“We like to regionalize our locations,” said Jeff Nolan as he walked through the new Hard Rock Cafe at the Mall of America. “It’s a heck of a lot easier here than in a lot of places,” he continued, noting Minnesota’s “singular” music history. That history of course includes Prince—whose outfits, including one emblazoned MINNEAPOLIS…

Help us celebrate National Radio Day. What songs should we play? Let us know and we'll play some for the 9:30 Coffee Break.

Protests and tensions continue in Ferguson, Missouri after the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown on Aug. 9, and numerous musicians are sharing their views on the situation—many expressing anger and sadness. Chuck D, Questlove, John Legend, Frank Ocean, Talib Kweli, Moby, and Rage Against the Machine‘s Tom Morello have criticized the actions of local law enforcement,…

What songs do you want to hear from artists who's live show make you nervous? Give us your suggestions and we'll play some for today's 9:30 Coffee Break.

Share your story about your first vinyl for Vinyl Record Day.

Phantom Tails: Rides Battalion Phantom Tails describe their genre as deep-space doom-funk. As strange as that sounds, they’ve gained a big local audience for their far-out but indisputably rocking records. Their newest release, Rides Battalion, is available today followed by the release show this Friday at the Triple Rock. “All Your Cities,” the first single…

Local legend has it that when the Cedar Cultural Center was converted from a ​movie theater to a music room, a guitar belonging to West Bank folk star Spider John Koerner was buried in the venue’s foundation. Is the legend true? In the first episode of a new series from the Current, David Campbell takes on the role of the Minnesota…

The Legend of Drizzt, an anthology of short stories based on the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, has been produced as an audiobook featuring celebrity readers including “Weird Al” Yankovic and Ice-T. In a promotional video, the rapper—who’s said in his podcast that he took the gig reading an audiobook without realizing what the subject…

Tom Hallett, a singular critic with a distinctive, rambling, and passionate voice and a sharp ear for music, passed away yesterday afternoon in St. Paul after a long struggle with diabetes. He was 50 years old. Born in Deer River, Minn., on July 27, 1964, Hallett spent time living with family in Alaska and traveling the country before…

What musicians have recieved critical and commercial success in the teens?