We've got new releases from a few music veterans this week. British rock legends The Rolling Stones return with their first album in 11 years. KEXP Music Director Don Yates calls it, "a shockingly potent set of Chicago blues. The band sounds raw and vital, and Mick Jagger tears into the set list of mostly lesser-known Chicago blues songs with gusto. Easily their strongest album in decades." Nobel Prize-winning artist Bob Dylan shares a new old release, a 2-CD live album from the first of four shows at London's Royal Albert Hall, recorded in 1966. Venerable British artist Kate Bush also shares a concert LP, "a 3-CD, 155-minute live set recorded during a 22-night residency at London's Hammersmith Apollo in 2014. Overall, it's a beautifully crafted, lushly arranged set of theatrical prog-pop, though occasionally some of the theatrical elements detract from the songs."
Italian group Soviet Soviet release their sophomore full-length, "a consistently strong set of dark, '80s-steeped post-punk with stormy angular guitar riffs, driving rhythms, dramatic vocals and anthemic song hooks." Singer/songwriters Damien Jurado and Richard Swift reunite for a informal set of covers. (The two collaborated on producing Jurado's 2010 album Saint Bartlett.) "Not only is the source material remarkably diverse, but the album's lo-fi, psych-tinged sound contains distinct echoes of the adventurous production work to come on Jurado's following albums." And The Last Shadow Puppets -- a side project of Alex Turner (Arctic Monkeys) and Miles Kane (The Rascals) -- release an EP of covers and re-recordings of two songs from their last full-length, Everything You've Come to Expect.
Album releases are slowing down as we approach the holidays, but there are still some standouts to be found. Actor/writer/producer/comedian/musician Donald Glover returns for his third LP under the Childish Gambino alias, an album KEXP Music Director Don Yates calls, "easily his strongest musical s…
Bon Dimanche! It’s written in graffiti on several buildings all over Rennes. Happy Sunday! Sunday is the day of rest for the French people and even our crew got to take a small break on the final day of filming during the Trans Musicales festival. Normally, we’re up by 6am, breakfast at 7, out the …
Late November might seem like a crazy time to visit Helsinki, Finland, but not if you’re going for Slush 2016, a high-energy gathering of global tech heads focused on entrepreneurship and new developments and ideas in technology. This was the first year they had a full day of music programming, br…
Despite being Black Friday, quite a slew of new albums hit the stores last week, including the highly anticipated third album from The Weeknd. It's a star-studded affair featuring guest appearances from Daft Punk, Lana Del Rey, Future, and Kendrick Lamar. Swedish psych rockers Dungen share their la…
