In a wonderful example of "you never know unless you ask," powerhouses Neko Case, k.d. lang, and Laura Veirs are teaming up for a collaborative album, titled case/lang/veirs, out June 17th via ANTI- Records. Check out their first single "Atomic Number" below, as well as an album trailer. A few yea…
KEXP knows all about the power of a Colin Meloy cameo in your video, and today, Bob Mould taps into the Decemberists' talent with his new video for the track "I Don’t Know You Anymore." Filmed in Portland by director Alicia J. Rose, the clip shows Mould moving into the modern age (#IDKYA). Mould's…
This week sees new albums from two soul greats. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings share their seventh and final album, recorded before Jones passed away from cancer in November 2016. KEXP Music Director Don Yates calls it "a strong set of buoyant old-school soul and funk, with songs mostly written b…
There's something about the booming sound of an analog synthesizer that excites the imagination. Decades of filmmakers and composers have utilized the mesmerizing power of these instruments, from John Carpenter to Vangelis all the way through Hanz Zimmer and Cliff Martinez. So it made sense that Se…
DJ El Toro shares some of his favorite music of 2015 and previews upcoming releases from Shearwater, ANOHNI, Gazebos, and the Cave Singers. Speaking of next year, don't forget: everything you enjoy on KEXP, including the free podcasts, is made possible by support from music lovers like you. P…
At this pace, 2014 is well on its way to outdoing 2013 in new releases. The streak continues this week, topped by a terrific new album by Future Islands, which our Music Director, Don Yates, calls "a masterful set of impassioned, ‘80s-steeped electro-pop with glittering synths, streamlined guitars …
While KEXP celebrated their landmark 1989 debut last Friday, De La Soul released their eighth album (and first in 12 years). KEXP Music Director Don Yates calls it, "a lengthy, somewhat inconsistent set with a diverse sound ranging from funky hip hop and smooth R&B to hypnotic electro-pop and m…
"This is the most beautiful festival we've ever played," beamed Bully's Alicia Bognanno. "I mean, I've still got sand in my pedalboard from Hangout, which was cool, but nothing like this." Bognanno's sentiment about playing while facing the Columbia River Gorge is one that's often repeated througho…
It's with terrible sadness that KEXP reports Darius Minwalla, longtime drummer for local band The Posies, passed away yesterday, May 21st, in his home in Vancouver, BC. Cause of death has yet to be determined. Minwalla joined the power-pop quartet in 2001, appearing on their 2005 comeback album Eve…
"I did want to rip off Yo La Tengo a little bit. I also wanted to rip off The Feelies a little bit," admits singer/guitarist Martin Frawley of Australian band Twerps. But the quirky quartet infuse those influences with their own cheeky charm, resulting in a unique style they jokingly refer to as "j…
American influences from John Coltrane to Bob Dylan are clear in U.K. singer-songwriter Pete Molinari's acoustic bluesy-folk. Scratch the surface of his four albums and you'll find a broad range of sounds in the low-key Brit's music. Molinari grew up in an Egyptian, Maltese and Italian family, whic…
Where does a young band go after making a name for themselves with a gorgeous album like Dye It Blonde, of Nuggets-mining jangly psych pop? They dig deeper. At least, that's what Smith Westerns did on their followup, Soft Will, as they dig deeper both into the history of rock and their own songwrit…
Bands go through changes – name changes, member changes, sound transformations, covers. One of those bands that has recently changed names, members, and sound, but has survived, is Philadelphia’s Bleeding Rainbow. Starting as a duo of sludge-infused indie pop back in 2009, the band then known as Re…
The latest album from Malian songwriter and guitarist Sidi Touré, released in the US by Thrill Jockey, is called Koïma, named for a dune near his home city of Gao. "Koïma" can be translated to mean "go hear", and the dune, which sits at the edge of the Niger River, is said to be a sacred meeting p…
September closed out with a really strong week of new releases, including the long-awaited new album from Bon Iver. KEXP Music Director Don Yates calls it, "his most adventurous, forward-looking recording to date, combining spacy, digitally warped electro-pop with folk, gospel and other styles on s…
DJ Goo Goo is the alias of Travis Ritter, a Seattle-based record collector, DJ, writer, graphic designer, and the founder/curator behind Aesthetic Mess, a monthly showcase that happens every second Wednesday at Timbre Room, featuring local post-punk and electronic live acts and guest DJs. Ever sinc…
Before a closing performance from Twenty One Pilots, MGMT played a packed set at Sasquatch Music Festival's Main Stage, playing tracks from each of their past records, including several to be featured on the forthcoming Little Dark Age. As evidenced by past live performances, MGMT are unafraid of s…
The nominees are in for this year's prestigious Mercury Prize, unfortunately now known as the "Hyundai" Mercury Prize. Heavy hitters David Bowie and Radiohead lead the shortlist, alongside Michael Kiwanuka (above), Anohni, Savages, and more. Not only has the name slightly changed, but so has votin…
