Chalk it up to: You'll never see that again. Last week, Mercury Prize winners and KEXP fan-favorites Alt-J performed their headlining Seattle debut at the Crocodile, a venue whose size they've long outgrown. While previously they opened for Grouplove at the Moore (and I'd say at least half the full…
Before they headlined our fourth Little Big Show at the Neptune, Swedish duo First Aid Kit stopped by our studio to chat with Stevie Zoom about Bright Eyes, the Polar Music Prize, and their remarkable harmonies. Klara and Johanna Söderberg made a great first impression with their cover of Fleet Fox…
Touring heavy records is hard. In today’s day and age, heavy-handed works of staggering genius are hardly appreciated in the album form, let alone trying to communicate that weight in a crowded room facing a loaded bar. But in these heavy times, there are those who brave the difficulties and make i…
Congrats is one of the most aptly titled records to come out in the past few years. Truly, Toronto electronic band Holy Fuck face a very welcome return to the scene with this year's record. Given the strength of the band's discography and the influence they've held on the Toronto electronic scene, …
Sometimes, you don't know how good you have it in Seattle. Just last month, Sheffield garage rock duo Drenge packed the John Peel stage tent so full at Glastonbury that you'd have to fight your way through about 10,000 bodies to get even a reasonable view of the band. This past Monday, you could ca…
All of my music nerd friends are in trouble. How is that I've lived on this earth over 40 years - during which period Garland Jeffreys has released 12 of his 14 solo albums to date (with number 15 due this spring) - and the first I heard of this guy is when I pulled this record off the shelf to tak…
We've finally got a release date to announce for the new Run the Jewels! The highly-anticipated RTJ3 hits the internet as a free download on January 13th, with physical copies to follow, same day in North America and January 20th everywhere else. Special guests include Kamasi Washington (who, inci…
Throughout Band of Horses' intimate semi-acoustic set at the KEXP Gathering Space, frontman Ben Bridwell repeatedly mentioned that the group's origins were only a few blocks away in a rehearsal space. "This is one of the first songs I wrote for Band of Horses, and I wrote it right down the street i…
Berlin-trio Moderat, featuring the combined forces of the German electronic projects Apparat and Modeselektor, stopped by KEXP's studio to showcase a few of their new bangers from their 2016 release, III. The "bored-with-current electronic-music-back-in-the-day" musicians put out a quick caveat tha…
When Beth Orton stepped onstage at the Triple Door on a Thursday night, it was a night of great change for the Norfolk singer. Bathed in a gauzy lighting display seemingly pulled straight from an Animal Collective production, Orton acknowledged that it was a quite significant night for her: "My cou…
A Four Tet remix has long been a universally accepted stamp of approval and new music from the beatsmith is always met with a rare intensity of excitement. And while new music and mixes from Kieran Hebden’s project are always a cause for celebration, his live sets are surely the best way to experie…
So, last night, Radiohead mysteriously disappeared from the internet... Their website is blank, and their Facebook fan page is an empty page with no avatar or banner. Over on Twitter, the main Radiohead account now reads "@radiohead hasn't tweeted yet," and frontman Thom Yorke's personal account h…
Ben Harper has defined the sweet spot between reggae and American folk for over two decades now. It's hard for an artist to survive that long while maintaining relevance and staying true to the original sound that hooked listeners long ago while evolving and while shifting and growing - but after r…
Sylvan Esso was one of 2014's biggest and most unlikely sleeper successes, and now the left-turn electronic side project from two North Carolina folk veterans has entered 2015 as one of festival season's can't miss midcard staples, and it's clear to see why. Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn's spartan …
Toronto’s BADBADNOTGOOD’s first headlining show in Seattle proved that they have come a long way from their viral-video rap-cover roots, as the three-piece made some serious noise tearing through several familiar covers and even more originals from their debut album, III. With only a drum kit, elec…
Tune in this Saturday, September 13th for another special all-electronic edition of Audioasis as KEXP and the city of Seattle gears up for this year's Decibel Festival happening September 24th through September 28th. Hosted by DJ Alex and co-produced with the help and guidance of Audioasis host DJ …
We've packed the house at Kex Hostel during our broadcasts during Iceland Airwaves over the last few years, but no session was filled with as many fervent Icelandic fans as the performance by Emilíana Torrini. The Iceland native (her father is Italian, if you're wondering about her name) grew up in…
We were already honored to have legendary musician John Doe of punk pioneers X joining us in the KEXP studio, so you can't imagine our surprise when he walked in with the also-legendary Mike McCready of Pearl Jam. Doe's musical partner Exene Cervenka caught a cold during the Seattle stop for the ba…
