After over a decade, Fruit Bats is, um, flying away into the sunset, as mastermind Eric D. Johnston announced this morning: "Hey All. So, after 13 years, 5 albums, bunch of tours, and lots of laughs, Fruit Bats is calling it a day. There is no major or dramatic reason – I’m not gonna launch into o…
Seattle's Beat Connection seem to evolve with grace. As is the case with most young bands, they've had plenty of that evolution in the last three years. Their journey from the early house-driven days of 2010's Surf Noir to the vast, green sound of their 2012 debut LP Palace Garden and even through …
On any given weekend in Seattle, there are a million amazing shows to see - from jazz at a coffee shop or theater, to a grunge show at a DIY space, to a major act at any one of our large venues. Maybe this weekend you want to try something new, maybe you heard one song by this small electronic, fol…
You'll wish you could say you were there. It was just one of those shows that all in attendance knew they were blessed by some kind of angelic beings to attend, as HÆLOS played for a respectably sized, though not packed, crowd at The Sunset Tavern last week. The UK trio decided to advance their for…
Next on the KEXP live video stream from KEX Hostel at Iceland Airwaves Music Festival was brand-new band Andy Svarthol. Comprised of brothers Egill and Bjarki Hreinn Viðarsson). Andy Svarthol came together in 2015 after Egill’s other project Nóra went on hiatus. They aren’t even in the festival’s o…
French musician/producer Jean-Christophe Le Saoût first emerged as Wax Tailor in 2005 with his breakout album, Tales of the Forgotten Melodies, showcasing a confident and refreshing fusion of cinematic trip-hop, hip-hop, and soul styles. Since then he's continued to master an eclectic fusion of div…
Forget anything you might already think about Northwest electronica. For all of our gloomy and rain-sodden days and our fern-covered evergreen terrain, we sometimes produce bubbly and even tropical music. Take, for instance, Bellingham producer/multi-instrumentalist Grant Eadie, who with his projec…
If the gender politics of the Raunch Hands were controversial 30+ years ago (and they were, as you will see below), I'm not surprised you don't hear them much on the air these days. In fact, I can't find reference to a single Raunch Hands spin on KEXP in recent years - even on Shake the Shack, whic…
The bass-wielding demigod known as Jah Wobble (né John Wardle, renamed by Sid Vicious, who also allegedly gave him his first bass) should need no introduction, especially around these parts, but here's the quick version: First heard holding down the low end with PiL, he soon moved on to his own var…
Anxiety, nausea, discord - they're not just the frequent subjects of Parquet Courts' songs, but the feelings their fans get while waiting between albums. Usually, the wait's never too long, as the Brooklyn group eases jitters by alternating albums and EP's in quick succession. The extra months it t…
In a manner of speaking, frontmen Tim Jenkins and Tom Crandles are master tightrope walkers. The duo behind Au.Ra balance shared singing duties, varying music styles, and even hometowns (shuttling often between Sydney and London) with striking ease and control. Take “You’re On My Mind”, the first s…
Like fire from the bayou, word of mouth is spreading fast about Benjamin Booker. The young New Orleans based singer-songwriter hasn't even released his full-length debut (it's due next Tuesday), but he's already made appearances on Conan and Letterman and currently is touring across the country. On…
When it comes to whimsical multi-instrumentalist Kishi Bashi, we should've known we had nothing to worry about. A couple of years had passed since his beloved debut release, 151a, and as DJ Cheryl Waters said to a co-worker a few months before the release of his latest, Lighght (pronounced "Light")…
The Los Angeles band, Las Cafeteras, named themselves after a community space in El Sereno, L.A. where group members met one another and started to learn and play Son Jarocho music together, influenced by regional Mexican folk music. The band feminized the name to honor women, they note. Modern day…
Seattle band Ivan & Alyosha, in the lineage of local powerhouses the Head and the Heart and the Fleet Foxes, are masters of the bright, jangly guitars, tight, soaring harmonies and steady kick-drum rhythms. But there is something distinct about them, too – the band has more joy to it than maybe…
“It’s like watching a movie,” DJ Cheryl Waters exclaimed during the elaborate in-studio performance by Shugo Tokumaru. The Japanese musician, famous for using more than 100 different instruments in his album recordings, incorporates so many instruments in his music, from the more traditional guitar…
While we're all waiting for the warm weather to officially take hold (we've been given an enticingly cruel taste of it here in Northwest), Vampire Weekend has created the perfect summer album to fuel your anticipation. At times wistfully nostalgic, percolatingly peppy and even fiercely energetic, M…
NASA thinks otherwise, but according to the Mesoamerican Long Count Calendar, the world will end today. Even if the Mayans couldn't rightly predict their own demise, who knows? We may have only one more day left on Earth. If that's the case, we're going out swinging! All day, KEXP DJs are playing s…
A catchy melody doesn't just get stuck in your head – it lives there. You sit with it, sometimes for days or even years, ruminating on it whether you want to or not. Writing just one of these songs can be an accomplishment. Portland songwriter Mo Troper does this 15 times over on his latest album, …
All year long, Seattle's own Macklemore has been on the campaign path against the opioid crisis in America, even teaming up with President Obama for a White House Address (see here). Today, he shares a video for the track "Drug Dealer," a homebred single featuring guest vocals from Ariana DeBoo an…
