Three is the magic number for Flavor Crystals. "Three" is the name of their new record, it took three years to record and it's their first release in that many years. It's a welcome surprise: the psych-rock band put out two of the Twin Cities' most acclaimed releases during the mid-2000s, a pair of records which spawned a tour with Brian Jonestown Massacre.

The married folk duo Shovels & Rope brought their act to The Current studios to play a few songs and talk with Bill Deville about finding their kick drum in the garbage, Confederate moonshine's influence on naming their new record and Townes, the tour bus guarding hound dog.

The Australian band's major label debut on Columbia, the album (whose title is usually shortened by fans to "10, 9, 8") was a ferocious explosion of political anger, driving guitars and drums, and anthemic melodies; Midnight Oil would water things down considerably on later albums to reach a broader MTV audience. We played "Read About It."

Mankwe Ndosi is no stranger to fans of Twin Cities hip-hop. A onetime back-up vocalist for Atmosphere who has been working closely with Medium Zach of Big Quarters, it seems that Ndosi has been quietly moving closer and closer to center stage in recent years. And given the strength of her full-length debut, Science and…

Local music notes from the week of July 16-20

Joe Jackson's third album wasn't quite as successful as his first two - for some reason the record wasn't promoted in the United States like the previous pair and no singles were released here - but it was received extremely well by critics and fans. "Beat Crazy" shows Jackson embracing reggae even more fully and explicitly than on his first two albums. We played the title track.

You know it’s going to be a good session when an email goes out warning the MPR staff that the band “is bringing the big amps” and it’s going to get loud. Such was the case with today’s UBS Forum session by Soul Asylum, which invited about 100 Current fans into the studios for a…

Here's a taste of the new music we've added to our mix of songs this week on 89.3 The Current, featuring new music from Bloc Party, Stars, Band of Horses and more.

Local bands that deserve must-hear status this week

It’s not unusual for bands to request special drinks, food, or other accommodations be made available to them backstage while they are playing a show. But last night at First Avenue, Liars co-founder Aaron Hemphill made one big request: That a tattoo artist be sent backstage to tattoo Prince’s glyph on his finger before the…