Hop Along frontwoman Frances Quinlan's distinctive voice has been compared to everything from a hurricane to sandpaper and everything in between, but what ultimately makes it so magnetic is its emotiveness, it's ability to sound human and stand out when surrounded by the pointed bluster of her band…
Suuns are riding high this year following the release of their second full-length Images Du Futur, and when they showed up to play at KEXP's broadcast in Mellow Johnny's Bike Shop at SXSW the crowd got to see the band burn with confidence through a set of powerful, propulsive post-rock. Suuns alwa…
Aaron Beam, bassist for Portland’s Red Fang, once told me that he believed the long-standing punk-versus-metal dichotomy died when Metallica’s 1984 sophomore album Ride the Lightning came out. I believe he is correct, and the fact that Oakland, California’s Neurosis formed in 1985 only provides mor…
Over decades of milquetoast radio throwaways and sales taking precedent over content, it's undeniable: pop music has lost its sensibility of the extreme. But all is not lost in the brave new world of the digital age. Need evidence? Look no further than Prince Rama's press release for their new albu…
Rock n' roll legend Fats Domino has passed away at the age of 89, due to natural causes. Born Antoine Domino in 1928, "Fats" combined the bluesy sound of his hometown of New Orleans with a boogie-woogie style to become one of the top artists of the 1950s and early '60s, including the hits "Ain't T…
Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unrealeased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJ’s think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on the Mo…
The best collection of rock and roll comics of late recently premiered at the Emerald City Comic Convention in Seattle this past weekend, but won’t be available en masse from publisher Fantagraphics Books Inc. till May 17. Be sure to pre-order Peter Bagge’s Other Stuff soon though, because it is an…
How is walking through the woods on a foggy, chilly late spring day similar to strolling past the closed fun houses and ferris wheels on a boardwalk at the end of summer? You could just as easily listen to the melancholic surf bee-bop of Seattle's La Luz in both of the situations. What started at a…
Though he performs ceaselessly with superhuman energy, though he's already dropped two records this year (Demos Vol. 1 and last week's Some Other Ones) and this will be his third for 2015, and though his character and charisma both shine like a demigod of whimsy, Mac DeMarco is more human than all …
I don't know if there's a UK producer on the scene who has had a bigger 2014 than Hudson Mohawke. The Glasgow native has been riding an unstoppable wave of momentum that hasn't stopped since his collaboration with Lunice, TNGHT, put out their eponymous EP back in July of 2012. Since then, I don't t…
The Portland-based experimental band Grails is back with their latest album, Anches en Maat.
Mudhoney guitarist Steve Turner has written a memoir about it all called Mud Ride: A Messy Trip Through the Grunge Explosion.
John Richards is back to fuel your run with messages about dogs, plus great music from Nilufer Yanya, Ride, Nada Surf, and... SQUIRREL!!!
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Yoni & Geti's Testarossa project is one of the most refreshing albums of the year, full stop. It brings two repeat collaborators together for a project that plays into each of their strengths with twice the strength and precision of any previous joint efforts by a mile. Furthermore, it's a larg…
It's no surprise that British downtempo pop group London Grammar sold out their second Seattle show in six months Saturday night. Back when they played the Crocodile at the end of September, their excellent first full length If You Wait had just come out only weeks before in the states. Now that it…
Wow, another year of Bumbershoot action already over, and what a ride it was! This year's festival was truly a different beast. With the new overhead having a full year to strategize and plan logistics, it seemed like by day 3, a lot of these were starting to go out the window. Crowd rushing in the…
