For a moment there, it looked like The National's headlining set at Sasquatch – one of the band's biggest shows to date – was going to be underwhelming. For the first twenty minutes, the band felt too mellow, and frontman Matt Berninger, disinterested. And then, after "Don't Swallow The Cap", a swi…
"Stick with the old stuff, Win." That's the advice that Butler gets from Carl the roadie (Rainn Wilson) after playing a bloated, belligerent rendition of Funeral cut "Wake Up" during the fictitious Arcade Fire performance in the Reflektor accompaniment film Here Comes The Night Time. Here, Butler i…
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. Using inspirational songs during sports competitions helps pump up and motivate both athletes and fans. Music plays a pa…
The album cover for Minnesota rapper Brother Ali's 2012 LP, Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color, features the Muslim artist praying towards Mecca and kneeling on an American flag as his prayer rug. The image encapsulates much of the spirit which Brother Ali has staked his career on. Brother…
I've probably said this before, but this is kind of the perfect Review Revue album. Released on RR favorites Shimmy Disc (see also here and here and here and here and oh yes, over here), featuring members of Half Japanese, partially recorded at Inner Ear studios (okay, that's more of a me thing), b…
KEXP can’t get enough of today’s first act, Samaris. They’ve been featured as song of the day, highlighted on several Music that Matters podcasts and yearly top-10 lists, and even played at the station’s New Home Opening in Seattle earlier this year. Today we have the pleasure of having them open d…
Friday evening brought plenty of good sleep. For those at Pickathon who were sung to sweet dreams by Yo La Tengo’s intimate stripped down set the night before, or for those who danced themselves to exhaustion at Ty Segall, a few hours of rest were well appreciated. After all, there is very little o…
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…
FFS, the eponymous debut album from the collaboration project between Franz Ferdinand and Sparks, feels a bit like a beautiful car crash in slow motion. I say slow motion because the two objects that make up the collision seen here have been careening towards each other since the good old days of 2…
Friends of the station Of Monsters And Men have come a long way since KEXP filmed them playing in a living room in Reykjavik, Iceland in 2010. In fact, they've come a long way even since the station filmed them playing on a bluff at Sasquatch in 2012. KEXP was one of the earliest to discover this b…
Determined and unwavering Brooklyn-based folk rock band WOODS have released over six albums since their inception in 2005, distinguishing them as some of the hardest-working indie rockers. Singer-guitarist and founder Jeremy Earl even runs the record label Woodsist, from which WOODS release their a…
As time goes by, it's harder than ever to determine what makes a good electronic show from a bad one. Mainstream EDM DJs can make insatiable amounts of money from a pre-mixed "just press play" setlist that they only have to half-heartedly interact with in order to pull off. And with top notch equip…
UK electronic chameleon Zomby is one of those few artists from whom we've only seen improvement since his beginnings. Back in 2008, Zomby's full-length debut came in the form of Where Were You in '92?, an over the top, muddy 90s rave soundtrack that played excellent tribute to the scene of days pas…
To call James Blake's second LP "greatly anticipated" may be a bit of an overstatement, but only because it's been hardly two months that we've even known that a new album would be available some time this year. Despite the short time to process the news, fans certainly were eager to hear what the …
Making a truly timeless record is really, really hard. Without the ability to look into the future and see what sounds and styles are going to fall out of fashion, artists often just have to take the gamble and see what happens. With all the knowledge and ability you have as an artist, you need to …
It's hard being The Strokes. After setting the template for the next ten years of guitar-based rock with their 2001 debut, Is This It, it wasn't long before the NYC quintet was being outpaced by the bands they paved the way for. After some time apart, Julian Casablancas, Nikolai Fraiture, Nick Vale…
So deep is the pool of local talent these days, there was sparsely room for out-of-town acts on the KEXP Gathering Space stage this weekend. One worthwhile exception was shoegaze four-piece Froth, who traveled from Los Angeles to pay a visit to the crowd at the Bumbershoot Music & Arts Festival…
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 Aft…
