Rostam, in celebration of the three-year anniversary of his Nonesuch debut, Half-Light, has released an acoustic version of the album's title track. The song, which was originally released as part of a compilation album benefitting Fair Fight, features Rostam solo and multi-tracked on guitar, drums, piano, hammond organ, and bass.

Reasons to Be Cheerful, the solutions-based online magazine founded by David Byrne, has announced We Are Not Divided, a six-week collaborative journalistic exploration of our capacity to overcome division. We Are Not Divided tells the stories of places and institutions that are succeeding in overcoming division. The project launches today and runs through November 2.

Lake Street Dive's Lounge Around Sounds Variety Hour, which brought some joy and silliness to the early months of the COVID-19 lockdown, will return for three nights of music and laughter this autumn: the first show on September 21, a Halloween special on October 28, and a virtual Thanksgiving gathering on November 23. These are ticketed events with several packages available, including an exclusive Lounge Around Sounds t-shirt.

Devendra Banhart is on the latest episode of NPR's Alt.Latino. He spoke with host Felix Contreras and producer Isabella Gomez Sarmiento about his new EP, Vast Ovoid, exploring the difference between disappointment and disillusion; examining pre-COVID art under current conditions; and embracing the strong bond he feels with the Grateful Dead, whose song "Franklin's Tower" he covered for Amazon Music. You can hear their conversation here.

The Staves have released "Trying," the second track from the British trio this year, following last month’s release of "Nazareth." "I wanted to write a song about the state of things in the world and how broken our ability to communicate with each other had become as a society," Camilla Staveley-Taylor says of the new track, "but it became impossible as I was writing to separate my personal life from the broader message ... I feel like trying is what we spend most of our lives doing really. Just trying our best."