When Aaron Dessner of The National hands you the keys to his recording studio, you don't say no. That's exactly what happened when Australian indie-folk duo Luluc relocated to Brooklyn to record their second album, Passerby, out now on Sub Pop Records. The duo of Zoë Randell and Steve Hassett had b…
Are you a fan of breezy, lush symphonic indie rock? What about high-end modern furniture? Then boy do we have a show for you! In conjunction with VuHaus, a non-profit digital video service, West Elm in Westlake will host a FREE performance by Hey Marseilles on June 15 at 7PM. It's a great chance to…
Summing a two-song barrage in the KEXP studio by New Zealand's Salad Boys, DJ Kevin Cole exclaimed that they sound like "the best of The Feelies, Velvet Underground and Yo La Tengo in one song". While they certainly make a lovable racket channeling those and other legendary bands from their hometow…
Even if you don’t know Mac McCaughan, you still know Mac McCaughan. Whether fronting indie-rock A-list bands like Superchunk and Portastatic, or running the wildly influential Merge records (home of recent KEXP guests Destroyer and Telekinesis), the veteran musician has had an omnipresent effect on…
This week, KEXP is broadcasting for the third year in a row, during Iceland Airwaves Music Festival. Starting this morning at 6AM, and running through Friday, November 1, we're bringing you five bands a day performing live at KEX Hostel in Reykjavik, including Emilíana Torrini, Moses Hightower, Pet…
Robert Glasper was exposed to music at a young age. His mother brought him as a boy out to her jazz and blues gigs, and he also learned much about music in church, where he began to sing and mix gospel and jazz harmonies. Since those humble but enriching beginnings, Glasper has built a strong caree…
Although it began as an anonymous solo project, Arthur Ashin's Autre Ne Veut has emerged as one of the leaders of the current electronic and indie-tinged R&B explosion. Now that the project has evolved into an entity outside of his bedroom, Ashin's live takes on the songs from Anxiety, his seco…
Afrobeat, trance, indie rock: these are just some of the words tossed around when talking about Pollens, among the more composed acts doing the rounds in Seattle currently. And while those words do describe the band, to a degree, they fail to include the constant smiles, the deep dips in vocals, th…
Here's wishing the best seismic health to Southern California this April, as pretty much every current band you'd ever want to see will be in or around Indio, CA, for the weekends of April 12-14 and April 19-21. Why? Because of Coachella 2013. The newly announced lineup is a who's who of indie and …
The Decemberists have announced a new album to be released this March entitled I'll Be Your Girl. The album is said to be a departure from their signature indie folk and takes on a synth pop, glam sound courtesy of super-producer John Congleton, who the band is working with for the first time. In a…
Mutual Benefit's Jordan Lee has lived in various locations throughout the United States from Austin, Texas to Boston, Massachusetts. While traveling around America, Lee discovered and performed with many other musicians, eventually convincing them to join his music project. In fact, save for Lee, t…
We have reached day one of Iceland Airwaves Music Festival, and the anticipation in Reykjavik is palatable. Locals and visitors alike are milling about town, getting ready for the big week to come. Here at KEX Hostel, KEXP is putting the finishing touches on preparations for an incredible week of l…
A quick look at the Restorations tour schedule might have your eyes glazing over. After releasing their third studio album (LP3) in only four years at the end of 2014, the Philly indie-rockers have spent most of 2015 tirelessly touring across the U.S., the U.K., and even Jamaica. Or as singer/guita…
For as cosmic as their jams can be and as free floating as their new album title appears, Built to Spill have never seemed more grounded. On Untethered Moon, their eighth studio album and their first in six years, the veteran indie rockers haven't drifted away from their roots but, thanks to produc…
Okay, this is going to seem kind of weird. It's late March now - Spring is finally upon us - and here we are presenting Courtney Barnett and her band decked out in costume. There's actually a pretty good reason for it. When the Australian indie sensation stopped by the KEXP studio last Halloween to…
My Dad Is Dead is one of those band names that might just sound like a one-liner or an attempt to grab your attention, but in the case of Mark Edwards's solo recording project, legend has it that the music on this debut LP was in fact created in direct response to the loss of his father. With so mu…
It's uncanny that yesterday just happened to be Australia Day, and the highlights of this week's new releases are dominated by the down under! Merge Records release the latest from Melbourne pop quartet Twerps, which KEXP Music Director Don Yates notes is, "a masterful album of jangly indie-pop rem…
The roots of Owl John lie in the idea that to save something, sometimes you need to walk away from it. That's what caused Frightened Rabbit frontman Scott Hutchinson to take a break from the Scottish indie rock group and return to writing songs the way he did when he started the band a decade earli…
"I'm just going to test out the sampler." That's what Chaos Chaos drummer Chloe Saavedra says right before she fills the room with a loud piercing tone. ("That's why I always wear earplugs around Chloe," remarks her sister and bandmate Asy Saavedra.) Fortunately for John Richards, the crew, and any…
Two and a half years have passed since Purity Ring dropped their debut LP Shrines on 4AD. Every time I hear that, I'm totally baffled. How has it only been two and a half years? It feels like Purity Ring have been a household indie pop name for an eternity. After a handful of one off singles over t…
