You know when Hamilton Leithauser is about to hit a key vocal line. Like Arjen Robben dropping his shoulder before shooting on goal or Michael Jordan sticking his tongue out before driving to the hoop, Leithauser pulls the mic away from his face, tightens his shoulders, and then nails it - whether …
Every once in a while, I post an album from a band that's been so minimally documented on the Internet that I feel I'm adding significantly to the body of public knowledge about them with one little blog post. This is dangerous because usually I know next to nothing about these bands. Take Ism, for…
The last time Foals were in town, frontman Yannis Philipakkis jumped off the Neptune Theatre's balcony into the crowd. It was, quite frankly, as thrilling as it was dangerous. On the band's return trip to Seattle three years later, he (wisely) did not jump from the Paramount Theatre's balcony. Pers…
And so we witnessed another amazing music festival! This time it was the 4th annual Macefield Music Festival that took place this weekend across Conor Byrne, Tractor Tavern, The Sunset Tavern, and the charmingly bricked streets of Ballard Ave. Macefield Music Festival was named after Edith Macefiel…
Beach House has shared the track "Chariot" off their upcoming album B-Sides and Rarities, a collection of 14 tracks that never made it onto any of their 6 previous albums. "Chariot" comes from the Depression Cherry and Thank Your Lucky Stars era; both albums were released in 2015 only months apart.…
Northwest artist/musician Geneviève Castrée lost her battle with pancreatic cancer this past Saturday. Castrée recorded music under the names Woelv and Ô Paon for local labels K, Marriage Records, and her spouse's label, P.W. Elverum & Sun. She was an accomplished artist, releasing her debut g…
As the sun set on KEXP's 2016 Hood to Hood broadcast from the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, the party headed a few miles away to the Skylark Cafe where DJ Troy Nelson was hosting an evening of local music. It's a good thing the show was All Ages, because we had the winners of this year's youth-o…
Out in support of her third album, New View, Eleanor Friedberger stopped by the KEXP studios to share some of the new tracks. This wasn't her first time in studio - she was here back in 2013 in support of Personal Record , but it's clear that three years of grind have sharpened her act. Her albums …
The fact that Theoretics remixed the Blade Runner theme a few months back automatically backs up drummer Adam Gross' statement, "We're all sort of sci-fi nerds." A five-piece livetronica band from our very own city, Theoretics certainly deliver sound-wise, taking us on a funky space-age aural explo…
London, Morrocco, West Africa, Hell, Plastic Beach, Congo, London (again), and now Hong Kong. Damon Albarn's globe-trotting take on pop music has brought him far beyond Britpop, to say the least. But as he travels across the globe and in and out of projects, the line between his personal and preten…
Beloved Northwest duo The Helio Sequence share a vibrant video for the track "Upward Mobility" off their upcoming self-titled full-length out May 19th on Sub Pop. The clip, directed by Emanuele Kabu, is a fun, animated experience. Watch below. The Helio Sequence will be LIVE on KEXP on Tuesday, Ma…
Toronto indie rock band Alvvays introduced themselves to Seattle in quite a dazzling fashion Tuesday night. This was the band's last US show on the tour supporting their fantastic self-titled debut (out now on Polyvinyl) before heading up across the border to finish things off before the end of the…
Perfume Genius mastermind Mike Hadreas is a local, but it wasn't until the 2010 Matador 21 anniversary shows in Las Vegas that I first saw him live. Sandwiched on the bill between two iconic heavyweights (Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and Cat Power, for crissakes), Mike sat timidly behind his piano w…
Decked out in polychromatic tees, unabashedly hip San Francisco band Painted Palms lit up KEXP with a vibrant live set back in July. The band, brainchild of Louisiana-born cousins Christopher Prudhomme and Reese Donohue, released their new album, Forever, on Polyvinyl Records earlier this year. The…
I've covered Beat Happening records in this space before, but it's been just over six years, so I figure the time is ripe to go back to that well. For my previous post, I compared the reactions to the Oly DIY heroes' first and fourth albums. Today we'll split the difference (sort of) and go back to…
Twenty-plus years into a varied and universally celebrated career, Spoon can still surprise and delight us. They Want My Soul, the Austin-based band's follow-up to 2010's Transference, has all the Spoon hallmarks you expect: the fiery voice of frontman Britt Daniel, the wry if sometimes bittersweet…
Not all of the magical places in Iceland are majestic glaciers, crystal waterfalls, bubbling thermal springs, or the lava field dwellings of the so-called hidden folk -- some are as common as public swimming pools. Sundlaugin, for instance, was for some sixty years a local pool just outside Reykja…
Although they're mostly critical darlings in the United States, Elbow have been headlining stadiums and festivals in their native UK for a few years now, so it's no surprise that their Sunday evening set on the main stage at Sasquatch was a brilliant display of showmanship. Their latest album, Marc…
It's hard to believe it's already been three years since the release of the Fleet Foxes album Helplessness Blues (voted #1 album of 2011 by KEXP listeners). Frontman Robin Pecknold took to Facebook yesterday to share an update:
For anyone who’s curious, this is a short Fleet Foxes update – been a w…
After the band finished ripping through a particularly danceable rendition of "Spirit" off their new record Singles, Future Islands frontman Sam Herring looked down at his sweat soaked shirt and pants. After a failed attempt to wring a piece of it out, he just laughed along with the rest of the cro…
