You would think by this time in the run of this series I would have covered every "seminal" band worth getting your '80s-college-radio-DJ hackles up about. And yet, here we are in 2017 and this is the first time we've discussed The Velvet Underground. Of course this makes a lot of sense, since all …
Warhol would've been proud. Although the wigged genius fostered relative grumps like the Velvet Underground as his house band, his own art was often considered just this side, if not over the line, of parody. Warhol was both revered and despised for presenting such common items as soup cans or doll…
When frontman Dean Wareham sings, "don't know why I can't stop smiling," he echoes the thoughts of thousands of Luna fans grateful to have the band back together after a decade apart. The beloved New York (well, now L.A.) band called it quits in 2004, but with Captured Tracks reissuing their first …
Considering the early 80's were the heyday of The Dream Syndicate, you're forgiven if, like the song says, you're "just trying to remember the days of wine and roses". As leaders of the so-called Paisley Underground, the LA band carried the sounds of the previous decade, particularly of The Velvet …
Although best known as the lead singer behind seminal Pacific Northwest bands Death Cab For Cutie and The Postal Service, Ben Gibbard also possesses a deep record collection, spurred by his passion for timeless pop and Krautrock gems that date back to the 60s. Expertly curating a 17-song all-vinyl …
With the fate of Sonic Youth up in the air, founding guitarist Lee Ranaldo has found steady ground with his group, The Dust. Backed by fellow SY orphan Steve Shelley on drums, along with guitarist Alan Licht and bassist Tim Lüntzel, Ranaldo's tenth album, Last Night on Earth, is his most collaborat…
If drama is the key to art, then look no further than Austin band The Black Angels. The group is a collection of eerie organs, guitar riffs and vocals that, when combined, sound like a mash-up of Tame Impala, Jefferson Airplane, The Doors and DJ Shadow. Their recent live set at The Triple Door was …
Minneapolis' ubiquitous underground hip hop figure P.O.S has a long list of credentials: guitarist for Building Better Bombs, vocalist and keyboard player for Marijuana Deathsquads, member of well-populated supergroup Gayngs, and a founding member of the Doomtree collective. All of these were runni…
From their very first single, "Found Love in a Graveyard," London by way of Glasgow band Veronica Falls set the tone of their future releases: their sunny take on gloomy topics makes for happy listening in the darkened Northwest, that's for sure. Their 2011 self-titled debut channeled everyone from…
Perhaps you have seen the mysterious graffiti painted on the ground around the city. What looks a bit like random letters in a circle is actually Arcade Fire's underground press for their upcoming album Reflektor - and today they released another piece of the puzzle. In a short film we see the band…
Summing a two-song barrage in the KEXP studio by New Zealand's Salad Boys, DJ Kevin Cole exclaimed that they sound like "the best of The Feelies, Velvet Underground and Yo La Tengo in one song". While they certainly make a lovable racket channeling those and other legendary bands from their hometow…
Yesterday VanFest announced the lineup for their 7th iteration this summer, August 19th. If you've never heard of the scrappy DIY fest with the heart of gold then you'd be forgiven since the fest takes place deep in the woods of Maple Valley but you should start paying attention because this tiny f…
The Juan MacLean is the stage name of talented electronic musician and DJ John MacLean. While his roots trace back to post-hardcore Sub Pop band Six Finger Satellite in the first half of the 1990s, he's been a force on the revered DFA Records label for over a decade with three critically-acclaimed …
It’s a rare opportunity to see a band as hyped as Whitney at a venue as intimate as the Sunset Tavern. Or as frontman Julien Ehrlich noted with an off-the-cuff affect he deploys for most his on stage thoughts, “This show’s been sold out a long time.” No surprise there. With the June release of thei…
Every year that Capitol Hill Block Party returns, I can't wait to be uncomfortable with a bunch of sweaty people in the red-lit basement that is Cha Cha Lounge. That's not sarcasm. This year's lineup boasts some incredible headliners like Run The Jewels, Angel Olsen, Thundercat, Wolf Parade, and mo…
This Friday, KEXP, Seattle Center and No Depression are teaming up to bring you an excellent line up for the first of August's Concerts at the Mural! Take advantage of this unique opportunity to discover your new favorite band or enjoy independent artists you already love for FREE! If that's not en…
Listening to The Long Ryders for the first time, it's not clear to me that they should have been lumped in with the Paisley Underground bands of the '80s (covered previously in this Rain Parade post). They definitely had '60s influences, but as far as I can tell they were much more a country-rock b…
Portland band Radiation City have come a long way since their cassette-exclusive underground releases, tapes that quickly earned praise for their vintage stylings, pleasant dream-pop explosions over 60's harmonies and sways, synth parts that sound like what people thought 1984 would sound like befo…
British outfit The Big Pink burst on the scene with their 2009 debut album, A Brief History Of Love, for 4AD, propelled by the massive pop single Dominos that showcased their widescreen fusion of rock, pop, and electronic styles. The band recently released their new EP, Empire Underground, signalin…
Suuns are riding high this year following the release of their second full-length Images Du Futur, and when they showed up to play at KEXP's broadcast in Mellow Johnny's Bike Shop at SXSW the crowd got to see the band burn with confidence through a set of powerful, propulsive post-rock. Suuns alwa…
