“I'm just writing to write and to let that be heard.” Luz Elena Mendoza says she processes events and experiences pretty quickly, and it shows in her songs, full of musical ideas with vibrant energy. The Y La Bamba leader clearly has a lot to say, and in this session with DJ Sharlese on Audio…
Underneath shimmering textures and spiky rhythms, The Drums have always kept their heart on their musical sleeves, with Jonathan Pierce effortlessly dropping sentimental expressions alongside darkly-tinted humor alongside each other. That's no different on the band's latest album “Abysmal Though…
Twenty two years after its release, Jeremy Enigk's Return of the Frog Queen continues to enrapture with its baroque arrangements and Enigk's inimitable songwriting. Performing four cuts from the album alongside a new song on KEXP's broadcast from the Upstream Music Festival with a …
Even if the definition of "Northwestern band” has to be stretched a little to include the Alaskan outfit Portugal. The Man, they have plenty of Northwest ties. Returning to the KEXP studios for a session featuring songs from their last three albums (all of which had a portion recorded in Seat…
Hamilton Leithauser is a veteran of the KEXP studios by this point in his career, but his rough and tumble brand of doo wop-damaged rock has never sounded as rich as it has on his 2016 collaborative album with Rostam, I Had a Dream That You Were Mine. The New York City songwriter is in fine form a…
To name your debut LP The Epic takes quite a bit of confidence, but in the case of Kamasi Washington, it's the only title that would make sense. The Californian saxophonist, composer, and bandleader's sweeping style of jazz is nearly overwhelming in its scope and scale, but Washington's virtuousti…
A modern journeyman of sorts, 28 year-old songwriter Kevin Morby has spent close to a decade releasing music while moving through different musical outfits and cities. Now based in Los Angeles, Morby and his band return to KEXP to share the traveler's tales on the Kansas City native's third album,…
Melbourne, Australia-based seven piece fuzz-driven psychedelic garage band King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard deliver a mindbogglingly amazing performance of songs from their new record "Quarters" and the out-of-this-world record "I'm In Your Mind Fuzz" live on KEXP's The Mid…
The night after the end of this year's Capitol Hill Block Party, Waxahatchee played the Neptune Theater, joined by Cayetana and Snail Mail. This timing dig beg the question of why the Block Party bookers did not snag Crutchfield & co. Either way, the bands played spirited sets, filling the thou…
Here in the Northwest, our love of biking is right on par with our love of local music. The Gigantic Bicycle Festival is the ideal intersection between these two passions, and then some. On August 18 to 20th, the festival returns to Snoqualmie with three days of energizing PNW bands, locally produc…
Tonight The Paramount is filled with Northwest pride, a sense of growing up, and “WOOOOOO”s. Seattle band Sloucher is first to take the stage. They are quite the classic take on a Northwest pastime of mixing grunge with alternative rock and singer-songwriter vibes. Sparklehorse, Ben Kweller, and Sw…
The night after the end of this year's Capitol Hill Block Party, Waxahatchee played the Neptune Theater, joined by Cayetana and Snail Mail. This timing dig beg the question of why the Block Party bookers did not snag Crutchfield & co. Either way, the bands played spirited sets, filling the thou…
It's been almost two decades, but it's finally here: the latest from Australian band The Avalanches! KEXP Music Director Don Yates describes the album as "another impressive full-length of cut-and-paste collage-pop incorporating a dizzying multitude of samples, field recordings and guests vocalists…
On Sunday, August 23, KEXP proudly presents Raw Power KEXP, an all-star tribute to proto-punks Iggy and the Stooges. All week long we’ve been asking the members of the Raw Power band - Mike McCready, Duff McKagan, Mark Arm, and Barrett Martin - why they love the Stooges.
On Sunday, August 23, KEXP proudly presents Raw Power KEXP, an all-star tribute to proto-punks Iggy and the Stooges. Every day for the rest of this week, we’re asking the members of the Raw Power band - Mike McCready, Duff McKagan, Mark Arm, and Barrett Martin - why they love the Stooges.
On Sunday, August 23, KEXP proudly presents Raw Power KEXP, an all-star tribute to proto-punks Iggy and the Stooges. Every day for the rest of this week, we’re asking the members of the Raw Power band - Mike McCready, Duff McKagan, Mark Arm, and Barrett Martin - why they love the Stooges.
This past Thursday at the Sunset Tavern over in Ballard was blessed to be hosting an intimate showing of some of the most face melting and forward thinking UK indie rock that’s around today. You might think that’s a big statement - and it is. The band, you ask? None other than Drenge. And if you mi…
This is a big summer for Fauna Shade. They have a new singles premiering, a showcase with KEXP, gigs at summer music festivals and features on Seattle radio stations. For singer Scotty Smith, it's the dream life. We got a chance to catch up with Smith during this whirlwind experience and ask him a …
When Brandi Carlile and her cohorts Tim and Phil Hanseroth (a.k.a. The Twins) take the stage this Friday night at the Moore Theatre for a sold-out “Pin Drop” show to benefit KEXP’s New Home, you can expect to hear new songs crackling with energy and emotion. That’s a direct outcome of the real life…
When Lost Lander's Matt Sheehy sings, "It feels like we've been walking on wire," we can relate. It's a tightrope act with the band Lost Lander, a tension created by catchy loops, and layered lyrics, either of which are all too easy to get lost in. "Hold onto that thread," Sheehy advises, and he's …
