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Juana Molina began her professional career not as a musician, but as an actress – and a fairly successful one at that. In her home country of Argentina, she gained popularity as a sketch comedy star, even getting her own television show in the 90s. Feeling more drawn to music rather than acting, Molina began writing and singing songs at the peak of her success and never looked back. Now, she has eight studio albums under her belt, with her latest, Doga, receiving praise from critics all over the world. The record proves that Molina has an insatiable thirst for creating sophisticated music with unpredictable yet thoughtful sound design; a product of endless hours of experimenting with her collaborators. It was years in the making, with some songs dating back to 2019, but Molina’s perception of the process shows how symbiotic her relationship with music is: “When you get into it, and you just let you go, and you don’t think anymore, then sounds get awakened, and they start talking to you and tell you what to do with them. It’s easy.” Now, almost a year after the release of Doga, Molina visits our studios to play a few of her new songs amid her world tour, for this episode of Soundcheck. - Sırma Munyar (Photo of Juana Molina by Verena Algranti) Setlist: 1.Uno es árbol  2.Caravanas  3.La paradoja  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We perceive loneliness as a human emotion. Dive into any decade and you’ll find countless songs written on the subject. But it’s not only humans who sing about being lonely – birds do it, too. On this episode of Soundcheck, you’ll get to hear one of those birdsongs, recorded in 1987, when the now extinct, last Moho braccatus bird of Hawaii called for a mate that no longer existed. Argentine composer Osvaldo Golijov’s piece inspired by that birdsong, “The Last Moho Braccatus”, is performed live in our studio by acclaimed cellist Alisa Weilerstein, alongside her renditions of a couple of familiar Bach pieces. The chamber pop duo, Gracie & Rachel, who are equally moved by themes of loneliness and dealing with absence, also share their introspective songs from their latest album with an exclusive full band performance. Gracie & Rachel's Setlist: 1.Leaving Home Is Going Home  2.Green Light  3.Caroline  4.Myself Again Alisa Weilerstein's Setlist: 1.Bach: Cello Suite No. 1 in G major, Prelude, BWV 1007  2.The Last Moho Braccatus / J.S. Bach Cello Suite no. 5 in C minor, Courante, BWV 1011 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Montreal-born Americana/Folk singer Allison Russell is a multi-instrumentalist who spent nearly two decades performing with music groups like Po’ Girl and Birds of Chicago, before launching her solo career in 2021 with her monumental debut record, Outside Child. A survivor of abuse, Russell poured her emotions into her songs not to revisit her darkest memories, but to celebrate her resilience and eagerness to live a fulfilling life, surrounded by the people she loved. In “Nightflyer”, she sang, “I’m the wounded bird, I’m the screaming hawk, I’m the one who can’t be counted out,” elegantly summarizing the journey it took her to get to a place she’s immensely proud of — and rightfully so. Now back with her latest and third album, In the Hour of Chaos, Russell readily shares her joy and unyielding hope, celebrating humanity and her community, one collaborative song at a time. The record is filled with a wide range of guest artists including Brittney Spencer and Norah Jones. And though they’re not present for Russell’s exclusive live performance for Soundcheck, The Rainbow Coalition is, with Caoi de Barra on drums, Caoimhe Hopkinson on guitar, and Ganessa James on bass. All band members also join Russell on vocals, sometimes even singing the lead parts, as Russell also plays the clarinet. - Sırma Munyar (Photo of Allison Russell by Mason Poole) Setlist: 1.No Springtime  2.Black Lavender  3.Really Real Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ruthie Foster was born into music, grew up with music, and it was only natural that music would follow her wherever she’d go. The now Grammy-winning singer-songwriter was a soloist in a local choir in her hometown of Gause, Texas, soaking in the soulful melodies of gospel music. After high school, Foster majored (much expectedly) in music – and broadcast journalism. She joined the Navy shortly thereafter, where she often took the stage to sing. Soon, she’d be in New York City, developing her unique brand of blues and folk music as a regular at local clubs where she’d end up on the radar of Atlantic Records. Her label and Foster had different ideas about the kind of artist she could be at the time. But Foster still walked into every session with an open heart where she often felt the urge to write about being back at home in Texas. So, she went back home, leaving her record deal behind, to be with her family and live a simpler life, which would eventually lead to the creation of her aptly titled record, Full Circle. In the following three decades, Foster never stopped making and releasing music. Having become highly comfortable playing her guitar, she actively toured, sometimes with a band and other times solo. Now back with her fourteenth album, Just Say Yes, Foster brings her skillful guitar playing and powerful vocals to our studio for a solo performance to share some of her new songs for this episode of Soundcheck. - Sırma Munyar (Photo by Jody Domingue) Setlist: 1.Yes  2.Thank You  3.Tangled Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The artist known as Everlast was the lead rapper in the group House of Pain, whose single “Jump Around” remains one of hip hop’s most familiar songs. But in the 1990s he began adding bluesy guitars to his songs - which continues with his latest, Embers To Ashes. Everlast plays his B-boy country punk rock blues in-studio. Then, Ghost Hounds is a Pittsburgh-based blues-rock band with a sound that may remind you of classic early 70s bands like The Rolling Stones. In fact, they’ve opened for the Stones and do a cover of that band’s song “Gimme Shelter” on the new Ghost Hounds album. But most of their music is original and their latest record, called Justified, is full of apocalyptic imagery and songs that swagger their way through the End Of Days. Ghost Hounds brings a rootsy, intimate version of the band to play these new songs, in-studio. in-studio for this episode of Soundcheck. Everlast set list: 1. Losing Man's Game 2. Stones Ghost Hounds set list: 1. Something Wicked 2. Pale Horse Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

For the past 20 years or so, Eli Paperboy Reed has been making records that revel in the vintage sounds of Memphis and Chicago soul, with a healthy dose of R&B, early rock’n’roll, and a bit of country. His latest album is called Getting There, a mature reflection on love, life, and romance-  where in the face of hard times, romantic partners “respond with more determination, more commitment and more love” (EliPaperboyReed.com). Eli Paperboy Reed and his band have set up camp here in our studio, and they’ll play some of their latest bluesy-soulful grown folks music. Watch the video performances on the New Sounds YouTube channel:Set list: 1. Getting There 2. Asking For a Friend 3. One Man's Trash (Is Another Man's Treasure) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It’s rare to come across a traditional origin story like The Royston Club’s nowadays: a group of small-town kids from Wrexham, Wales, coming together to form a band in high school and taking the stage on open mic nights at their local pub. Their music, woven with nostalgic lyrics and crunchy, anthemic guitars, also feels as though it belongs to a different time. And yet, The Royston Club has no trouble finding new fans with each release and tour they embark on, having hit the top 20 on the UK album charts with both of their albums, Shaking Hips and Crashing Cars and Songs for the Spine. Now based in Liverpool, the band still visits their hometown frequently, keeping all the people that cheered them on close. Even the word “spine” from the title of their latest record refers to those same people in their lives, who hold them up and keep them going, as The Royston Club travels the world to reach new masses.  The band takes a short break from their US tour to play a few new songs in our studio for this episode of Soundcheck. - Sırma Munyar Setlist: 1.Shivers  2.Glued to the Bed  3.Cariad (Photo by Sam Crowston) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Helado Tropical ("tropical ice cream") is a collaboration between Helado Negro, the experimental pop project of Ecuadorian-American singer/songwriter Roberto Carlos Lange, and Reyna Tropical, which is the work of the Mexican-American musician Fabi Reyna (also of the cumbia band Savila).They bring their langorous brand of Latin electro-pop to our studio. And another duo takes a more acoustic approach: Irish fiddler Martin Hayes and guitarist Kyle Sanna. Hayes is one of the great fiddlers of our time, and one of the things that makes his playing so distinctive is the way he incorporates elements of jazz and contemporary classical music. Hayes is a founding member of the Irish-American supergroup The Gloaming, and he’s led a couple of ensembles, the Martin Hayes Quartet and the Common Ground Ensemble, that include musicians from the New York new music scene, including guitarist Kyle Sanna. They also play jigs, reels, and hornpipes in-studio for this episode of Soundcheck. Helado Tropical Set list: 1. Tocando 2. Sensacion 3. Soledad Martin Hayes / Kyle Sanna Set list: 1. The Wild Geese/Lord Leitrim 2. Port An Deoari/My Mary Ann 3. The Golden Castle/Mikey Callaghans Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

They started as a street band in Mexico City, but Son Rompe Pera has attracted attention as far south as Chile. Formed in 2017, they’re a party band with a distinctive sound centered on brothers who play marimbas and draw on punk, ska, pop, and the ubiquitous Latin dance rhythm called cumbia. Now they’re back with a new album called Marimbazos de Oro, and while the marimbas and the punk are still evident, there’s a lot going on here – with songs that use the cumbia rhythm, as well as the sounds of salsa, reggae, hardcore, psychedelic guitars, traditional Mexican and Colombian rhythms, even Andean music. Son Rompe Pera brings their danceable and "sweaty, respectful mayhem" to the studio (without the marimba mosh pit) for this edition of Soundcheck. Set list: 1. Lagrimas 2. Nada que Hacer 3. Reptilio Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From the 2026 New York Guitar Festival, recorded live at Bryant Park, hear a set from the instrumental trio called The Messthetics -who are Anthony Pirog (guitar), Joe Lally (bass) and Brendan Canty (drums). Pirog has played avant-rock, ambient, and freely improvised music, often in his own projects and in his duo Janel & Anthony. Bassist Joe Lally and drummer Brendan Canty were the rhythm section of the Washington D.C. band Fugazi. They were joined by special guest guitar hero Marc Ribot, who is one of the most in-demand and unpredictable guitarists around. He’s played with Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, and John Zorn, and led bands that deal in noise, rock, Latin, and free jazz. Hear a set from the Messthetics with Marc Ribot from that August night in this special podcast. 1. Mythomania 2. Rules of the Game 3. Inner Ocean 4. Gestations 5. Touch Earth, Touch Sky Photo of the Messthetics, courtesy of the artist's Bandcamp Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Some vocal performances are so emotionally compelling that you can’t help but hang on every word while eagerly anticipating the next. Such spellbinding experiences are the live performances of two acts that come from two different parts of the Americas: Mexican singer-songwriter Humbe and the Nashville-based folk-rock trio The Lone Bellow. Humbe may be young in years, but he’s been writing and releasing songs that sound timeless for almost a decade. His viral hit “Fantasmas” opened a new chapter for the Latin Grammy nominated star on the rise. The Lone Bellow has been around for a little while longer, consistently growing a loyal fan base since the early 2010s. But they hit a roadblock as they were working on their latest album, What a Time to Be Alive, after a break-in to their tour van resulted in the loss of the precious hard drives that contained their vocal recordings. Thanks to a successful crowdfunding campaign, the band managed to finish the record and get back on the road. Both acts tell these tales behind their music, and more, as they share heartfelt renditions of their songs for this episode of Soundcheck. - Sırma Munyar The Lone Bellow's Setlist: 1.I Did It for Love 2.You Were Leaving 3.No Getting Over You Humbe's Setlist: 1.Harry Stamper 2.Fantasmas 3.Morfina Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Girl Ultra is the project of Mexico City-born Mariana de Miguel; a singer-songwriter whose creativity knows no bounds. Though she started her musical career as an underground R&B artist on Soundcloud about a decade ago, nowadays she experiments with all kinds of genres from Pop and Rock to Reggae and Funk, mixing her musical and cultural influences into her stories about lust, heartbreak, friendship, intimacy, and more. Born out of a longing to create an alter ego inspired by a superhero heroine, Girl Ultra became an invigorating entity for de Miguel that kept her attached to girlhood as she welcomed her thirties. As she continues to perceive life through this lens, de Miguel also often collaborates with other innovative musicians. In fact, her latest record, titled RRRomeo, is filled with exciting guest appearances – most notably the Canadian electro-funk duo Chromeo, who are featured on five of the eight tracks. It all started when Chromeo reached out to de Miguel to produce new music for Girl Ultra during lockdown. “I never took so long – like five years – just marinating this project… It was a fun exercise to just come back to it with different skills along the years,” says de Miguel, describing the process that began in Burbank, California at Chromeo’s studio. Now, finally ready to share RRRomeo with the world, de Miguel brings some of those skillfully put together, eclectic songs to our studio, for this episode of Soundcheck. - Sırma Munyar Setlist: 1.Mentirasmentiras  2.Te Caigo  3.Denisse Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

California-based harpist Lara Somogyi may be classically trained, but there’s nothing classical about her approach to making music. She surrounds herself with several effects pedals to expand the sound of her harp into an otherworldly orchestra. Between her technical skillset and deep understanding of electronic music production, Somogyi has carved a path of her own, both as a session musician recording for film and TV scores such as Hans Zimmer’s The Lion King and the Netflix series Bridgerton, as well as a collaborator to electronic experimentalists like Bonobo and Ólafur Arnalds. On her new record, titled a [time] patterned, Somogyi reinforces the relationship between her existential contemplations and sound design adventures. “This record was all really born from my curiosity on how we experience time,” she says, adding that she experiences time in a sensory way, associating various periods of her life with the sounds she hears, like crickets or rustling birch trees in the summer. Becoming obsessed with the idea that “music can decorate our time”, Somogyi began to layer and alter the timing of her plucked harp sequences, stretching them into ambient soundscapes or crystallizing them into fragmented pieces through electronic processing. Every tool she used on the record was a time-based tool, and she brings some of them to our studio for an unforgettable performance, featuring a string quartet with Laura Metcalf on cello, Angela Pickett on viola, and Maria Im and Caroline Cassio on violin, for this episode of Soundcheck. - Sırma Munyar Setlist: 1.mirabel 2.elsewhere 3.acceptances Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hardships tend to take time to overcome, and some songwriters turn to music to process their emotions as they move from one battle to the next. Two of those songwriters are Steve Earle and Anjimile, who come from very different walks of life. Steve Earle has earned multiple Grammy Awards and an induction into the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville after spending decades reflecting on his experiences as an activist, actor, and a man who happened to go through seven marriages and spend a couple of months in jail for drug possession. Anjimile, on the other hand, was born to immigrant parents from Malawi who were both devout Christians, which made his journey as a trans man a complex situation that kept unraveling as years went by. As Anjimile performs some new songs that explore sexuality, gender, spirituality, and more, Steve Earle plays some of his old hits that document the troubled but full life he has lived, for this edition of Soundcheck.  Steve Earle's Setlist: 1.Copperhead Road 2.City of Immigrants Anjimile's Setlist: 1.Rust & Wire 2.The Store 3.Waits for Me Watch the live performance videos on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/newsoundsmusic Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

During her two-decade career, the singer, actor, playwright and two-time NAACP Image Award winner Somi has blended the sounds of American and African music – jazz and R&B, but also Afrobeat, folksong, and highlife. Her last album was a tribute to the South African singer Miriam Makeba; that record also served as a companion to an Off-Broadway musical that Somi wrote – under her full name Somi Kakoma, called Dreaming Zenzile. Now a Harvard PhD recipient (the Creative Practice and Critical Inquiry Program), Somi has a new album of original music called What Does It Take To Bloom. Written and recorded between Dakar, Lagos, Paris and New York City, Somi’s latest explores the many facets of self-discovery – questions of becoming and of identity (she is the Midwestern daughter of immigrants from Uganda and Rwanda) – and navigates uncertainty, loss, and change (Somimusic.com). Somi joins us to perform some of these songs, in-studio. Photo of Somi by Knoor The Luo Set list: 1. We're All Falling 2. Ngayaya 3. AiwahWatch the live performance videos on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/newsoundsmusic Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.