Alice Merton tops the chart this week, joined by a heap of debuts from Mitski, Cloud Cult, Death Cab for Cutie, The Raconteurs, and more.

Alan R. Pearlman, whose synthesizers were favored by everyone from Kraftwerk to 'Star Wars' sound designer Ben Burtt, has died at 93. Also in the news today: the Killers haven't exactly been known as a political band, but their new single is a protest song. Plus: Corey Hart is being inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, Colin Kaepernick hasn't cosigned the Super Bowl halftime show, musicians cover silence (yes, really), and a fiery blues guitarist goes viral.

Thanks to Jesse for today's (morbid, but great) theme idea. A U.K. palliative care doctor has started paying attention to the music his patients request to be played as they are passing on. For today's 9:30 Coffee Break, tell us -- what's the last song you want to hear before you die?

Faith No More are like the elephant in the famous parable: every listener will describe them differently. If there's one thing they want readers of this new authorized biography to know, though, it's that they don't want to be blamed for nu metal.

Sade was born, Bob Bogle was born, Sid Vicious took a tumble, Paul McCartney went to jail, and Radiohead underestimated their fan power, Today in Music History.

Though the Twin Cities lost the local R&B legend Willie Murphy earlier this week, he is far from forgotten. From fans and fellow Minnesotan musicians alike, here are just a few of the tributes to the “godfather” of the Minneapolis music scene that have spread on social media since the musician’s death. Willie also told…

This week on Listen to Looch, Mary Lucia is joined by Andrea Swensson for a conversation about the career and music of J.S. Ondara. Born in Kenya, Ondara moved to Minneapolis to launch his music career. This Saturday, J.S. Ondara plays at night two of The Current's 14th Birthday Party, and in February, his debut full-length album comes out on Verve Records.

Carol Channing, a legend of the musical stage, has died at 97. Also in the news today: Alicia Keys will host the Grammys, Maroon 5's Super Bowl halftime slot is officially official, Kanye West contributes to an epic art project, a new app for music discovery, and Steven Spielberg's 'West Side Story' casts an unknown teenager to star as Maria.

Today in 2018, Irish musician and singer-songwriter Dolores O'Riordan from The Cranberries died. We'll save our Irish musician Coffee Break for St. Patrick's Day in March, but for today's 9:30 Coffee Break, what bands do you want to hear that have a fruit in their name?

Dolores O'Riordan passed away; The Rolling Stones were forced to change the lyrics of "Let's Spend The Night Together" to "Let's Spend Some Time Together" when appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show; Led Zeppelin's 'Black Dog' made its debut on the U.S. singles chart; and The Who had their first hit when they released "I Can't Explain" in the UK, Today in Music History.