Music

Grammy-winning singer and bass player Esperanza Spalding recently led her band, including a large horn section, through a set of jazzy jams in the KCRW studios. Watching her play funky bass lines while singing with incredible range and soul was truly a sight to behold, especially in "Smile Like That." You can watch the entire performance at KCRW.com.

If Death Grips isn't the fourth horseman of a hip-hop apocalypse, its music at least tests the genre's threshold of extremity: The trio's abrasive, jittery style teeters on the edge of palatability, and plays toward a morbid curiosity to which many listeners won't succumb. From The Money Store, "I've Seen Footage" seems to run the beats from Tone Loc's "Wild Thing" and Salt-n-Pepa's "Push It" through a rusty meat grinder. Meanwhile, MC Ride tells a forceful story, as he catalogs the paranoia and police brutality that drove him to the insanity the song exemplifies.

The formation of Trampled by Turtles can be traced back to the untimely theft of frontman Dave Simonett's musical equipment in 2003. Left with only an acoustic guitar, Simonett formed a new band with a new style that fit his remaining instrument. The result is a folk-rock group that's known for its unbridled passion and raucous energy.

All Things Considered continues its "Mom and Dad's Record Collection" series with former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. The politician currently hosts a TV show on Fox News and plays bass guitar in his rock band, Capitol Offense. His musical tastes are similarly multifaceted: Huckabee says he grew up listening to big-band jazz.