Roddy Nikpour talks with Chris Read, head of content at WhoSampled, about four iconic tracks from 1990
Martin Douglas revisits 2011 with the track “Thuggin’” by Freddie Gibbs and Madlib.
Janice Headley revisits the Cedar Park Jams, which kicked off in the spring of 1974.
Dusty Henry dives into Millions of Dead Cops by MDC, a prime example of the powerful fusion between hardcore punk and politics.
Martin Douglas dives into the supreme weirdness of Philosophy of the World by The Shaggs.
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At a particularly triumphant moment in his Paramount debut, John Carpenter looks out at the crowd and smiles. "All my career I've made horror movies", he laughs, while the crowd, obviously, shouts and cheers and screams in acknowledgement. "I love horror movies", he smiles, "and horror movies will …
When you wish upon some stars... I guess that's really the only way to start any write up of Polaris being active again 20 years after the recording of their only record. In the recent trend of album anniversary tours, there's one record that I and many, many other listeners never could have imagin…
Where do you draw the line between the man Ariel Rosenberg and Ariel Pink, the rock icon and sex god character he's brewed up to give to all of us over the last 15 years? That's not a rhetorical question - honestly, I couldn't tell you. I don't think there's a good answer. But then again, with a re…
Thanks to you, KEXP has hit another milestone! This past weekend, we added one more thing to be thankful for as we surpassed half a billion views on our YouTube channel! Back when we first brought video cameras into our live room, nearly ten years ago, we couldn't have imagined the impact KEXP vide…
Lemolo has a knack for nostalgic imagery in their videos. Earlier this year, we premiered the video for the dream-pop act's "One to Love", which featured songwriter Meagan Grandall walking the eerie streets of her hometown of Poulsbo, Washington. With "Casting Call", Grandall ventures even further …
Most bands start by writing songs at home and recording in their basements. For David Bazan, it took nearly two decades to get there. The former Pedro the Lion bandleader and subsequent solo artist has long been a local treasure, appealing to a generation of Northwest indie kids in the 90s and 2000…
Loyal listeners of The Roadhouse on KEXP may have noticed host Greg Vandy was absent a bit last year... well, now you can hold in your hand the reason why: 26 Songs in 30 Days: Woody Guthrie's Columbia River Songs and the Planned Promised Land in the Pacific Northwest, out now via Sasquatch Books. …
Opening this year’s live broadcast from Kex Hostel at Iceland Airwaves Music Festival is Icelandic experimental electro-pop band East of My Youth. Formed just last year, East of My Youth created a lot of buzz with their first single “Lemonstars” at the end of last summer, and have since been on a s…
Historically, Capitol Hill Block Party hasn't booked that many legacy acts, but when they do, they don't screw around. The Flaming Lips' triumphant '13 set, Neko Case's quiet hurricane of a performance in 2012, and now Built To Spill's '15 set will surely go down in those ranks. Built To Spill's le…
Truly, we can't do without you, Dan Snaith. With a discography 15 years deep and only getting sweeter with time, any chance to see Snaith in any venue under any of his monikers is an incredible blessing. In fact, I bet he could have sold just as many tickets throwing a DJ set as Daphni or even just…
When I’ve seen Nils Frahm in the past, it’s been during Decibel Festival, an annual electronic music and visuals festival in Seattle which KEXP covers every year. Because of the event’s interest in creative collaborations, Frahm has been given ample attention to look and sound his best, often paire…
It's funny that while we're getting some of our brightest days right now here in Seattle, some of this week's most exciting new releases are some of the year's darkest. Buzzy new British band Savages tops this week's list with one of the best albums so far of the year. Our Music Director, Don Yates…
Janice Headley revisits 1981 with the track “Rapture” by Blondie, who leveraged their celebrity to shine a spotlight on hip-hop.