These days, it's a lot easier to sell headlines than it is to sell records. If you write a great pop song, your best bets to sell are either to stack it so chock full of name-drops that you hardly see your own, or to dial the clickbait schtick meter up as high as it will go. But when presented with…
Now in its third season, the Amazon.com original series The Man in the High Castle has an excellent soundtrack thanks to Danger Mouse and producer Sam Cohen. This spring, those songs are being collected for Resistance Radio, a compilation featuring tracks from Angel Olsen, Beck, the Shins, MGMT’s …
Summing a two-song barrage in the KEXP studio by New Zealand's Salad Boys, DJ Kevin Cole exclaimed that they sound like "the best of The Feelies, Velvet Underground and Yo La Tengo in one song". While they certainly make a lovable racket channeling those and other legendary bands from their hometow…
Levi's has produced a short documentary, titled Skateboarding In Pine Ridge, which features an original score by Slint's David Pajo, and a brand new song from Cat Power, titled "Anthem." Watch the 17-minute film below to hear both. Director Greg Hunt captures two skatepark-building projects in Sou…
Local hip hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis return with the sentimental track "Growing Up," dedicated to Macklemore’s baby daughter, Sloane. He says on his website, "When you try to escape yourself, life has an interesting way of creating situations that force you to come back. To look at who yo…
Everyone's recovering from the long Memorial Day weekend, including the music industry, but there are still some excellent new releases awake today. One of the highlights is the third full-length from Portland band Unknown Mortal Orchestra. KEXP Music Director Don Yates calls it "an adventurous, im…
It had been almost a year to the day when Sam France of Foxygen fell off stage, canceling their 2013 tour just as it was getting started, but now he and songwriting partner Jonathan Rado are back with a vengeance... a glittery, glammy vengeance. The duo just announced the followup to their epic We …
It's been three long years, but Bon Iver is back with a single for the new Zach Braff film, Wish I Was Here. (The soundtrack also boasts a new song from The Shins, as reported on last month.) You can stream the haunting track "Heavenly Father" via NPR Music. The soundtrack will be out digitally an…
"If you ever woke up in a bed without somebody, and you didn't know the bed or the room or the city, this song might be for you," says guitarist and vocalist Brad Barr of the new song we're premiering today by The Barr Brothers. Any discomfort, though, is less than temporary. "Even the Darkness Has…
Although it began as an anonymous solo project, Arthur Ashin's Autre Ne Veut has emerged as one of the leaders of the current electronic and indie-tinged R&B explosion. Now that the project has evolved into an entity outside of his bedroom, Ashin's live takes on the songs from Anxiety, his seco…
Divine Fits, a super-group of sorts featuring Britt Daniel from Spoon, New Bomb Turk's Sam Brown, and Wolf Parade's Dan Boeckner, played their first show together in Austin last year before going on to release one of the best LPs of 2012 with A Thing Called Divine Fits. The came full circle last n…
Brooklyn-based band Antibalas, which is Spanish for "bulletproof", released their fifth studio album last August. This release really launched them on a sizable worldwide tour and lucky for us they happened to make a stop in Seattle. Founded in the late 90s, Antibalas has never strayed from their s…
From the big stadium to the intimate studio, British group Bloc Party, who made a name for themselves with a big Brit Pop influenced guitar sound, recently stopped by KEXP to strip down their sound to bare essentials. What makes this acoustic session even more special and rare is the band's continu…
Ty Segall stopped by Conan last night to announce his forthcoming album Freedom's Goblin and to perform a brand new song "Fanny Dog." He performed the song about his dog Fanny with seven other bandmates, including a three-piece horn section, all dressed in white jumpsuits. Segall has also shared an…
Alt-J have shared an incredibly cinematic video for "Pleader," off their latest album Relaxer, released back in June. Directed by Isaiah Seret, the exact plot is difficult to derive but according to the band: "When we set out to make a video for 'Pleader,' Joe sent the following one-line brief to d…
Angel Olsen is releasing a collection of outtakes and rarities called Phases this Friday, November 10 via Jagjaguwar. Today she's given us the previously unreleased song "Sans," which was written in between Burn Your Fire For No Witness and My Woman. Olsen called the song, "something short and simp…
After 10 amazing years at KEXP, DJ El Toro is moving to Tucson, AZ next month. In his final “Music That Matters” podcast, you'll hear some of his favorite new songs, with special emphasis on punk and no wave veterans (Jah Wobble, Alice Bag, James Chance) who continue to innovate and instigate…
Join KEXP on Tuesday, May 25th as we play songs of hope, justice, and change, songs that affirm Black humanity.
It’s time again for Friday on My Mind. Our weekly blog post where we look at videos centered around one common theme. This is a collaborative effort between KEXP and King 5 News.
