As we look back on 25 years of Nirvana's Nevermind, we have to acknowledge how even their music videos became influential. Former MTV Programming employee Amy Finnerty has said the clip for "Smells Like Teen Spirit" in particular "changed the entire look of MTV." From anarchist cheerleaders to a sp…
A founding member and leader of seminal British indie rock band The Wedding Present, David Gedge and his music have long been championed on alternative radio, from the late, legendary BBC DJ John Peel in their early years to steady support from KEXP over the past two decades also with his band Cine…
Yes, it’s about to occur again: The Experience Music Project’s Pop Conference, where the best minds of our music journalist generation melt into a whorl of theory, debate, fussy details, bold assertions, bizarre reveals, and loving feels. Papers are given by salty academics, biz workers, scribe-ner…
"Nine Inch Numan" -- it was a comment left on the KEXP Facebook page, and echoed among the audience from our Bumbershoot Music Lounge session. Who knew synthpop pioneer Gary Numan had taken such a darker, more industrial turn in his later career! Even his 1979 new wave hit "Cars" took on a harder…
You can follow Father John Misty on his recent tour in the whimsically lovely video for "I'm Writing a Novel". Despite his rampant cynicism, the video catches him off guard in several moments. Both giving and watching performances aboard the SS Coachella, or perhaps playing dress up with french cos…
The National has finally officially released "Demons" - a track from their upcoming album Trouble Will Find Me. Where the album artwork suggests a kind of duality of the self - a girls head looks at itself in a mirror - the song is similarly moody and heavy like much of their previous material. "I …
Even though the clouds are moving in, it's always beautiful blue skies with all the great music on KEXP! 1. Cloud Cult - No Hell 2. Mercury Rev - The Queen of Swans 3. Natasha Kmeto - Grind (Feat. Tunde Adebimpe) 4. John Grant - Down Here 5. Low - No Comprende 6. Ought - Beautiful Blue Sky 7. Ma…
"Put up your fists and your guns one time right now", Killer Mike yelled over the Showbox crowd. Across the room, hands went up mimicking the cover art from the self-titled debut from Run The Jewels. Mike nodded in stoic approval. "This is hands down the best tag team the world's got going right no…
A quick glance at the stage set up for Sunday evening’s show might’ve tipped one off as to the type of music they’d hear for the night. With no drums, no amps, and mostly classical instruments surrounding chairs and music stands neatly arranged in a semi circle across the stage, a rock show was cle…
Detroit synth punk rockers ADULT. played third during day one of the 2013 Treasure Island Music Festival. Their industrial, crunching melodies blistered under the hot sun, as San Francisco’s infamous “Indian Summer” kept festival goers warm even in mid-October. Frontwoman Nicola Kuperos poked fun a…
Late last month, Colin Meloy of The Decemberists took to the streets of Brooklyn to announce the Portland band's new album, What A Terrible World, What A Beautiful World, will be out January 20th on Capitol Records. Today, we've got the studio version of the track "Make You Better" to share, and i…
Like their oddly elastic new album title, Nabuma Rubberband, Little Dragon continues to stretch the limits of electronic music with their eclectic influences. This time, the Swedish group trades the pumping beats of their earlier LPs for glimmering Janet Jackson-inspired slow jams. But even their m…
Fellow musicians have been taking the Warpaint single "New Song" and making it into an even newer song. Check out remixes below from Mike D of the Beastie Boys and Jono Ma of Jagwar Ma. Each artist definitely puts their own stamp on it. The original can be found on the LP Heads Up, out now on Roug…
Last night, ahead of their Bonnaroo appearance, Pearl Jam made a surprise stop in Nashville to perform at Jack White's Third Man venue. They played an eight-song set and White even joined them onstage during their "Off the Earth" encore. No live video has surfaced...yet. But the performance was re…
From smaller clubs like The Crocodile and the Tractor Tavern to the luxurious concert venue of Benaroya Hall. "This is quite a step up from where we started in Seattle," joked Nick Urata, frontman for DeVotchKa, as he stared out at the expansive room, seemingly sold out from floor to third tier bal…
The end of the year is the slowest time for most bands to release any music, Radiohead has never been "most bands". On Christmas day, the group, who'd been quiet for a while (hopefully hunkering down on a new album), surprised fans by releasing a song they wrote this year, intended it as the theme …
August is here, and you know what that means - KEXP & Seattle Center are teaming up again for the 8th annual Concerts at the Mural series! Join us on the Mural Amphitheatre lawn for four Friday evenings this August and enjoy this year's eclectic blend of concerts, which are sure to start your w…
Christopher Owens is in love with himself. Chrissybaby Forever, his third solo album, finds the former Girls frontman getting back to basics by writing and recording almost entirely alone. Aided by engineer J.J. Wiesler, Owens performed all instruments, only calling in a few friends for backups. As…
Album, schmalbum. Modest Mouse fans have been waiting for news on a follow-up to the band's 2007 breakout, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, and instead the humble rodents have announced a cross-country tour! Sure, why not. Chances are, attendees will hear some new material in the set list; …
Daft Punk's new video for Random Access Memories track "Instant Crush" shows that even inanimate object can have their own tragic love story. A museum mannequin was sculpted into Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas likeness by Tony Gardener, the makeup artist behind Michael Jackson's "Thriller." […
