Live In Concert from NPR's All Songs Considered Folgen

David Wax Museum knows how to make the most of an opportunity. The talented Boston roots-folk band won its spot on a Newport Folk Festival stage after winning a contest, then spent the first day of the festival courting fans cheerfully but aggressively. By the time its set was half over -- after it had passed around its mailing list and hawked its line of hats -- the group had gathered a fairly enormous crowd, which it proceeded to win over in an increasingly big way. Before its set was over, the full band had congregated in the middle of the crowd to perform without amplification; judging by the deafening roar that followed, David Wax Museum won't need to enter contests much longer.

When Nickel Creek broke up in 2006, it was only a matter of time before the massively popular bluegrass band would spin off into new projects. Among the most prominent is singer-mandolinist Chris Thile's creatively ambitious Punch Brothers, whose recordings have already included a 40-minute suite called "The Blind Leaving the Blind." Less than two months after performing at Bonnaroo, Thile and Punch Brothers are hitting the Newport Folk Festival in Newport, R.I., wielding new songs from an album titled 'Antifogmatic.'

One of the most self-assured stage performers in the business, Sharon Jones commands her audience's attention for every second of her hard-hitting concerts. For proof, look no further than her remarkable performance at NPR Music's SXSW showcase in Austin, Texas, this past March: Even if she didn't have the brilliant Dap-Kings horn section backing her blazing throwback soul songs, she'd have dominated. Jones performed music from this year's polished 'I Learned the Hard Way' when she takes the Newport Folk Festival stage in Newport, R.I.