Brittany Howard, the powerhouse frontwoman of Alabama Shakes, has released a new album under the moniker Thunderbitch. The group, which has been around since 2012, includes members from the bands Clear Plastic Marks and Fly Golden Eagle. The album is a 10-track offering and is available to stream …
The main reason I pulled this album out is because Richard Lloyd! Television! Not only did I recently see his legendary old band, sadly without him, but it turns out that the man himself is embarking on a very rare solo tour which will bring him to our own beloved Columbia City Theater this Septemb…
Portland-via-New Zealand band Unknown Mortal Orchestra stopped by Late Night With Seth Meyers last night. From atop a white piano, frontman Ruban Nielson delivered a soulful rendition of the title track from their latest release Multi-Love below, out now on Jagjaguwar. Watch their performance belo…
Canada had their day. Of course, America did. And now France celebrates their independence on Bastille Day, or "La Fête Nationale" as they call it. It was on this day in 1789 that the Parisian prison The Bastille was stormed, culminating in the French Revolution. France, and Paris in particular, ha…
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 Midd…
This fall, Cults will release their first new record in four years, Offering. "I Took Your Picture" is the second single shared from the forthcoming LP, after the title track. The band says they were inspired by the Motels and the Cars for the track. “It’s a song about fleeting moments and how we l…
During hour six of KEXP's live broadcast from Upstream Fest + Summit, The Maldives brought their harmonic alt-country to our performance space at Little London Plane in Pioneer Square. The Maldives played five tracks from their latest record, Mad Lives, a concept album about a man's life and death …
It's Cinco De Mayo today, or as we've coined it “Gringo de Mayo.” (Read our history lesson on the KEXP Blog here.) In addition to DJ Cheryl Waters' on-air celebration on The Midday Show on KEXP, we're spotlighting some of favorite bands from Mexico with a round-up below. You can always discover mor…
Brooklyn band The So So Glos lead this week's new release with their fifth full length. KEXP Music Director Don Yates says the LP, "finds them bringing a bit more diverse and hook-filled sound to their anthemic garage-punk, with often-politically charged lyrics contrasting anxiety, political extrem…
Fireworks, indeed! The Dead Weather - the supergroup of Alison Mosshart, Jack White, Dean Fertita and Jack Lawrence - have announced their third album, Dodge & Burn, will be out in September via White's Third Man Records. A press release claims the band will not be touring in support of the al…
Synthpop pioneers New Order return this fall with their first new album in a decade, appropriately titled Music Complete. Founding member Peter Hook does not appear on the release, but Gillian Gilbert, another original member, returns to the fold for the first time since 2001’s Get Ready. The band…
Joe Jackson has never been an easy artist to pin down. His first album's lean, edgy, punk-leaning pop sound has aged incredibly well and influenced a thousand bands (without Look Sharp!, I maintain, there is no Spoon), but over the 35-plus years since then he has constantly played with different fo…
The duo behind The Grizzled Mighty play hard, up-tempo rock. Their big, beefy chords and frenetic drumming inspire the blood cells running in your veins to speed up and push you to new heights. Don't believe us? You can check out the band's new album here and go see them live at Neumos today (Satur…
What a great way to kick off 2015: our very first in-studio session of the year was with Canadian musical craftsmen Dan Mangan + Blacksmith. On his fourth album, Club Meds, out now on Arts & Crafts, the Juno Award-winning singer/songwriter expands into new sonic soundscapes with his band, Black…
The guys from ADHD keep busy with a multitude of projects, but that's not to say they distract easily. In fact, since forming on a whim in 2008, this award-winning Icelandic super-group of sorts has produced five albums of expressive avant jazz. But still, bringing brothers Óskar and Ómar Guðjónsso…
Ian McLagan, keyboardist for the '60s UK rock band Small Faces (later, known in the '70s as the Faces), passed away today at the age of 69. In a statement released by his management, it was reported, "He died today, December 3, 2014, surrounded by family and friends in his adopted hometown of Austi…
Despite the recent years of turmoil that almost resulted in a break-up, the beat goes on for Brooklyn band The Drums. Now stripped down to founding members Jonny Pierce and Jacob Graham, it's been a three-year wait for their latest album, Encyclopedia, out now on Minor Records. As Pierce notes hims…
Did you come to Iceland Airwaves to lose your mind? FM Belfast and their fans certainly did. Our fourth show of the day at Kex Hostel was Iceland's highest energy party act, as we once again featured the typically headlining band in this very intimate space during our broadcast. This electro pop ou…
It's 37 degrees in Reykjavik, and KEXP is setting up at Kex Hostel for four days of incredible live music. Iceland Airwaves festival is just getting warmed up (it officially kicks off tomorrow), but things are already hot here at the hippest hostel in Iceland. We've brought along all the necessary …
For a band celebrating The Age of Fracture, CYMBALS sure form a cohesive sound. On their debut, the UK foursome may shirk "concepts", but their songs are nevertheless about ideas – about "action and desire", "the city", "working", "love" and so much more – but they're even more about dancing and el…
