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Blaudzun: NPR Front Row

The Dutch band Blaudzun had its work cut out for it at the SXSW Music Festival, as it somehow wound up opening for a March 15 showcase of Turkish music. But Blaudzun's songs are so undeniably infectious that, by the time the band played "Elephants" — the song featured in this Front Row video — the folks at Austin, Texas' Cedar Street Courtyard were singing and dancing to music they'd never heard before.

Blaudzun, featuring singer-songwriter Johannes Sigmond and a rotating cast of friends, recently released its third album, Heavy Flowers. Recorded at Sigmond's home studio in Amsterdam, with additional sessions around the Netherlands and Barcelona, it's full of jubilant, beautiful music.

Credits

Producers: Saidah Blount, Bob Boilen, Mito Habe-Evans, Amy Schriefer; Assistant Producer and Editor: Denise DeBelius; Videographers: Mito Habe-Evans, Katie Hayes Luke; Audio Engineers: Josh Rogosin, Kevin Wait; Special Thanks To South by Southwest, Cedar Street Courtyard, Drom, the Turkish Consulate of the United States

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

In 1988, a determined Bob Boilen started showing up on NPR's doorstep every day, looking for a way to contribute his skills in music and broadcasting to the network. His persistence paid off, and within a few weeks he was hired, on a temporary basis, to work for All Things Considered. Less than a year later, Boilen was directing the show and continued to do so for the next 18 years.