As major labels continue to exist behind the times, artists and labels with little capital and lesser reputations are producing some of the most innovative, interesting, and inspiring music. Whether it’s creating a new niche in digital technology or looking to once obsolete formats, Agitated Atmosp…
As major labels continue to exist behind the times, artists and labels with little capital and lesser reputations are producing some of the most innovative, interesting, and inspiring music. Whether it’s creating a new niche in digital technology or looking to once obsolete formats, Agitated Atmosp…
If you really think about it, Sufjan Stevens has made a living for over 15 years now asking one simple question: what should I believe? On his debut, A Sun Came, belief was an overcrowded canvas, wet with word vomit and impossibly complex to navigate (much like all of our minds). For the two state …
As soon as word came out earlier this year that George Lewis Jr. had signed with Warner Brothers, there was one thing that was clear: Twin Shadow was getting bigger. Not just in the commercial sense - rather, all of the massive 80s indulgences explored on past records were now going to have the cei…
"Product of partition" - that's how Himanshu Suri, a.k.a. Heems, defines himself on Eat Pray Thug closer "Patriot Act". On that track, he talks about how growing up as a man of Indian descent in post-9/11 NYC was a nightmare. "From then on they called all of us Osama", he recalls towards the end, "…
In the last few years, there’s been a slew of English, (mostly) London-based bands emerging from basement gigs with world-beating ambitions and the musical elements to make good on them: a heavy dose of pop melody, a balance of snarky storytelling and heartfelt appeal, and most of all, hooks that a…
If you call yourself an Arcade Fire fan and have seen the band at least once in the live setting, there's a good chance that you need absolutely no introduction to Will Butler. When Arcade Fire skyrocketed to the moon amongst the Reflektor hype of 2013, it was clear that the one facet of their musi…
Truly, we can't do without you, Dan Snaith. With a discography 15 years deep and only getting sweeter with time, any chance to see Snaith in any venue under any of his monikers is an incredible blessing. In fact, I bet he could have sold just as many tickets throwing a DJ set as Daphni or even just…

In 2018, KEXP celebrated the 30th anniversary of local record label Sub Pop with a four-month retrospective, "counting up" every catalog number in their vast discography of over 1,200 releases. Dig into the archives of our catalog coverage, featuring in-depth coverage on the history of their releases.