What brought two already well known and respected artists together to collaborate on a new project? The internet, of course. Though Aimee Mann and Ted Leo shared a casual friendship and a liking for each other's music, they bonded over things "#dumb" on Twitter. Eventually, a 140-character comedic …
Don't expect to take the title of the second solo album by Kevin Morby literally. Still Life was written during a particularly busy time in his life, which included touring with two bands -- Woods (his former band) and The Babies (his project with Vivian Girls' Cassie Ramone) -- and switching coast…
Though they'd been playing reunion shows for the past six years, no one expected the first Redd Kross album in 15 years to be so mind-blowing. The Hawthorne, CA, band, started by brothers Jeff and Steve McDonald, played their first gig opening for Black Flag in 1980, and went on to perform with co…
Though named for a popular British toy company, Chad Valley is more than just a plaything Oxford, UK's Hugo Manuel. Also the frontman for the group Jonquil, Manuel has turned a couple of lo-fi solo EPs into a fully realized project of lush, summery synth-pop. Like Jonquil, Chad Valley features Manu…
The Replacements were one of the most original and influential rock bands of the 1980s. Their hard-drinking ways made them infamous to many clubs in the Twin Cities and around the country -- including the time when they got themselves famously banned from Saturday Night Live after a particularly i…
While the Saturday lineup of Capitol Hill Block Party leaned heavily on Seattle's DIY punk and electronic strengths, Sunday was where got to see the city's pop strengths shine through. And truly, our fair city is not lacking in this department. On the Vera stage, Sassyblack put her incredible voice…
Iceland’s Sigur Rós recently released their first album in seven years, titled Odin’s Raven Magic. Much of the project sounds like something out of Medieval times. Bassist Georg Holm talks about the apocalyptic story behind the Norse Mythology poem that inspired the project, and how it resonates to…
Veteran LA-based artist Moby debuts his new project, Moby & The Void Pacific Choir, and KEXP Music Director Don Yates notes their first LP is "a potent set of noisy, goth-tinged post-punk with loud, distorted synths, rumbling guitars, pounding industrial rhythms, dour vocals, soaring song hooks…
The White Stripes, Dead Weather, The Raconteurs... that Jack White has been recording music with lots of different projects over the years. And, you can check out unplugged versions of his songs on the career-spanning collection Acoustic Recordings 1998-2016, out later this month. As an example, c…
Brooklyn-based electronic producer James Hinton has bubbled up from the underground over the past 5 years under the alias The Range, crafting vibrant and forward-thinking beats and experimental club rhythms on labels such as Astro Nautico, Donky Pitch, Project: Mooncircle, and Domino Records. His l…
This Saturday, August 13th, The Vera Project & Friends of Waterfront Seattle present Vera at the Waterfront: a much needed, free, all-ages excuse to pretend the summer's end isn't rapidly approaching. Complete with a stacked lineup of local musicians and art installation provided by Vera's scre…
We should consider ourselves lucky to call Prism Tats "local", however briefly. Though Garett van der Spek hails from Durban, South Africa, he conceived this solo project after moving to Seattle. The Emerald City is in fact where he also formed the duo Koko and the Sweetmeats with his then sweethea…
It has the makings of an indie movie plot: Hip musician dad records album with son while his wife undergoes cancer therapy. The real story is a bit more complicated, but that's essentially the backdrop of Tweedy, the latest project of Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy and his son Spencer. The duo recorded…
Today marks the birthday of James Yancey, better known as J Dilla, one of the most influential hip-hop artists of this century. Just days after his 32nd birthday, back in 2006, the Detroit-based DJ and producer passed away, leaving an enduring legacy for others to follow. Above the nine albums he p…
It's hard to imagine a better indie pop dream team than this – a multi-Grammy winning producer Danger Mouse (a.k.a. Brian Burton) and a beloved singer-songwriter James Mercer (of the Shins), each responsible for some of the most infectious songs you've heard in the past ten years, joining to create…
Drangar: their name translates roughly in English to “pillars of rock”, and it's about as apt a description you'll find for this Icelandic group, whose members — Mugison, Jónas Sigurðsson and Ómar Guðjónsson — are each highly respected musicians with their own projects. Thanks to the chance occurre…
Following their 1995 debut, Memphis garage punk band Oblivians released two more albums in quick succession and then practically disappeared for the next twelve years. But they didn't quite slip into, well, oblivion. Band members Greg Oblivian, Jack Oblivian and Eric Oblivian -- a.k.a. Greg Cartwri…
There is a place where the sounds and sights of summer are always abounding and where you can sing about the beach all year long. That place, according to Zach Yudin, is Cayucos, California. His project Cayucas (formerly called Oregon Bike Trails) is an unapologetic love letter to the feeling given…
It's hard to believe that it's been 20 years since brothers Phil and Paul Hartnoll first topped the UK charts as Orbital. Back then, raves were all the rage, but the duo never settled for mere mind-numbing dance numbers and constantly pushed their listeners with experimental loops and political ran…
Tune-Yards have returned with a brand new song that comes alongside an announcement that they'll be following up 2014's Nikki Nack with a brand new album called I can feel you creep into my private life, due January 19th via 4AD. The LP is produced by longtime collaborator Nate Brenner, who is now …
