Tom Krell sure had one hell of a year last year. The new How To Dress Well record, Total Loss, was almost unanimously well received for its bare bones mixture of R&B and electronica. It also helps that it was a heartfelt, heartbroken record that tells the true story of Krell's last year (read m…
From their very first single, "Found Love in a Graveyard," London by way of Glasgow band Veronica Falls set the tone of their future releases: their sunny take on gloomy topics makes for happy listening in the darkened Northwest, that's for sure. Their 2011 self-titled debut channeled everyone from…
LA band Milo Greene play what they have dubbed "cinematic-pop". Theirs is an expansive sound, that has the ability to transport you and envelop you like good film music does -- but they also hang on to a pop sensibility that allows the film-less music to stand on its own (again, as good film music…
You can't help but note the stylization of their name: Elliott BROOD. The Toronto-area trio practically over emphasize their music's dark tendencies but it's with a touch of comedy that's always present in their stage shows. It's the one of the reasons KEXP DJs and listeners have loved the band for…
The album cover for Minnesota rapper Brother Ali's 2012 LP, Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color, features the Muslim artist praying towards Mecca and kneeling on an American flag as his prayer rug. The image encapsulates much of the spirit which Brother Ali has staked his career on. Brother…
Though named for a popular British toy company, Chad Valley is more than just a plaything Oxford, UK's Hugo Manuel. Also the frontman for the group Jonquil, Manuel has turned a couple of lo-fi solo EPs into a fully realized project of lush, summery synth-pop. Like Jonquil, Chad Valley features Manu…
David Bazan has a knack for writing dark pop songs. Control, an album he released ten years ago with his former band, Pedro the Lion, is filled with lies, adultery, murder, and some melodies that you'll want to hear over and over again, even while the lyrics give you chills. Bazan and his band perf…
Seattle songwriter Kris Orlowski has the honesty, voice, and soul needed in a great pop folk songwriter. Since the mid-2000s, Orlowski has been on the Seattle circuit building a reputation for the highest quality songwriting with an equally talented band that seems to understand every turn and moo…
Last month, Charles Bradley and the Menahan Street Band stopped by our studio to deliver a special joint session for KEXP listeners. The Menahan Street Band -- featuring members from the NYC Daptone Records soul and funk world including the Budos Band, Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, and Antibalas…
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.
