If you're only aware of one Daniel Johnston album, Hi, How Are You is probably that one album - whether you've heard it, heard of it, or seen its cover image on a t-shirt worn by Kurt Cobain. As far as I can tell this was the first of his cassettes to receive wide release as an LP (five years after…
The vocal interplay between Colin Meloy and Laura Viers is well documented on albums by The Decemberists. But, for fan-favorite "Yankee Bayonet," they almost went with another vocalist! Hearing is believing: stream a demo version recorded with Alela Diane below. The outtake will be included in the…
Composing great dance music is more than just choosing the right beats per minute and finding a catchy synth patch. It's about capturing an emotional impulse in the groove – that indescribable, wordless "something" that resonates beyond how it booms out the speakers. It's an idea that Seattle produ…
Local Natives have released a new single with the help of Nico Segal, a.k.a. Donnie Trumpet, from Chance the Rapper associates The Social Experiment. Entitled "The Only Heirs", it follows the previously released track "I Saw You Close Your Eyes", which (rather creepily) forced listeners to physical…
I assumed when I pulled out this record by 17 Pygmies that this would be one of those bands who released a DJ-beloved album or two in the '80s and then quietly dissolved, leaving almost no trace to survive into this Internet age of ours. How wrong I was! It turns out this band - originally a Savage…
Dream-pop duo Beach House are still stomping the pavement in support of last year's two-fer releases, Depression Cherry and Thank Your Lucky Stars, but they took the time to create a video for the track "The Traveller" off the latter. It's an eerie clip from the Baltimore band, featuring a woman d…
Following a fantastic set at the Capitol Hill Block Party, Car Seat Headrest (aka Will Toldeo) has announced a full-on North American tour in support of his latest, Teens of Denial. He swings back home with a Saturday, November 26th show at the Neptune Theatre. Toldeo also shares a Live EP he rec…
10:15 on a Thursday morning, and today happens to be the birthday of Robert Smith, godfather of goth (even though he hates that term) and legendary frontman of The Cure. It's hard to believe, but The Cure will be here Memorial Day weekend, headlining the 2016 Sasquatch! Music Festival. Throughout h…
As DJ Cheryl Waters points out, Surfer Blood may not be the same "pen of puppies" they were in 2009, but on their newest release, 1000 Palms, they go back to their DIY roots. No longer with a major label looking over their shoulder and now with years of touring experience under their belt, the Flor…
It's been four long years, but folk-rock band Beirut will return with their fourth album, titled No No No, on September 11th via 4AD. Founding member and frontman Zach Condon reveals in a press release that the past years of touring and a messy divorce resulted in his hospitalization in Australia …
Everyone's recovering from the long Memorial Day weekend, including the music industry, but there are still some excellent new releases awake today. One of the highlights is the third full-length from Portland band Unknown Mortal Orchestra. KEXP Music Director Don Yates calls it "an adventurous, im…
I love this record. Barna Howard is my new favorite artist. His previous, acoustic self-titled debut, which I played some last year, only hinted at this Missouri native, now Portland based artist's easy songwriting skills. His latest, Quite A Feelin', is already in the running for my album of the y…
San Francisco’s Moon Duo once again light up the KEXP live room as they launch into their special psychedelic blend of astronomically awesome audio that is bound to elevate your mind into an altered consciousness. Casting some light on their newly released LP, Shadow of the Sun, the duo have built …
Not surprisingly, a country known for its epic landscapes like Iceland also produces similarly cinematic music, like that of Kiasmos. The breathtaking sound of this new duo, featuring composer Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen (also of Bloodgroup), was the perfect intro for the first day of KEXP's…
The otherworldliness of Iceland's landscape is never lost on those who live or travel there. Not just a land of fire and ice, it is also a land of light and dark, starkness and majesty, community and isolation. The only thing that isn't a wonder about Iceland is how artists of all kinds echo its un…
Our second live Iceland Airwaves show of the day at Kex Hostel was friend of the station and amiable funny man Júníus Meyvant. This lanky ginger haired songster is a bit of an enigma, with no album and scant online presence. Unnar Gísli Sigurmundsson, his given name, began performing music a bit la…
It's not like Conor Oberst needs much help sounding great. The Omaha, NE, native has been writing and performing with various projects, most notably with Bright Eyes, since his early teens, and he is a co-founder of not one but two independent labels: Saddle Creek and Team Love. In other words, we …
It started as part-joke, part-challenge. The Austin-based band Brownout were exploring different themes during an extended club residency, and one night they chose to cover Black Sabbath, as many of their members of the grew up listening to the godfathers of darkness. Almost immediately, the 8-piec…
In an industry where auto-tune is often synonymous with lack of talent, the vocals of Channy Leaneagh, frontwoman of Minneapolis electro-pop group Poliça, are boldly filtered through reverb and auto-tune on each of their albums. But the use of these tools is an overt stylistic choice for Leaneagh a…
It's been three long years, but Bon Iver is back with a single for the new Zach Braff film, Wish I Was Here. (The soundtrack also boasts a new song from The Shins, as reported on last month.) You can stream the haunting track "Heavenly Father" via NPR Music. The soundtrack will be out digitally an…
