Vicky Emerson and Sarah Morris have led parallel lives for the past several years, but they hadn't met until recently. Now, the duo have combined their talents and their playlists, launching a new duo under the name the Home Fires. Emerson and Morris stopped at Radio Heartland for a session hosted by Mike Pengra.

After a deluge of submissions during the last month or so, the stream of local music videos has started to slow. If you’re a Minnesota musician and have new videos to share, feel free to submit your work to cjohnson@mpr.org. Thanks! ahem, “Bottle Rocket” ahem are one of the Twin Cities’ punk bands to watch. Luckily, Lizzie Hutchins made that…

October 21 is National Reptile Awareness Day which promotes education, conservation, and appreciation for reptiles. So for today's 9:30 Coffee Break, what songs do you want to hear that mention any form of reptiles?

“At least it’s in the part of the mall that has nice floors,” said Andrea Swensson, looking down at the burnished white tile beneath our feet as we walked towards a giant Prince glyph decorating the window of a Mall of America storefront. We were there to see Prince: The Artist, the Icon, the Legend. It’s…

Lulu hit No. 1 with 'To Sir with Love', which Soul Asylum would cover 30 years later; Mick Jagger became a dad; Chuck Berry hit No. 1 with a novelty song; Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong got in a little bit of trouble in Milwaukee; and singer-songwriter Elliott Smith was found mortally wounded, Today in Music History.

“With a fully stocked all-you-can-eat buffet of emotions, we announce that Bedlam Lowertown will be closing on November 2,” write Bedlam Theatre artistic director Maren Ward and board president Dan Spock in a note posted yesterday to the company’s website. “This was a highly ambitious project and there are many whys and why nots and…

Prince fans won’t have to wait much longer for a taste of music from the vault. On Thursday night, NPG Records and Warner Bros. Records announced two new releases — the first ones since Prince’s death on April 21 — and both will share music that was previously unreleased. The first project, Prince 4Ever, comes out on Nov. 22 in the…

An exhibit of Prince artifacts from the Paisley Park collection has opened at the Mall of America. Located on Level 3 East, Prince: The Artist, the Icon, the Legend will be open through Nov. 14. It was announced to help make up for the unexpected delays in permanently opening Paisley Park. The exhibit, which is free and open…

Billy Bragg and Joe Henry have just released an album of railroad songs recorded at a number of train stations between Chicago and Los Angeles. 'It's certainly not about nostalgia,' Henry says. 'This is a part of our living heritage.' Bragg and Henry stopped in to the studio to play some songs and to chat with host and producer Mike Pengra.

Last night's presidential debate was filled with name-calling and memorable phrases, and though we can rest easy knowing that the debates are over, this was a tough one to watch. So for today's 9:30 Coffee Break, what songs with insults and name-calling do you want to hear?