Closing out this year’s video stream live from Kex Hostel at Iceland Airwaves music festival were legendary Icelandic rock band HAM. It was with a few gigs opening for the Sugarcubes in 1988 that HAM’s popularity bloomed, especially in Nordic countries (this part of the world does love their heavy …
Vancouver, BC artist Dan Bejar -- better known as Destroyer -- returns with his 11th album, which KEXP Music Director Don Yates describes as "a powerful set of dark,'80s-steeped New Wave/post-punk with prominent percussive synths, gleaming guitars and occasional strings and horns accompanying his d…
KEXP seems to get gayer every year, and this year's Big Gay Podcast, featuring twenty tracks spanning more than 40 years, is no exception. With everything from vintage queer country to an electronic interpretation of a black metal classic, El Toro's 2014 roundup of songs by, for, and about the LGB…
These are a few of Greg Vandy's favorite things in The Roadhouse and out. Most of his Top 10 LPs are represented here, but also his favorite songs of the year. It was a great year in music! Download, share, and tune into The Roadhouse on Wednesdays from 6-9pm for what's hot in the new year. 1. Pr…
It's been five years since she's toured the States, but who knows how long it's been since she's been to Seattle? That all changes in 2017 as PJ Harvey embarks on a North American tour in support of The Hope Six Demolition Project. A press release states she'll be joined by an impressive 10-piece …
First up on day three of the KEXP broadcast live from KEX Hostel at Iceland Airwaves Music Festival was soulful Icelandic-American blues-rock band Moji & The Midnight Sons. Conceived of in a small Reykjavik whiskey bar under the light of the midnight sun, Moji and the Midnight Sons are new face…
Rounding out an unbelievable first day of KEXP’s Iceland Airwaves broadcast live at Kex Hostel are garage rock legends The Sonics. Formed in Tacoma in 1960, The Sonics are widely regarded as the first garage and first punk band, and have had a wide-reaching influence on the course of garage, punk, …
Imagine a pair of bell-bottoms. A suede vest. A wide collar, strutting leather boots. Similarly, imagine sequins and elongated lashes. Pearls and sly eyes. If you can imagine this, you can begin to sense the spirits that inspired the newest record from Seattle soul and funk group, The True Loves. T…
West coast rapper Tyler, The Creator shares his fourth LP, which boasts the FCC-unfriendly title Scum Fuck Flower Boy. (A representative for TTC says the "official title" is just Flower Boy.) The album features guest appearances by Frank Ocean, ASAP Rocky, Anna of the North, Lil Wayne, Jaden Smith,…
The recently-renamed psych garage band Oh Sees (fka Thee Oh Sees) are gearing up to release their 19th album Orc. Today they've shared their second single "Animated Violence" which is a killer track and makes the anticipation for Orc that much greater. Oh Sees are also auctioning off 14 test pressi…
Every year, Seattle gets a small taste of Sasquatch! Music Festival at home four months before the festival takes place. Sasquatch! Launch Party is a great event every single year, both with or without context. As the rain beats down on the dreariest months of the Seattle year, we all dream of Memo…
In this conversation between Kassa Overall and his former teacher, we hear how Mr. Robert Knatt learned aspects of his teaching philosophy from his own high school band teacher.
KEXP presents rotating art shows in its public Gathering Space.
This week in El Sonido, I’ve got a video round-up and mixtape preview of Primavera Sound 2017.First though, a quick recap of my favorite things from last year. Hands down I have to say my favorite performance from 2016's edition of Primavera was PJ Harvey. I've been a super fan since the early 90s,…
Last month, The Drums shared their first new single in a few years, the super-danceable "Blood Under My Belt." Today, we've got a video for the track, featuring frontman/sole member Jonny Pierce posing against colorful backdrops. In a press release, he shares, "I hate making music videos. But, ala…
Yumi Zouma are four friends that originally grew up together in Christchurch, New Zealand, found themselves in three cities (New York, Paris, Auckland) upon graduating from high school, yet reconnected over the internet to create their charming debut EP in 2014. Their romantic, nostalgia-tinged dre…
Is it really only the fourth annual Fisherman's Village Music Festival? In just a few years, this Northwest fest has established itself as a must-see musical bonanza. This year is no exception: from Friday, May 20th through Sunday, May 22nd, the streets of Everett, Washington will shake with the so…
