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Roberts' sturdy indie-rock sound can feel comfortable, familiar and satisfying. Though his songs often portray dark themes, his sunny sense of humor often reveals their messages as tongue-in-cheek. Here, Roberts tells some of the heartfelt and twisted stories behind his new songs.

Blind Pilot conducted its first tour on a pair of bicycles, riding from Vancouver to San Francisco. Though the group now tours in a van, its members look back fondly on their early days, which included campfires and unexpected attention from truckers.

Lots of artists mix digital and acoustic sounds, but Mirah does it with remarkable control and grace. Her songs are never overly produced or overly sentimental. They're just a little dark, with something bubbling quietly beneath humming electronics and gently strummed guitars. See Mirah perform three new songs from her latest album, (A)spera, at the historic Driskill Hotel in Austin, Texas.

Before launching into Cedar Walton's "Mosaic" at the Kennedy Center, drummer Lewis Nash said that no tribute to the legendary Blue Note label would be complete without honoring Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. Hear the thundering highlight recorded live on Sunday night.

Electro-acoustic wizard Dan Deacon made his name as a frenetic one-man band who embedded his act on the dance floor. But on his new album, Bromst, he's aiming for a meaningful sort of pop — and employing a 15-person touring ensemble.

When the gospel duo Mary Mary announced its tour dates for this spring, not one church was on the list of venues. Sisters Tina and Erica Campbell, who named their act after the two Marys in the Bible, have spent their careers taking gospel music out of its usual venues.

On the new album Trombone Tribe, trombonist Roswell Rudd plays with a number of groups including his own sextet. Music critic Kevin Whitehead has a review.

Recent developments in understanding the interaction between music and the brain might help us avoid the stress inherent in sending one's hard-earned tax dollars to Manhattan and Detroit and Baghdad. With the right music in the background, preparing taxes might feel about the same as drinking cucumber water in a swank spa, or doing tai chi as the sun rises over the seashore.

According to John Christopher Martin, the band The Peekers "started out as four friends just wanting to escape" and make music together. Now six members strong, the Shreveport, Louisiana-based group makes delightfully nostalgic and utterly charming pop music that combines their varying musical backgrounds and talents.

The music of Portland, Oregon-based, five-piece group Autopilot is for Lovers is anything but conventional. But vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Adrienne Hatkin admits that when she was a kid, she shied away from "anything that wasn't totally mainstream" and wouldn't touch her father's records. Now, Hatkin embraces eccentricities and looks to capture a sense of magical realism in her music.