Though it's the first album released solely under his own name, there is a strong argument to be made that Everyday Robots is not the official solo debut of English legend Damon Albarn. That could be the soundtrack to the 1999 film Ravenous, which was the first music outside of his then-main band B…
Justin Vernon had a pretty ridiculously awesome 2011. It was the year he dropped his self-titled second LP as Bon Iver, receiving widespread critical acclaim, a Grammy, and securing his place in the indie rock spotlight for as long as he wanted. Among plenty of others, his work as Bon Iver garnered…
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…
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 A…
A lot has happened in the five years since Yoni Wolf (of WHY? fame) and Chicago rapper Serengeti last collaborated. That last time was on Serengeti's statement of an LP Family & Friends, produced entirely by Wolf and Owen Ashworth (of Advance Base and Casiotune for the Painfully Alone). Between…
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…
This year, !K7 Records celebrates a massive milestone, entering the twentieth year of their ongoing DJ-Kicks series and releasing the fiftieth entry in the series. Over its fifty entry catalogue, DJ-Kicks has carved a niche that no other electronic serial really taps into. For Fabric, it's the club…
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…
Last month, Neptune Theatre hosted the latest in our ongoing series of benefit shows as KEXP, Starbucks and STG presented Little Big Show #9, with 100% of ticket sales going to local non-profit Hugo House. Headliners, and long-time KEXP favorites, Cloud Cult performed a typically uplifting set, as …
If you are at all like me, I Never Learn is not the Lykke Li album you were expecting this year. After the rapturous viral success of "Get Some" from her 2011 sophomore LP, Wounded Rhymes, it is easy to imagine Li taking her sensual, entrancing songwriting to a more pop-centric place. After all, th…
What better way to get out of the sun than to spend a bit of time digging crates at your local record shop? While the summer weeks tend to be slow for new releases, you'll find plenty of excellent new albums in stores this week. Among them is the second album from Seattle's Shelby Earl, whose Damie…
