Chicago guitarist/songwriter Ryley Walker blows back into the Emerald City to bring a little Windy City whimsy into the KEXP live room. Drawing likely comparisons to Tim Buckley and Ray Lamontagne for his heartfelt folk style, Walker treats us to four fabulous cuts from his sophomore LP, Primrose G…
There's always drama with Tame Impala, according to frontman and band mastermind Kevin Parker, but this time, it's only relative to the backstage amenities: the refrigerator holding their beer is leaking. But considering that Parker and his bandmates have their light show and all of their gear – wh…
There have been so many excellent summer festivals, it's been hard to keep up, but one line-up you shouldn't miss is the one at the 33rd Annual West Seattle Summer Fest! From Friday, July 10th to Sunday, July 12th, the West Seattle Junction will be bustling with entertainment, shopping, and fun for…
Christopher Owens is in love with himself. Chrissybaby Forever, his third solo album, finds the former Girls frontman getting back to basics by writing and recording almost entirely alone. Aided by engineer J.J. Wiesler, Owens performed all instruments, only calling in a few friends for backups. As…
It's not difficult to assay Purity Ring's latest album, Another Eternity. Based on the first three singles, the sophomore effort was undoubtedly pure gold in its alchemic union of Corin Roddick's beats and production and Megan James's resonant voice. The Edmonton duo have added further luster to th…
Take a musical road trip with DJ Kevin Cole: today, on The Afternoon Show on KEXP, he presents 50 States/50 Bands. From 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM, he'll be playing a band from every state in the U.S.A. in celebration of Independence Day. Tune in and see who he chooses for your home state. You don't have t…
Raising money is fun! As we think of new ways to connect KEXP supporters with their favorite artists during our KEXP's New Home campaign, no idea is off the table - not even bowling with Shakey Graves. As it turns out, the young Texas troubadour and his band are big-time bowlers, so much so that th…
There's over 20 live videos from Canadian bands listed below, and that's just scratching the surface of how many of our neighbors to the North have stopped by KEXP. And, whaddya know, our very own DJ Cheryl Waters just happens to also book these in-studios... coincidence? Cheryl has long championed…
On this installment of Immigrant Songs, I had the great pleasure of interviewing the Ghanaian-American Hip Hop artist Blitz the Ambassador. Blitz (a.k.a. Samuel Bazawule) represents a modern perspective on the immigrant experience: deeply colored by the internet and mobile technology, and a with a …

In 2018, KEXP celebrated the 30th anniversary of local record label Sub Pop with a four-month retrospective, "counting up" every catalog number in their vast discography of over 1,200 releases. Dig into the archives of our catalog coverage, featuring in-depth coverage on the history of their releases.