If Killer Mike had my favorite show at Sasquatch, Chvrches gets to take favorite pop show of the weekend. Where their albums are already pretty perfect in the realm of pop - the live performance blew them out of the water. Lauren Mayberry's vocals are so close to sweet that it's almost bitter - she…
After playing an excellent lunchtime set live on KEXP, British dub pioneer James Blake moved down to the Neptune for a sold out gig in support of new record Overgrown. Fans were lined up more than an hour before the show and the place packed out quickly once doors were open, and all for good reason…
Now in its 15th year, Oregon music festival Pickathon has announced its lineup, dates and location for 2013 -- and it's one of their best lineups yet! On August 2-4 at the Pendarvis Farm in Happy Valley, OR, the festival will host Feist, Andrew Bird, Divine Fits, The Devil Makes Three, Sharon Van …
Imagine a pair of bell-bottoms. A suede vest. A wide collar, strutting leather boots. Similarly, imagine sequins and elongated lashes. Pearls and sly eyes. If you can imagine this, you can begin to sense the spirits that inspired the newest record from Seattle soul and funk group, The True Loves. T…
Every year that Capitol Hill Block Party returns, I can't wait to be uncomfortable with a bunch of sweaty people in the red-lit basement that is Cha Cha Lounge. That's not sarcasm. This year's lineup boasts some incredible headliners like Run The Jewels, Angel Olsen, Thundercat, Wolf Parade, and mo…
If there is one thing Sasquatch crowds seem to agree on, it is that Thee Oh Sees are awesome. Fronted by the quite charismatic multi-instrumentalist John Dwyer, Thee Oh Sees tore up the Bigfoot Stage on Day One of 2017's Sasquatch Music Festival, resulting in a sweaty, bro-laden mosh pit and necess…
The Greatest is gone. More than just a boxing legend, Muhammad Ali was a cultural icon and humanitarian above nearly all else. He passed away on Friday after a long battle with Parkinson’s. Ali didn't just fight inside the boxing ring. Outside of it, he stood up for those who couldn't or wouldn't, …
I was so excited about going to see Television next week at the Moore that I had this whole plan to do a post around their two first albums and had it all ready to go before I realized that I'd covered the KCMU DJs' gushing response to their classic debut, Marquee Moon a few years ago. But that's a…
Already, between the blazing Seattle sunlight and constant music he's been cranking out, it's been a solid summer for Chimurenga Renaissance's front-man and activist Tendai Maraire. After having released his album riZe vadZimu riZe in March, an ambitious collage of contemporary rap and traditional …
Their latest LP may be Most Messed Up, but Old 97's are sounding their most fired up yet. Over 20 years in and now on their 10th studio album, the veteran Dallas band continues to fuel their raucous country rock sound with elements of twang-punk, power pop, and psych-tinged folk-rock while featurin…
It’s great to see that excellent, keenly questioning, perennially rebellious, truly inspiring, and high quality reading/viewing/listening materials keep being published and produced in this extremely DIY economy. Forged in the fires of pre-economic collapse in 2007, Oakland, CA-based PM Press is a …
On any given weekend in Seattle, there are a million amazing shows to see - from jazz sets at coffee shops and orchestras at theaters, to a grunge shows in DIY spaces and major touring acts at any of our larger venues. Maybe this weekend you want to try something new; maybe you heard one song by th…
It’s time again for Friday on My Mind, our weekly blog post where we look at videos centered around one common theme. This is a collaborative effort between KEXP and King 5 News. Today we are fundraising for only 12 hours, thanks to our Amplifier Monthly Giving Club. Amplifiers have made it possib…
There's been one name on the lips of every credible music news source for the last two weeks: Disclosure. The band has been gaining buzz with excellent singles and some great international dance chart action in the six months, but two weeks out from their album's release, the duo - Surrey brothers …
Is it weird that I actually noticed that singer Jason Bartell was wearing the same star studded shirt today at Sasquatch that he was wearing during Fang Island's session in 2010 at KEXP? I only notice because that's one way I think of their music - the sincerity of their power chord power stance pe…
I covered a Robyn Hitchcock in this space a while back, but this is the first time we've looked at an album from The Soft Boys, the band that first brought him to the attention of college radio nerds across the globe. The band was rather short-lived, breaking up shortly after the relatively unsucce…
The most anticipated performance of the weekend was also the most divisive, and as the biggest audience of the weekend walked away from the Gorge one last time, everyone had something to say about Kendrick Lamar's closing set. As the first show played since the release of his instant classic To Pim…
Saturday wrapped up another year of All Tomorrow's Parties Iceland, hosted in Keflavík at Atlantic Studios. Younghusband played their second and original time slot on the main stage. Ought from Canada (who are on the same label as Godspeed You! Black Emperor, who played the day before), and HAM, wh…
