The first performance of our Hood to Hood 2013 broadcast is a special collaborative performance by Jon Russell, Damien Jurado, and Tomo Nakayama, all Seattle based singer-songrwriters. So far Jon Russell has played just one show as a solo musician, an acoustic show at Neumos, though he has been pla…
The National have shared Track 3 from the upcoming Trouble Will Find Me online. "Don't Swallow the Cap" is the second song they've shared from the new LP, along with "Demons", and it proves that loyal fans will be very happy with the new album. "Don't Swallow the Cap" is much more in the vein of …
Seattle songwriter Kris Orlowski has the honesty, voice, and soul needed in a great pop folk songwriter. Since the mid-2000s, Orlowski has been on the Seattle circuit building a reputation for the highest quality songwriting with an equally talented band that seems to understand every turn and moo…
Back in 2015, Conor Oberst stepped away from the Desaparecidos' tour due to "laryngitis, anxiety, and exhaustion." During his recuperation in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, he began to create the songs for last year's full-length, the acoustic LP Ruminations. (Earlier this year, he released the f…
Arcade Fire have been touring behind their latest album Everything Now, released earlier this summer. At some of those shows, including Lollapalooza, they've covered John Lennon's 1973 song "Mind Games." They've now done an official studio recording of the cover for the latest installment in the Sp…
In September, KEXP made our first journey out to Montreal, Quebec, to immerse ourselves in their vibrant and eclectic music scene during the 16th annual POP Montreal Music Festival. With the assistance of FACTOR, a fellow nonprofit that assists the growth and development of musicians across Canada,…
Thee Oh Sees have cycled through a number of name changes over the years, and a few just in the past couple months, but for their forthcoming album Memory Of A Cut Off Head the California band is circling back to their original name OCS. Today OCS shared a new song off the new album called "The Foo…
DJ Kevin Cole (aka Fire) and Online Content Manager Jim Beckmann (aka Ice) preview the 2013 Iceland Airwaves Music Festival with tracks from 18 Icelandic artists including múm, Snorri Helgasson, Retro Stefson, and Moses Hightower. 1. Grísalappalísa - Allt Má (Má Út) 2. Mono Town - Jackie O 3. Oy…
Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJ’s think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on The Mid…
Twenty years of Capitol Hill Block Party magic is bound to bring some surprises, and some of 2016's latest additions made for some of the best events of the day. New Jersey producer and DJ Clams Casino was announced as part of the bill only about a week before the action started on Friday. Meanwhil…
It's summer in Australia right now. Massive touring festivals like Big Day Out and Soundwave are consistently drawing 50,000+ crowds - in record heat, no less - but Tame Impala frontman Kevin Parker is 9,500 miles away from his native Perth in the midst of a sold-out winter tour of 1200-seater club…
Karla Chubb of the Irish garage-punk band SPRINTS talks with Emily Fox about the band's debut album, Letter To Self.
Inspiration can come anytime; Montreal experimental trio Big Brave can attest to that. Guitarist/vocalist Robin Wattie and guitarist Mathieu Bernard Ball began playing together in 2012 when they were roommates, Robin told us after their set. She played acoustic guitar and was working on writing son…
The rollout of new Arcade Fire begins! And it truly couldn't happen at a better time. Stream the single "I Give You Power" below, which features guest vocals from legendary vocalist and civil rights activist Mavis Staples. The track is a Tidal exclusive (a company Win Butler and Régine Chassagne a…
This Saturday, KEXP presents Reykjavik Calling, the sister city showcase featuring some of the best bands and artists emerging from Seattle and Reykjavik. It's our seventh year featuring this cross-cultural musical exploration, and one of the two acts traveling here from Iceland is long-time KEXP f…
Alvvays are due to release their highly-anticipated sophomore album, Antisocialites, on September 8 via Polyvinyl. Today they've shared the third single from the new album, "Plimsoll Punks." It follows the wistful tracks "In Undertow" and "Dreams Tonite." In a press release the band claims "Plimsol…
Say what you will about the Internet age, but this whole "global flow of instantly accessible information" thing definitely has its uses. A couple of which are pointed out by the conversation on the album cover for Hallelujah All the Way Home, the debut album by New Zealand band The Verlaines. For …
'90s/early 2000's dream pop outfit Luna have two new albums in the works, a covers album called A Sentimental Education and an instrumental EP called A Place of Greater Safety. Today they've shared a track from A Sentimental Education, a cover of Mink DeVille's "Let Me Dream If I Want To." They've …
It's been three years since the last record from The Drums, and a lot has changed for frontman Jonny Pierce. In that time, Jonny moved across the country twice, split up with his husband, and found himself without a bandmate as founding member Jacob Graham left the band to pursue other interests. J…
