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Mei Semones' unique sound weaves lyrics in English and Japanese through catchy pop, jazz and rock-influenced instrumentation.

Lourdes Garcia-Navarro talks to Sean Rameswaram, host of the weekly pop culture podcast, Sideshow, about his top picks for the best of the Internet in 2014.

Liane Hansen speaks with record producer Phil Ramone, who as departed from pop music to produce a new CD by the symphony orchestra f the renowned Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia (EMI Classics). amone has worked with Billy Joel, Paul Simon and Frank Sinatra, among thers, and is acknowledged for both his technical skills and creativity.

Hapa [HAH-puh] is the name of a band from Hawaii. It's made up of native Hawaiian who's part Chinese and a native New Yorker who's all Irish Catholic. Together they make music that ranges from traditional Hawaiian slack-key guitar to acoustic pop. Heidi Chang reports. There are two Hapa CD's available on the Coconut Grove label.

Grandaddy is a band from a farming community in Modesto, Calif. It seems an unlikely place for a pop band with electric guitars and gurgling synthesizers to emerge. But they have. They imagined a wonderful futuristic sound that has captured the ears of listeners in London. Mikel Jolet reviews their new CD Sumday.

Burns, along with drummer John Convertino, make up the band Calexico. The Tucson, Ariz. band is known for music that is inspired by southwest border region they live in, blending multiple musical genres including folk, rock, pop, country and mariachi. Their latest album is Feast of Wire.

Questions about campaign financing continue to pop up in the news. NPR's Michael Goldfarb and Liane discuss the parallels between the financing of campaigns in this country, and in Great Britian, which currently is in the midst of an election cycle to seat a new Parliment. Unlike the U.S., there are few limits on the amount of money one can donate to any given campaign.

Music historian Mitch Myers takes a listen to the great gospel hit from the late 1960s, "Oh Happy Day." The song was performed by the Edwin Hawkins Singers and was an unusual pop hit. Myers tells the story of a song that, over the years, has been an inspiration to him.

NPR's John Ydstie talks to Eric Lutz, a legislative assistant in Washington, D.C., for the latest edition of the feature "What Are You Listening To?" Lutz's selections include Brazilian pop and two styles of jazz.

Music critic Tom Moon has a review of the major-label debut from The Polyphonic Spree, Together We're Heavy. The band is a 26-member symphonic pop group from Dallas, Texas.