No, we haven't time-warped to twenty years ago: on this holiday week, the reissues and anniversary editions dominate the new release list. One of the highlights is the reissue of Flake Music's 1997 debut (and sole release) When You Land Here, It’s Time to Return. Flake Music was an early incarnatio…
Earlier this year, Swedish sister duo First Aid Kit released their third album, Stay Gold, and the siblings do just that in the video for the title track, streaming below. In the clip, Klara and Johanna Söderberg wander dreamily around the island of Gotland. Check it out, and tune in on Saturday, …
Toronto-based trio The Rural Alberta Advantage burst onto the scene back in 2006, racking up countless awards and accolades with each release: two Juno Award Nominations (Best New Group, Video of the Year), a long list nomination for the Polaris Music Prize, and rave reviews across the board. KEXP …
Today, indie rock duo The Raveonettes pulled a Beyonce and surprise released their album Pe'ahi,named after a surfing spot in Maui. The opening track "Endless Sleeper" according to Sune Rose Wagner refers to "a horrific near-drowning experience I had in Hawaii some years ago. It’s about taking ris…
It's been four long years, but Canadian supergroup The New Pornographers have announced a new album, Brill Bruisers, out August 26th. The line-up will yet again feature A.C. Newman, Blaine Thurier, Dan Bejar, John Collins, Kathryn Calder, Kurt Dahle, Neko Case, and Todd Fancey. Check out the titl…
Sadly, we lost Chicago footwork pioneer DJ Rashad earlier this year, but before he passed, he and his Teklife crew did this remix of the Sleigh Bells track "Young Legends," off their most recent release, Bitter Rivals. Check it out below. [Stereogum]
This Saturday’s Record Store Day will be kind of like the Easter egg hunt for me and my fellow music lovers and record collecting geeks. We’ll gleefully race down the aisles in search of that colorful surprise and treat. And, this year there are plenty of goodies — rarities, long out-of-print re-is…
It's enough to make you curl up screaming in the fetal position – the number of amazing Icelandic releases in 2013, that is. As if 2012 wasn't already such a great year, but damn, 2013 proves there's no end to the wealth of talent on the arctic island. Since they're each so great in different ways,…
Dance label LuckyMe is releasing a new, free song a every day until Christmas as a part of their own amazing advent calendar. Today's offering (Day 17) is "Terra Star" from Scottish producer Rustie. It's a more intense version of his song "City Star" that he released last year. Download it here, a…
Brooklyn synthpop trio Au Revoir Simone are back after a four year hiatus, and we were thrilled to have them as part of our CMJ broadcast from Judson Memorial Church. After a lovely walk around Washington Square Park with their young superfan, we stopped for a chat about parenthood, '80s beats, and…
Earlier this year, post-punk legends Wire conceived of a music festival, DRILL. Frontman Colin Newman explains, "The concept is simple: it's an unpretentious city festival featuring artists from across all genres actively curated by Wire with a lot of input from local, informed media partners. The …
Some artists come out of their bedroom studios only to return to the comfort of their four-tracks, and some emerge from the loft and never go back. Stuart McLamb, the creative force behind North Carolina's The Love Language, clearly falls into the latter category. Even when he was technologically l…
Last year Frankie Rose, formerly of the dream pop bands Vivian Girls/Crystal Stilts/Dum Dum Girls, stepped into her own solo career and released her breezy debut album, Interstellar. This September she will follow it up with Herein Wild and today we have the first single to sink our teeth into. "S…
A few days after releasing their excellent debut album Amok, Atoms For Peace have revealed the first live dates behind their new LP. In addition to the DJ sets Thom York and Nigel Godrich announced for last week, the whole band has been confirmed for three European festivals in mid-July. According …
Farewell, Kevin Ayers. The co-founder of the pastoral prog-rock group The Soft Machine in the late 60s and celebrated solo artist died two days ago in his sleep. Ayers had came out of a 15-year reclusive existence in France in 2007 to release The Unfairground, on which he collaborated with member…
You won't be surprised to that members of Song Sparrow Research have roots in jazz and choir. As friends and classmates, Hamilton Boyce and David Balatero were both in school bands at Seattle's Garfield High, and now make lush folk-tinged chamber pop as together in this five member band. Equally a…
It's been a big year for Chicano Batman. The L.A. four-piece released the Freedom is Free, their third album in total and first on big-time indie label ATO Records. They made their first appearance on late night TV, performing on Conan in May, and hit the festival circuit hard, playing top slots at…
When Seattle prog-rock purveyors Merso released last year's Red World, they sought to examine what it's like to become a monster, drawing heavily from Alan Moore's iconic run of the Swamp Thing comics. Monsters can be a hard thing to define. They're not always the mythic beasts we see in literature…
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, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on The Afte…
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, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. This week, we are featuring songs …
