Justin Vernon had a pretty ridiculously awesome 2011. It was the year he dropped his self-titled second LP as Bon Iver, receiving widespread critical acclaim, a Grammy, and securing his place in the indie rock spotlight for as long as he wanted. Among plenty of others, his work as Bon Iver garnered…
“Hey Joe, sorry to hurt you, but they say love is a virtue, don’t they?” On The National’s new single “Sea of Love”, this quiet apology to a friend is a battle cry for affirmation of love. At this point, The National are indie rock legends, and themes of terrible love and trying relationship are no…
I Dreamed I Was A Very Clean Tramp is exactly the succulently-written, shit-talking, salty dog memoir you’d want from the man who dreamed and ignited punk. Richard Hell was a fun-loving little Kentucky cowboy as a kid, loving TV, growing up with peak period 60s Stones and Dylan LPs, dreaming of tak…
The album cover for Minnesota rapper Brother Ali's 2012 LP, Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color, features the Muslim artist praying towards Mecca and kneeling on an American flag as his prayer rug. The image encapsulates much of the spirit which Brother Ali has staked his career on. Brother…
Today's Song of the Day, as chosen by Cheryl Waters, host of the Midday Show on KEXP, is "Contentment" by RUB, a 2023 single on RUB Sounds.
Every Little Big Show can't help themselves but get better and better each sold out night, which gives the Mitski, Kadhja Bonet, and Mal Devisa Little Big Show #18 coming up next on April 8 a great head start. What is equally great is the partnership between Starbucks, STG, and KEXP to make these p…
A lot has happened in the five years since Yoni Wolf (of WHY? fame) and Chicago rapper Serengeti last collaborated. That last time was on Serengeti's statement of an LP Family & Friends, produced entirely by Wolf and Owen Ashworth (of Advance Base and Casiotune for the Painfully Alone). Between…
It feels like a long time since we last saw Animal Collective, not because three and a half years is an egregiously long time to wait for a new album, but because so much has happened since then, both within the Collective and out of it. Centipede Hz came out in September of 2012, an album which, i…
Maybe it's just me, but there seems to be a phenomenally awesome trend happening right now where dance bands are accompanying thumping tracks with a lyrical message of higher understanding and deeper self-knowing. Last fall, Cut Copy gave us Free Your Mind, a record musically inspired by rave cultu…
I don't know about you, but I feel like it's been a long time coming for Phantogram. Maybe that's just because the New York two piece has found a way to write songs that stick with you and make a deeper, lasting impact on the heart and mind than their counterparts. Or, maybe they've just spent thei…
Donald Glover has done a lot of thinking in the past two years. “That Camp was a million years ago, sing me a different song” he raps on the closer of his new record Because the Internet. The referenced 2011 studio album debut does feel like forever ago now. After self-releasing three albums and th…
London post-punk band White Lies have never done anything small. Upon transitioning from their old band Fear of Flying to new, more epic material in 2007, this UK three piece has only pushed for bigger and better as time has gone on. Their 2009 debut To Lose My Life… showcased their unique take on …
UK electronic chameleon Zomby is one of those few artists from whom we've only seen improvement since his beginnings. Back in 2008, Zomby's full-length debut came in the form of Where Were You in '92?, an over the top, muddy 90s rave soundtrack that played excellent tribute to the scene of days pas…
