Holy hell, what an epic finish! Legendary Icelandic band HAM took over Kex Hostel for our final show of the day from Iceland Airwaves. And when we say took over, we really mean it. These heavy rockers formed in 1984, but it was a series of opening gigs for The Sugarcubes in 1988 that began to garne…
Pinch yourself, because this is really happening. Not only are The Dream Syndicate back in Seattle for the first time in 25 years - they also are playing an additional set for the KEXP Music Lounge to bring us as close as possible to this timeless and influential act. From their debut EP through fo…
In an industry where auto-tune is often synonymous with lack of talent, the vocals of Channy Leaneagh, frontwoman of Minneapolis electro-pop group Poliça, are boldly filtered through reverb and auto-tune on each of their albums. But the use of these tools is an overt stylistic choice for Leaneagh a…
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 …
Sometimes life's journeys lead us back home matter how far away we travel. It's been nearly eight years since U.K. born producer Will Holland released a solo album as Quantic. He was certainly busy the whole time, producing records, collaborating with Alice Russell, and most significantly, moving t…
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…
The boozy blues of obsession and regret never sounded so good... at least not in the last 16 years. It's been that long since The Afghan Whigs released an album and its members turned their attention elsewhere. Yet, while other 90's bands are now cashing in on their notoriety with 20- and 25-year a…
It’s always interesting when you learn about an artist’s path to recognition – and it’s even more captivating when it involves details and arcs you’d never expect. This is the intriguing life of singer-songwriter Laura Veirs: she was raised in Colorado in the 70s, where she studied geology and Mand…
Since Kim Deal left, iconic band The Pixies have had a public struggle trying to replace her. And in a recent interview with Brooklyn Vegan, drummer David Lovering acknowledges that Deal is irreplaceable: "Basically, no-one can replace Kim Deal. It would be impossible to do." Kim Shattuck of the M…
Phantogram can't help but fire up your passion. The upstate New York electro pop duo of Sarah Barthel and Josh Carter came on strong with their seductive self-titled EP back in 2009, which they followed with two increasingly alluring LPs quickly in the next two years, but then left us hot and bothe…
A few years ago, "chill wave" seemed all anyone could talk about, and Washed Out was among the first on the scene with the ubiquitous single "Feel It All Around". But while the fad died out, the Georgia-based bedroom composer Ernest Greene developed the his free-floating sound into a full live proj…
Although it might shift to include Sasquatch and Governor’s Ball next year, there are essentially four music festivals that form the festival season narrative in 2013. Typically, Coachella sets the bar for the rest of the year in April, Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza try and outdo it through sheer size …
Robert Glasper was exposed to music at a young age. His mother brought him as a boy out to her jazz and blues gigs, and he also learned much about music in church, where he began to sing and mix gospel and jazz harmonies. Since those humble but enriching beginnings, Glasper has built a strong caree…
<pOn any given weekend in Seattle, there are a million amazing shows to see - from jazz at a coffee shop or theater, to a grunge show at a DIY space, to a major act at any one of our large venues. Maybe this weekend you want to try something new, maybe you heard one song by this small electronic…
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…
Beach Slang either have terrible luck or are possibly not very good at locking up their equipment. The band announced today that they were, once again, robbed. The unfortunate event happened right here, in Seattle, after their November 11 show at Chop Suey. Their brief statement on Facebook reads: …
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…
Afternoon Show host Kevin Cole shares some of his favorites of 2015. The mix features artists from the Northwest such as Father John Misty and Sleater-Kinney, as well as those as far away as Iceland and Russia. Relive what was a great year of music and maybe discover some new artists that you may …
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…
When given the chance to introduce himself, Scott Teske of the Seattle Rock Orchestra had a pretty straightforward agenda at Monday night's Neumos show. "We just like music", he laughed, jostling his bass, "and we like this crazy collaborations". Crazy collaboration does not begin to describe the m…
