18 year old Swedish rapper Yung Lean (Jonatan Håstad) may be one of the most polarizing, confusing faces on the independent hip-hop scene of the last few years. Pitchfork hates him. Fader loves him. The rest of us find ourselves somewhere in between, trying to balance all of the bizarre parts of th…
"It was like being in a car that hit the brakes and suddenly we had all this stuff to say." After spending nearly two years on the road behind their 2013 debut Wildewoman, Lucius had plenty of stories to tell on what would become their 2016 sophomore effort Good Grief, resulting in their…
Sallie Ford recently – and amicably – split up with her bandmates from The Sound Outside. She says of the decision, “It was a mutual decision and there are no bad feelings... It was just time for the next thing, which for me is an all girl band.” As a result, KEXP wanted to catch up with Sallie and…
With literally hundreds of songs filling her numerous self-released albums, it could be somewhat intimidating to jump into Greta Kiline's catalog if it weren't for the New York City songwriter's clever wordplay and instantly accessible twinkling melodies. Pulling from her two most recent release…
Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on the Afte…
There's probably no other festival as intimate, communal and sustainable in the Northwest like Pickathon. This weekend at the Pendarvis Farm just outside Portland, Oregon, a diverse gathering of bands like Feist, Andrew Bird, The Devil Makes Three, Divine Fits and Shabazz Palaces will perform as pa…
Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJ’s think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on The Mid…
Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on the Afterno…
Interweaving a patchwork of influences, from '60s psych to outsider folk, Boston band Quilt blanketed the KEXP studios with songs from their latest album, Held in Splendor, out now on Mexican Summer. Stitched together with their unique three-part-harmonies, the ambitious young band explained to DJ …
Despite the innumerable sources of praise and worship from every corner of the earth, David Bowie somehow finds a way to face a sort of misrepresentation in the modern world, where every new album is slated as a comeback. Each forthcoming effort from the aging rock legend has some sort of Lazarus e…
The last time I saw Sylvan Esso was over two years ago, in a much smaller room about 2,500 miles away. It was a cold January night in Charlotte, North Carolina (my hometown), about three hours outside of Sylvan Esso’s hometown of Durham. It was just a few months after the release of their debut sel…
Preceding the mass media's adoption of the "green" movement by almost forty years, Earth Day celebrates and demonstrates support for environmental protection. Now in its 43rd year, the initially proposed date for the internationally-observed holiday was March 21 - the first day of spring in the nor…
Hey Marseilles are another band that feel close to the KEXP DNA - a group of Seattle boys that developed a sound quite unlike anything else coming out of our city, they've brought their talent through our studio before, so they were a perfect band to fit into a day of celebrating both our past and…
In the midst of the 10th annual Decibel Festival, KEXP was fortunate to get Julia Holter in our studios. While her first two albums were recorded alone in the intimacy of her bedroom, her acclaimed recent release Loud City Song on Domino Records was her first to be recorded outside the comfort of h…
DJ Kevin Cole highlights some of the best albums, songs, and moments of 2016. 1. Blood Orange – Best To You2. Angel Olsen – Shut Up Kiss Me3. Deep Sea Diver – Secrets4. Pinkshinyultrablast – The Cherry Pit 5. Naked Giants – Ya Ya6. King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard – Gamma Knife7. Thee Oh Sees – …
Like a nomadic hunter-gatherer, DJ Kevin Cole travels the sonic sphere in search of the greatest new music. In this podcast he shares his latest favorites, including new tracks from Júníus Meyvant, The Jayhawks, Kutiman, The Coral, and more. 1. Júníus Meyvant – Beat Silent Need 2. Stephen St…
Greg Vandy, host of KEXP's The Roadhouse, previews a handful of artists playing this year's Pickathon Music Festival. Pickathon is an innovative music experience happening August 2nd-4th at beautiful Pendarvis Farm just outside of Portland, Oregon. More info at www.pickathon.com 1. Foxygen - No De…
Today's Song of the Day, as chosen by DJ Miss Ashley, host of the Variety Mix on Sunday afternoons, is "Outside (feat. Lila Iké)" by Samory I, from the 2023 album Strength on Overstand Entertainment / Easy Star Records.
Wolf Parade are releasing their first album in seven years, Cry Cry Cry, on October 6 via Sub Pop. Today they've unveiled the album's second single "You're Dreaming" which was inspired by the shock and confusion following the 2016 U.S. presidential election. It's accompanied by a cut-out visual mad…
