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Filtering classic rock and pop through a lo-fi slacker aesthetic that recalls Pavement or Guided by Voices, Philadelphia's Dr. Dog sounds both timeless and immediate. Its new album, Shame, Shame, came out this week, so the group should be in a celebratory mood for this appearance. Hear Dr. Dog perform live in concert from WXPN in Philadelphia.

A VHF radio scoundrel dubbed "The Filipino Monkey" might have been the source of a grim warning to a U.S. navy warship during last week's confrontation with Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. officials aren't sure where the voice came from, but the phenomenon of "The Filipino Monkey" has been around for decades.

Commentator Fred Grandy says that moderates have lost their voice in the Republican Party. Grandy, a former Republican Congressman from Iowa and the current President and CEO of Goodwill Industries, wonders why moderate Republicans have decided to lie low at this year's GOP convention. He suggests that a few party moderates are lingering in the shadows, regrouping and planning their return.

Jacki talks to Rolling Stone editor Anthony DeCurtis about the new CD by Throwing Muses, "University." DeCurtis says that Throwing Muses was a precursor to the group of young bands led by women that have recently become popular. There are a lot of nonnarrative lyrics in the songs by the bandleader, Kristin Hersh, who uses the voices of her children and the ocean in some of the compositions.

NPR's Richard Gonzales reports on a pirate radio station in Berkeley, California that has provoked the ire of government regulators who want to shut down the low-power station for operating without a license. But, pirate radio operators say their voice is crucial to the democratic process and promise to continue broadcasting despite government efforts to close them down.

Commentator Ralph Schoenstein says the wave of computerized toys aimed at children this summer will give them acute digital delirium. Active children, says Schoenstein, will be replaced by interactive ones. Toys will feature computerized voices. And kids three-years and older will be able to send and receive e-mail thanks to hand-held comunications devices marketed to them.

NPR's Linda Gradstein and Eric Weiner each report on some voices of grief from the Middle East. The families of an Israeli solider and a Palestinian policeman killed last week in four days of armed clashes speak about the sad realities of what happens when the peace process... which they had hoped would supplant hatred... breaks down.

Ted Clark reports that after a meeting between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and President Clinton today both leaders expressed the hope that Israel would not abandon the peace process begun with the historic Oslo accords. But they also voiced concern about the impact on that peace process of reported plans by Israel to build two new highways into the occupied West Bank.

Host Lisa Simeone learns about a new computer program which can help to identify mystery musicians on old recordings. Tom Smith and Gary Westbrook teach at Pfeiffer University in North Carolina and explain how software similar to voice recognition technology can isolate the tone of a particular musician and help determine his or her identity.

Lynn talks to songwriter Dan Masse and singer Sally Ellyson of the band Hem. Their debut CD is called Rabbit Songs. The music is a mixture of many American styles, from folk to Aaron Copland classical. Dan and Sally came together almost by accident, but their musical sensibilities are so close that Dan now writes music with Sally's voice in mind.

"Rise" begins gently, light on the beats, before revealing its true colors. With each verse, producer XXXchange tosses in more electronic elements as the track escalates into electro-rock cacophony. Kele Okereke's vocals aren't lost in the mayhem, though. He keeps up with the pace of the instrumentation, slowly relinquishing control of his voice in the flurry of sound.

Outrageously sexy, multi-talented entertainer Eartha Kitt has been igniting crowds for more than half of a century. Kitt turns 78 years old this January, but still has that legendary velvet purr to her voice. Kitt recently sat for a chat with reporter Allison Keyes about her latest project — a stage play called Expectations.

Singer/songwriter Neko Case possesses one of the most distinctive voices in modern music. Some writers are already predicting that her latest, Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, will end up one of the year's best. In a recent interview, Neko Case sang, played her guitar and spoke about her music with music journalist Ashley Kahn.

NPR's Michele Kelemen reports on the significance of the latest audiotape message from Osama bin Laden. U.S. experts believe it was the voice of Bin Laden on the Arabic language tape which aired yesterday on the al Jazeera television network. Until now, some experts had believed the al Qaeda leader was killed by U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

Singer and pianist Bobby Short has one of the most distinctive voices in the music world, and for 37 years he's been holding court in one of the most distinctive jazz venues around — the Cafe Carlyle in Manhattan. Now 80 years old, he's still going strong, and talks to NPR's Tavis Smiley about his long career.

Arthur's music is driven by simple melodies and soaring vocal harmonies. Each song has its own driving force — a wistful backup groove, a driving guitar riff or Arthur's own mournful voice. His music sounds heavily influenced by R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe and Coldplay's Chris Martin, but the inspiration may not be one-sided.

Tony Bennett got his break when Bob Hope saw him performing with Pearl Bailey and put him in his stage show. This native of Queens had mega-hits in the 1950s and '60s as a crooner. Teamed with famed jazz pianist Bill Evans in this album, Bennett shows off his inventive, interpretive voice.

Making eiderdown-plush folk-pop songs buoyed by sweet harmonies, the Norwegian duo takes a surprisingly bold political stance on its recent album Declaration of Dependence. As its members' voices met in perfect confluence at WFUV, accompanied only by acoustic guitar, those in Studio-A quickly went from casual fans to happy acolytes.

The organ lays down a slow and sanctified groove, as if a hymn is about to begin, but then a driving drummer speeds up the pace. The organ sings out and a percussive, bluesy piano elbows in. Dr. John is messing with our minds, sliding from church to boudoir as his charmingly grizzled voice describes how his lover has had a "Change of Heart."

Guest host Sheilah Kast speaks with singer Petra Haden , who has two new projects: "Petra Haden and Bill Frisell" (Sovereign Artists Records), a collection of standards played by the virtuoso guitarist, and "Petra Haden Sings: The Who Sell Out" (Bar/None Records) in which she recreates the Who's music entirely with her voice.