition to her sweet-voiced singing."

Earlier this month, Amadou & Mariam enjoyed a smashing headlining tour of the Eastern US and Canada behind their new release, Welcome to Mali, and are getting ready to hit the American roads again, opening for Coldplay in July. Amadou spoke with The Onion's A.V. Club about the new album and its collaborations with Damon Albarn and K'naan. "No longer content with being classified as world music," says the A.V. Club, Amadou & Mariam "are going global ... [and] have taken advantage of their newfound celebrity to promote African unity, as well as a vision of their home continent free from outdated stereotypes and centuries-old conflicts."

Any way it's told, the story of Nonesuch Records, through its now 45-year history, is and has always been about the music. FLYP, a new online multimedia magazine, has dedicated its latest issue in its entirety to telling that story, through 50-plus pages, more than a dozen articles, and scores of images, video interviews and performances, streaming audio, personal journal excerpts, an interactive name-that-tune, and a jukebox of songs to select and play from the Nonesuch catalog.

Wilco is in Los Angeles this week for a three-night stint of sold-out shows at the Wiltern Theatre. Before tomorrow's final set at the venue, the band is taking tonight to perform on a different stage, on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien. Tune in on NBC starting at 11:35 ET tonight to see the band perform "You Never Know" off the forthcoming Wilco (the album). Glide magazine gives the record four stars, saying, "with every new Wilco album, there is fortunately always something new to discover. And once again, the chances that Tweedy and Co. take ... don’t let us down," making it "another solid offering from one of America’s best bands."

Today is release day for Christina Courtin's self-titled Nonesuch debut. To mark the occasion, Christina will appear on WNYC's Soundcheck to talk about the new record and perform a few songs from it. The Washington Post's Express Night Out says: "Courtin's voice is effortless adaptable, weaving in and out of the instrumentation, constantly playing with texture and volume, never particularly anxious about how it sounds, but never perfectly content, either ... It may only be her debut album, but considering her confirmed songwriting and singing abilities, Courtin already sounds like a veteran."

Shawn Colvin's new Live album is out on Nonesuch today. And in celebration of its release, AOL Music is streaming the album in its entirety for the New Music Releases Full CD Listening Party. The album includes 15 songs from throughout Colvin's career, including 12 written or co-written by her, as well as covers of songs by Robbie Robertson, Gnarls Barkley, and Talking Heads. All orders placed in the Nonesuch Store through July 21 include the exclusive bonus download "Another Long One" and are registered to win a signed Martin guitar.

Björk's Voltaic release, documenting in music and video her two-year Volta tour, is due out on Nonesuch next week. Now, and all week leading up to the event, NPR.org is offering an Exclusive First Listen to the entire Voltaic album of songs recorded live in studio at the tour's start. "Björk's music is complex, mysterious and full of unpredictable sonic textures," says NPR's Bob Boilen. "The brilliant performances on Voltaic make it clear that Björk isn't just a visionary, but also an artist who inspires those around her to create equal parts music and magic, in an effort to bring her vision to life."