Matt Reilly

Colorado singer Brent Cowles performs a bare-boned rendition of "Cold Times."

Fresh off a new album produced by The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach, this funny Texas quintet brings its fiddles and banjos to Austin's KUT for a session in Studio 1A. Listen to the performance now.

Choc Quib Town, a hip-hop act from Colombia's Pacific coast, mixes in marimba and other traditional instruments with turntables and keyboards, creating a world beat-infused sound. In a session from KUT, the joy they bring to their craft is evident and infectious.

Asheville's Toubab Krewe is an instrumental band which fuses the music of Mali and other West African influences with American musical styles. In a session from KUT, the band augmented the standard rock formation with a kora, ngoni, djembe, krin and scraper.

Austin singer-songwriter Slaid Cleaves has been writing meaningful music for many years, but his new album (Everything You Love Will Be Taken Away) is a game-changer. Cleaves recently stopped by KUT's Studio 1A to share some of his new songs.

Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Butch Hancock and Joe Ely: For Texans, their names represent a sort of musical holy trinity. Collectively, as The Flatlanders, they're a roots-music supergroup. In a session from KUT, the band performs new songs and explains the ups and downs that led to Hills and Valleys.

On the eve of kicking off her Middle Cyclone tour, Case stopped by Austin, Texas, for some prime queso and an acoustic session at KUT. Joined by vocalist Kelly Hogan and guitarist Paul Rigby, Case shared how a piano orchestra crafted a Harry Nilsson cover, and then played it — minus the orchestra, of course.

Foster starts out her KUT session by reaching back to her roots with a Sister Rosetta Tharpe song. It sets the mood for a soulful performance and conversation with the modern blues singer and guitarist, who looks beyond the folk tradition for which she's become known.