World Cafe correspondent John Morrison digs into the South African gospel group's latest record, which recontextualizes classic club hits.

There’s a righteous fury to Mdou Moctar’s music, but also a reminder the good fight is always worth fighting.

Who will win today's cage match?Welcome to The Smackdown! For the next several weeks Brittany is hosting debates in cities and regions across the United States to find out who and what are the most influential things from those places. This episode Brittany lands in Birmingham, Alabama, and debates with Gulf States Newsroom sports & culture reporter Joseph King and AL.com culture reporter Cody Short. There will be winners. There will be losers. There will be surprises.

We update our running list of the year's best songs with the shapeshifting rock of Caleb Landry Jones, Angélica Garcia's dystopian grooves, a searing look at infidelity from Damien Jurado and more.Featured songs and artists:1. Caleb Landry Jones: "Hey Dawn," from Hey Gary, Hey Dawn2. Angélica Garcia: "El Que," from Gemelo3. Damien Jurado & The Fremont Abbeye: "Sheets ('24)," from Sheets ('24)4. Laura Marling: "Patterns," from Patterns In Repeat5. Carlos Ares: "Cigarra," from Peregrino6. Melt-Banana: "Stopgap," from 3+5Feedback, questions, comments or suggestions always welcome: allsongs@npr.org