WFUV's Take Five

It's hard to think of a more intriguing story in the last several decades of rock, than that of Sixto Rodrituez.  The underground Detroit folkie was made famous on the other side of the globe for 15 years before he even heard about it.  The amazing story is detailed in the new documentary, 'Searching for Sugar Man,' and host Rita Houston was lucky enough to get a visit from the man himself at FUV.

The Alternate Side's Russ Borris talks with John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats about the making of his 14th full-length album, 'Transcendental Youth,' and about the changes in his songwriting over the years. Darnielle also performs live versions of the new songs, including 'Cry For Judas' and 'Spent Gladiator 2,' in WFUV's Studio A.

FUV Live 15 Artist: It's been a 7-year wait between studio albums, but Bonnie Raitt is back - and in fine form - with her latest release, 'Slipstream.' A lifelong collaborator, Bonnie worked for the first time with Joe Henry on a few of the new songs, but also enlisted her longtime bandmates as well. That crew joined her at NYC's Avatar Studios recently, where FUV's Rita Houston had a chance to talk with Bonnie about her place in the slipstream of music.

FUV Live 15 Artist: Four years after her breakthrough album, 'The Reminder,' Feist returned last year with 'Metals' - a batch of songs featuring Feist's distinct brand of songcraft in a starker setting. In the setting of our Studio A, she and her band (including the trio Mountain Man) performed a few of the new tunes and talked with FUV's Russ Borris.

FUV Live 15 Artist: After a long wait for The Shins' new album 'Port of Morrow,' FUV's Alisa Ali had a chance to talk to frontman James Mercer about the new batch of tunes during his solo visit to Studio A.

FUV Live 15 Artist: We were first treated to a solo visit from Austin bluesman Gary Clark, Jr., but earlier this year, he brought his band to FUV for a searing studio session featuring songs from his EP, 'The Bright Lights,' and a chat with host Rita Houston.

Live from The Alternate Side, Vol. 2 Artist: Beirut talks with The Alternate Side's Alisa Ali about its latest album, 'The Rip Tide.' The band also performs live versions of its songs, 'Goshen' and 'Santa Fe' in WFUV's Studio A.

FUV Live 15 Artist: Ryan Adams' past behavior earned him as much of a reputation as his gift for songwriting, but as FUV's Claudia Marshall found out during Ryan's 2011 visit to Studio A, he channeled the focus of several changes in his life into a beautiful album, called 'Ashes & Fire.'

Beth Orton is one of those rare artists who's had a genre coined entirely for her.  Labeled 'Folktronica' back in the mid-90's, Beth has moved away from dark beats and into a literary folk that shimmers around her low-key alto. Her gorgeous new album, 'Sugaring Season,' is her first in 6 years, and she performed a few of the songs - solo, acoustic - in a Studio A session with host Claudia Marshall.

Those who caught on early to Mumford and Sons' debut album 'Sigh No More' have had a long wait for their second release. The foursome spent the time in between traveling the world, playing to increasing crowds as their popularity bloomed. But finally, 'Babel' has arrived, and the guys stopped by FUV to perform a few of the songs and to catch up with host Rita Houston.

R&B newcomer Allen Stone may describe himself as a 'hippie with soul,' but this son of a small town preacher man from the Northwest, didn't take long to discover that the gospel was deep inside him—and that soul music is colorblind. With his voice and intense live performances, Stone has been wowing folks all over the country. On his current non-stop tour, he brought his band by FUV to perform a few songs from his self-titled album, and to chat with host Claudia Marshall.

The Alternate Side's Russ Borris talks with the UK band Alt-J about the making of its full-length debut, 'An Awesome Wave,' and about the challenges of arranging the music.  The band also performed live versions of their songs 'Fitzpleasure' and 'Breezeblocks' in WFUV's Studio A.

Underdog soul singer Bettye LaVette has been crafting her own kind of songbook for 50 years now, and she's brought all her talent and experience to bear on two new projects: her memoir, 'A Woman Like Me,' and an album, called 'Thankful N' Thoughtful.' On the album, Bettye explores the work of Tom Waits, Sly Stone, Patty Griffin, The Black Keys and more. She performed a few of the songs live, and told some funny and fascinating stories during a recent Studio A session with FUV's Rita Houston.

Sonny Landreth is a slide guitar wizard from southern Louisiana who pours out riffs in a gorgeous stream that sounds almost effortless. His new instrumental album, 'Elemental Journey,' is a joyous exploration of blues, country, reggae, strings and zydeco, and it recently brought Sonny in for a visit. He's soft-spoken, yes, but man that guitar can really wail. Hear for yourself as Sonny chats with FUV's Claudia Marshall about the new tunes.

Hard to believe, but it's been almost 30 years since Aimee Mann burst onto the scene in the new wave band 'Til Tuesday. She's followed that act with a two-decade-long solo career as a wry singer-songwriter with an eye for witty detail, and her anticipated eighth studio album, 'Charmer,' comes out today. FUV's Claudia Marshall had a chance to chat with Aimee ahead of her recent FUV Live performance at Electric Lady Studios, and Mann explained the album title with the help of an incredible lyric by her husband, Michael Penn.