ARTIST: Shannon and the Clams

DOWNLOAD: "Rip Van Winkle"

SHOW: Wednesday at DBA ($7)

The girl group sound is one that just keeps coming back around. But the Oakland-based band Shannon and the Clams give it their own saucy twist. The lo fi trio makes a sound where girl group meets surf rock and garage, plus a little bit of doo wop. Get ready for a punk rock sock hop.

In this episode: Sex, drugs and rock and roll – that pretty well sums up the early years at MTV, at least according to some of the station’s earliest on-air personalities. We talk with two of the station’s original VJs – Mark Goodman and Nina Blackwood – about their new oral history called VJ: The Unplugged Adventures of MTV’s First Wave.

Plus: Last week, the online music streaming service Pandora purchased KXMZ 102.7 (“Today’s Best Hits Without the Rap!”), an FM station in Rapid City, South Dakota. Why? We find out from Paul Resnikoff, publisher of the website Digital Music News.

And: Bagpiper Cristina Pato hails from the Celtic nation of Spain. Yes, Spain. The province of Galicia was originally inhabited by Celts, and echoes of Celtic music can still be heard there. Cristina Pato joins us to play live with her band The Migrations.

Plus: an excerpt from Efterklang's Tiny Desk Concert at the NPR Music offices in Washington, D.C.

ARTIST: Hanson

DOWNLOAD: "Tonight"

SHOW: Monday at Irving Plaza 

The band of brothers known as Hanson burst on the pop scene with their 1997 chart topper "MMMBop.” Their latest album is out Tuesday, June 18th -- and it’s called Anthem. Download "Tonight" -- a pretty anthemic sounding song from the record.

In This Episode: Longtime New Order bassist Peter Hook reflects back on his first band: the short-lived yet influential post-punk group Joy Division. The band existed for less than three years -- and its story is tragic. But its influence on music over the last thirty-odd years has been enormous.

Plus: the powerful blues singer Trixie Whitley, daughter of the late musician Chris Whitley, brings her triumphant debut album to the studio. Watch a video of her performing the song 'Gradual Return.'

ARTIST: Grupo Fantasma 

DOWNLOAD: "Montañozo"

SHOW: Saturday at The Bell House ($15)

The Grammy Award-winning Latin funk orchestra Grupo Fantasma has been making their blend of new cumbia, psychedelia and rock for the last decade. The group has found a following in fans, and also fellow musicians -- their collaborators range from salsa pianist Larry Harlow to indie rock band Spoon to Prince.

In this episode: With a new Superman film in theaters this weekend, we hear about the music that’s accompanied the legend since its advent in the late 1930s -- from the early sounds of the animated TV shorts and radio programs to the 1966 Broadway musical to John Williams' iconic 1978 theme. 

Plus: Grammy and Academy Award-winning composer Hans Zimmer talks about providing a completely new score for the new Christopher Nolan-directed Superman film, Man of Steel.

And: The Norwegian singer, multi-instrumentalist, and looping wiz known as Bernhoft performs in our studio. 

ARTIST: Ice Choir

DOWNLOAD: "Teletrips"

SHOW: Thursday night at Cameo Gallery for the Northside Festival ($12)

Ice Choir is the brainchild of drummer, keyboard player and programmer Kurt Feldman -- who is also known for his work keeping the beat for Brooklyn indie pop band The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. For Ice Choir, he makes swoony, 80s influenced techno-pop. 

Soundcheck is joined by comedian Tig Notaro, 30 Rock composer and producer Jeff Richmond and the high energy, pedal steel-led ensemble Robert Randolph & The Family Band, live in WNYC's Greene Space.

Tonight is game one of the Stanley Cup finals, and with my local team, the Boston Bruins, going up for the Cup against the Chicago Blackhawks, I can't turn in any direction without encountering someone who loves hockey.

But here's the thing: There are very few things I truly hate more in life than ice hockey: Chewing gum, glitter, and golf. Residing just a few rings of hell above these items is hockey. Why do we need another league locking out its players, bamboozling cities into building arenas, and contributing to the growing tide of concussions? All for a confusing swirl of dudes on ice in lumpy sweaters and socks. Besides I can't make sense of a winter sport that has its finals in June.

But have I missed something? Just in time to watch the Bruins continue its pretty phenomenal run, can someone convince me that hockey is worth paying attention to?

Dave Schneider is the lead singer and founder of The Zambonis, a band that writes and sings songs about hockey and hockey only.

Formed in 1991, The Zambonis have released six albums and performed at the 2002 and 2011 NHL All-Star games.

(P.S.: For those of you who are guitar players, Dave Schneider is also famous for this. Warning: This video contains graphic content for people who love Gibson guitars.)

So if there is anyone who can convince me to give the sport another chance, I've determined it's Dave. I reached out to him via Skype chat to see if he could get me to like hockey. Let's watch him try.

In this episode: The operators of the storied Hoboken, N.J. music venue, Maxwell’s, will close up shop at the end of July. Yo La Tengo’s Ira Kaplan, a veteran of the Maxwell’s stage (understatement of the year), joins us to talk about the club. Plus: Your Maxwell’s moments, and stories of the beloved music venue.

And: Drummer, Kendrick Scott, once described himself in an interview as a “pretty boring guy.” But we found out that Scott and his jazz quintet, Oracle, are also a crack basketball squad. We hear a live set from the band, whose new album is called Conviction.