The title for their latest album, Adios I’m a Ghost, fits The Moondoggies aptly – for, who are they, exactly? Always somehow be-shadowed, always off to the side somewhere, always somehow physically obscured. Upon listening, this is the sense they exude. In fact, lead singer Kevin Murphy noted of th…
This week, KEXP is broadcasting for the third year in a row, during Iceland Airwaves Music Festival. Starting this morning at 6AM, and running through Friday, November 1, we're bringing you five bands a day performing live at KEX Hostel in Reykjavik, including Emilíana Torrini, Moses Hightower, Pet…
Although it might shift to include Sasquatch and Governor’s Ball next year, there are essentially four music festivals that form the festival season narrative in 2013. Typically, Coachella sets the bar for the rest of the year in April, Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza try and outdo it through sheer size …
Robert Glasper was exposed to music at a young age. His mother brought him as a boy out to her jazz and blues gigs, and he also learned much about music in church, where he began to sing and mix gospel and jazz harmonies. Since those humble but enriching beginnings, Glasper has built a strong caree…
At last year's Decibel Festival, as part of the Optical series, there was a live scoring to an incredibly absurdly spliced film from the 70s, unfortunately missing this year. Luckily, Optical 4 made up for it, featuring the doom electro-acoustics of London duo Raime, the terrifying ambient textures…
Having worked with artists like Q-Tip, Kanye West and J. Dilla, it’s safe to say that Texan jazz pianist and producer Robert Glasper is well connected. His quartet, the Robert Glasper Experiment, includes three talented and multi-influenced musicians; bassist Derrick Hodge, Casey Benjamin on vocode…
When Sweden's Shout Out Louds came onstage for their 6:50 p.m. show at Sasquatch Music Festival this year, the weather started to shift from sunny skies to cloudy weather, but where most bands would thrive in a warm-natured festival environment, Shout Out Louds' melancholy pop benefitted from the o…
2013 has been a good year for guitarists. Chelsea Light Moving's Thurston Moore, Savages' Gemma Thompson, My Bloody Valentine's Kevin Shields, Marnie Stern, and Mikal Cronin have spent the year reminding listeners why the six-stringed instrument remains rock's weapon of choice. Playing with the pro…
Noise for the Needy, a music festival that raises money for Seattle charities through a variety of shows and events, will culminate in June with performances at the Conor Byrne Pub, the Sunset Tavern, Hattie's Hat and the Tractor Tavern June 20 - 23 in Ballard. Two artists featured in this year's p…
If you saw them on the street, it's very possible that you'd mistake Black Rebel Motorcycle Club for, well, members of an actual motorcycle gang. Bassist Robert Levon Been and guitarist Peter Hayes have been playing together since high school (drummer Leah Shapiro has been with them since 2007), an…
Last month, KEXP, STG, and Starbucks hosted the 5th edition of the Little Big Show at the Neptune Theater to benefit Youth In Focus, an after-school program that gives students an opportunity to develop positive identity, social skills, and voice through intensive photography training. The Walkmen…
From the big stadium to the intimate studio, British group Bloc Party, who made a name for themselves with a big Brit Pop influenced guitar sound, recently stopped by KEXP to strip down their sound to bare essentials. What makes this acoustic session even more special and rare is the band's continu…
If it seems like everyone is reuniting lately, it's true, because now The Postal Service is back with a show and a re-release. Today we found out that not only will the band be releasing the Deluxe Tenth Anniversary Edition of Give Up on Sub Pop featuring two new tracks, "Turn Around" and "A Tatter…
Every Shabazz Palaces record feels like a transmission from a far-off planet. In 2017, the Seattle hip-hop duo took this aesthetic a step further with two records -- Quazarz: Born on a Gangster Star and Quazarz vs. The Jealous Machines. The albums collectively chronicle the story of an alien sent t…
After 10 amazing years at KEXP, DJ El Toro is moving to Tucson, AZ next month. In his final “Music That Matters” podcast, you'll hear some of his favorite new songs, with special emphasis on punk and no wave veterans (Jah Wobble, Alice Bag, James Chance) who continue to innovate and instigate…
It's the quintessential story of grunge, or at least how we've come to know the Seattle music scene of the '80s and '90s. It involves friends, music, an isolated region, heroin, grief and rampant commercialism. It's the story of talent lost too soon before its time, and of the musicians who gathere…
"We're here for a rock n roll good time", Ryan Devlin chuckles as Hounds of the Wild Hunt finish another total jam. He points to the Tractor Tavern door. "If you aren't here for a rock n roll good time, you best just turn right around." Tonight, the Hounds open up for the infamous Nashville rock ba…
Shlohmo is one fearless dude. If there is anyone else left in the room doubting that at this point, I really think they need to come forward if for nothing else than to just have a talk. Last year, Henry Laufer dropped an EP with R&B god Jeremih on his own record label, WEDIDIT, and shared a st…
It should be no surprise that several of the artists topping this week's list of new releases were making appearances at SXSW last week, but two of them were also previewing their new songs live on KEXP during our broadcast from Mellow Johnny's Bike Shop. Billy Bragg and Palma Violets both gave mem…
Today's Song of the Day, as chosen by Kevin Cole, host of Drive Time on KEXP, is " Taped in Front of a Live Studio Audience" by Damien Jurado, from the 2022 album Reggae Film Star on Maraqopa.
