Rokia Traoré, who performs at the Brooklyn Academy of Music tonight as part of the Nonesuch Records at BAM series, stopped by WNYC's Soundcheck to perform and talk with host John Schaefer. "It's impossible not to be transported by Rokia Traoré's voice and unique adaptation of rock," says the show. "The daughter of a diplomat, Traoré spent her childhood traveling to Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Belgium, and France, and her travels exposed her to jazz, classical, Indian music and rock. Those early transformative experiences especially translate into her newest release, 2013's Beautiful Africa." Hear the segment here.

The Black Keys were the musical guests on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last night on NBC, performing “Gotta Get Away,” off their latest album, Turn Blue. Watch the performance plus a web-exclusive performance of Edwyn Collins's "A Girl Like You" here. The band performs at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn tonight and tomorrow night, followed by tour stops in Washington, DC, and Chicago. The Boston Globe, reviewing Sunday's show, says: "[T]he fact that they have been able to become one of the most prominent rock outfits of the 2010s while keeping things simple is not only a rebuke to arena-rock excesses, it’s a testament to their talent."

Kronos Quartet is featured in new video from the New York Times, in which the Quartet performs Carlos Paredes's "Canção Verdes Anos" (heard on the five-disc box set Kronos Explorer Series) and discusses the special nature of making music through the quartet. "To me," says Kronos founder and artistic director David Harrington, "the challenge of music is to really be awake, really listen and to try to get your body to respond to what you're hearing inside." You can watch the video, which uses 3D-data capture to present the performance, here.

Nonesuch Records releases James Farm’s sophomore album, City Folk, on October 27, 2014. The album features a new collection of ten original tunes written by all four members of the collaborative band: saxophonist Joshua Redman, pianist Aaron Parks, bassist Matt Penman, and drummer Eric Harland. Redman says, “The first record was more of a proposition, almost a question. ‘What is James Farm?’ The second record is, in a certain sense, a partial answer.” The album is available for pre-order on iTunes and in the Nonesuch Store with an instant download of the opening song “Two Steps” from the record, written by Penman, which you can hear here.

Laurie Anderson and Kronos Quartet bring Landfall, their first-ever collaboration, inspired by Anderson’s experience of Hurricane Sandy, to the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) for five nights this week, September 23–27, for the Nonesuch Records at BAM celebration of the label's 50th anniversary. Landfall is an evocative meditation on transience, combining poignant texts and music fortified by innovative technology. Later this season, Anderson and Kronos perform the piece in Columbus, Austin, and Chicago. 

Nonesuch Records at BAM continues with multi-artist concerts from Devendra Banhart, Stephin Merritt, and Iron and Wine and Kronos Quartet with Natalie Merchant, Rhiannon Giddens, Sam Amidon, and Olivia Chaney ... Carolina Chocolate Drops, Sam Amidon, Emmylou Harris play FreshGrass Bluegrass Festival at MASS MoCA ... The Black Keys tour East Coast ... Jonny Greenwood, Wordless Music Orchestra play There Will Be Blood in NYC ... Gidon Kremer celebrates Schostakovich in Germany ... Youssou N’Dour tours US ... Randy Newman is in Belgium ... Conor Oberst tours Texas ... Joshua Redman plays outside NYC ... Chris Thile and Edgar Meyer are in California, as is Caetano Veloso ... and more ...

David Byrne and Fatboy Slim's stage musical Here Lies Love will open in Sydney, Australia, in May 2015 as the theatrical centerpiece of the Vivid Festival. "Here Lies Love is unlike any musical previously staged in Australia," says Australian producer Rodney Rigby; "it is a transformative experience with unique and immersive staging by director Alex Timbers, where actors perform on platforms and moving catwalks, creating a club-like environment whilst forging a special relationship between the actors and the audience." Here Lies Love performances continue in NYC and open in London on September 30.

Robert Plant put out the call for fans to create a music video for “Rainbow,” the first single off his new album, lullaby and… The Ceaseless Roar, via Genero.tv, the online community of filmmakers. From the more than 100 entries, Plant has selected the winning video, which was co-directed by Isabella and Lucien Spelman. You can watch it here. Robert Plant and his band The Sensational Space Shifters kick off a North American tour next week.

Chris Thile and Edgar Meyer have released a video of their performing "Big Top" from their new album, Bass & Mandolin. You can watch it here. The duo kicked off a North American tour this week in Vancouver. These "two giants of contemporary acoustic music ... managed to showcase exceptional chops while never falling into any of the tedious flash virtuosi so often are taken by," raves the Vancouver Sun. "It's a rare opportunity to be captivated by two such unusual instruments in a pairing. These two are truly special."

Carolina Chocolate Drops close out the summer and kick off the fall touring season at the Brooklyn Academy of Music tonight for the Nonesuch Records at BAM celebration of the label's 50th anniversary. (Rhiannon Giddens also joins label mates Kronos Quartet and others for another concert in the series on Saturday.) The band's US tour includes sets at the FreshGrass Bluegrass Festival in Massachusetts, the LA Bluegrass Situation, and stops in the West, Midwest, and South.

The Remix Collection from "Here Lies Love", featuring reimaginings of the music from David Byrne and Fatboy Slim’s off-Broadway hit, is set for release September 30 on the Todomundo! label, available to preorder at herelieslove.com. A collection of 14 tracks remixed by Matt Stine and Justin Levine, all proceeds will be donated to Gawad Kalinga, a charity dedicated to typhoon relief and ending poverty in the Philippines for five million families by 2024. The album will also be available at Here Lies Love performances at The Public Theater in New York and Dorfman Theater in London.

Bassist Edgar Meyer and mandolinist Chris Thile, whose second recording collaboration, Bass & Mandolin, was released last week on Nonesuch Records, kick off a month-long tour of North America with a performance at the Chan Shun Concert Hall in Vancouver tonight, followed by stops across the United States, from Seattle to Los Angeles, Austin to Boston, New York, Chicago, and many more.