PHOTO BY MORGEN SCHULER (VIEW SET)
This week, we are featuring Christmas-themed songs selected by Brian Foss, host of Sonic Reducer, KEXP's punk show. Brian has been doing a punk rock Christmas special every year since 2004, and has been a Christmas Day on-air DJ since 2012. No standards are played, only original songs, most with a humorous bent. Hear him this holiday season from Noon to 6:00 PM on Monday, December 25th, and get even more seasonal songs on his 13th annual Punk Rock Christmas show on Sonic Reducer, Saturday, December 23rd.
Brian's pick for today is "New Christmas Hymn" by The Minus 5, from the 2017 album Dear December on Yep Roc Records.
Says Brian...
I moved to Seattle in 1988 and first became aware of Scott McCaughey from his singles review column in The Rocket, and his killer booking skills at the original Crocodile Cafe, and it was only later I started buying Young Fresh Fellows records. He recently suffered a stroke, so my Christmas wish is for Scott to get better! Because this is America, folks are raising money online to help him recover -- for more info, check out his GoFundMe page.
Not only can you help Scott via GoFundMe, you can also "Help The Hoople" by attending a two-night star-studded benefit concert in Portland. Tickets just went on sale last Friday, and (no surprise) are moving quickly. 100% of the money raised will go to Scott to help out with medical and rehabilitation expenses.
On Friday, January 5th, the all-star line-up at the Star Theatre includes Alejandro Escovedo, M. Ward, James Mercer of The Shins, Justin Townes Earle, Patterson Hood and The Decemberists’ Chris Funk, Jerry Joseph, Mike Coykendall, Fernando, Count Kellam and a band made up of Sleater-Kinney’s Corin Tucker and Janet Weiss and R.E.M.’s Peter Buck and Mike Mills. On Saturday, January 6th, the show moves to the Wonder Ballroom with guests The Decemberists, James Mercer of The Shins, Casey Neill, Dharma Bums, and the return of the Sleater-Kinney/R.E.M. supergroup, this time featuring Kurt Bloch of Young Fresh Fellows.
Most of the musicians performing at the benefit happen to be in a side project with Scott called Filthy Friends. Watch that impressive line-up perform in the KEXP studio back in September during the Bumbershoot Music & Arts Festival.
Finding good new music can be a full time job, so let KEXP help! In Our Headphones brings you five song recommendations every Monday, straight from KEXP’s DJs and Music Directors. Join hosts Janice Headley and Isabel Khalili on this never-ending journey of music discovery.
Host Emily Fox and KEXP’s editorial team talk with artists about the stories behind their songs and the experiences that inform their work. Through each conversation, we uncover the humanity behind the music, allowing us to hear it in a whole new way.
