"With the challenges in our lives, sometimes you have to go in order to truly blossom." That's the theme behind Industrial Revelation's "No Way Out But In", but it could really apply to the musically adventurous Seattle jazz outfit's entire ethos. Their energetic, unpredictable…
Against Me! have always operated with as much self-awareness as they have articulate, external fury, and their latest album, 2016's Shape Shift With Me, continues the more introspective-leaning trend that Laura Jane Grace began on her 2014 opus Transgender Dysphoria Blues. But that hardly mea…
When DJ Sharlese asks MASZER frontman STITCX about growing up in Tel Aviv, he immediately, enthusiastically replies "Born and raised!" As the Israeli musician points out, however, there's musical influences from all over the globe that go into the Seattle-based group's roaring, percussiv…
CHVRCHES' synth-powered anthems took the Glaswegian trio from basement Soundcloud phenoms to festival-conquering stars in the span of about 18 months, so it's to their credit that they withstood that rapid rise and channeled that velocity into their catchier, denser, and overall sharper …
Even though there was no explicit goal in mind when Jayhawks frontman Gary Louris started work on the songs that would eventually make up the Minneapolis group's ninth album, Paging Mr. Proust, he ended up with a set of songs that rank among the band's most gorgeous tracks. In their la…
For a glorious sixteen minutes, Boss Hog's garage rock fever barely stays on its rails, with Jon Spencer's guitar twisting and turning at every whiplashed step. Touring behind their first music in 16 years (this year's Brood Star EP), Spencer, frontwoman Cristina Martinez, and the rest of the band…
"Bedrooms and bars... and the road" – that's where the stories that make up Kyle Craft's debut album come from, to quote the Louisiana-born, Portland, Oregon-based musician. With the help of his five-piece band, Craft's singular wail underscores the glammy, melodic edges of the son…
One of the most prominent Romani language singers of all time, Esma Redžepova's half century-plus career has seen the Skopje, Macedonia singer preserve and promote Roma culture to a global audience with her music and humanitarian efforts. Backed by the colorful rhythms of Folk Masters, "The Q…
Peaches stepped away from making albums for a few years to "get her ya-ya's out" – specifically a documentary, a role in an opera, and a one-woman version of "Jesus Christ Superstar" – but she returned in 2015 as vital as ever. After spending a year crafting her sixth LP "…
We've got new music to share from the hardest-working slacker in the biz: listen to two new tracks from Mac DeMarco below, "This Old Dog" and "My Old Man" off his upcoming release This Old Dog. The album was written before a cross-country move to Los Angeles. In a press release, DeMarco shares, "I…
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 DJs think you should hear. Today’s song, selected by Midday S…
Seven years after their last record, Canadian band Wolf Parade are back with a new full-length record. Called Cry Cry Cry, the album follows 2010's Expo 86 and last year's EP entitled EP 4. They've shared with us the first single off the album, "Valley Boy." The band is made up of Spencer Krug (Moo…
Dauwd is the alias of Dauwd Al Hilali, a US-born, UK-raised, Berlin-based electronic producer who has provided a steady supply of stellar tech-house grooves over the past six years, releasing high-quality EPs for Pictures Music, Ghostly International, and Berlin's renowned Kompakt Records along the…
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 Aft…
Is there any band that has defined the sounds of early 80s like New Order? From the post-punk roots of "Ceremony" to "Age of Consent", and the new-wave brilliance of "Blue Monday" to "The Perfect Kiss", New Order are the figurehead of an era. They extended their reign through 1993's Republic, where…
Dan Deacon has one dynamic range: massive. Loud, soft, euphoric, cacophonous, it doesn't matter - what Dan Deacon does is at full blast, whatever the knob at hand may be. There are intimidating levels of passion and conviction in every second of his recordings, with or without any vocals attached. …
