Brittany Howard, the powerhouse frontwoman of Alabama Shakes, has released a new album under the moniker Thunderbitch. The group, which has been around since 2012, includes members from the bands Clear Plastic Marks and Fly Golden Eagle. The album is a 10-track offering and is available to stream …
The main reason I pulled this album out is because Richard Lloyd! Television! Not only did I recently see his legendary old band, sadly without him, but it turns out that the man himself is embarking on a very rare solo tour which will bring him to our own beloved Columbia City Theater this Septemb…
Portland-via-New Zealand band Unknown Mortal Orchestra stopped by Late Night With Seth Meyers last night. From atop a white piano, frontman Ruban Nielson delivered a soulful rendition of the title track from their latest release Multi-Love below, out now on Jagjaguwar. Watch their performance belo…
Canada had their day. Of course, America did. And now France celebrates their independence on Bastille Day, or "La Fête Nationale" as they call it. It was on this day in 1789 that the Parisian prison The Bastille was stormed, culminating in the French Revolution. France, and Paris in particular, ha…
Fireworks, indeed! The Dead Weather - the supergroup of Alison Mosshart, Jack White, Dean Fertita and Jack Lawrence - have announced their third album, Dodge & Burn, will be out in September via White's Third Man Records. A press release claims the band will not be touring in support of the al…
Synthpop pioneers New Order return this fall with their first new album in a decade, appropriately titled Music Complete. Founding member Peter Hook does not appear on the release, but Gillian Gilbert, another original member, returns to the fold for the first time since 2001’s Get Ready. The band…
Joe Jackson has never been an easy artist to pin down. His first album's lean, edgy, punk-leaning pop sound has aged incredibly well and influenced a thousand bands (without Look Sharp!, I maintain, there is no Spoon), but over the 35-plus years since then he has constantly played with different fo…
The duo behind The Grizzled Mighty play hard, up-tempo rock. Their big, beefy chords and frenetic drumming inspire the blood cells running in your veins to speed up and push you to new heights. Don't believe us? You can check out the band's new album here and go see them live at Neumos today (Satur…
What a great way to kick off 2015: our very first in-studio session of the year was with Canadian musical craftsmen Dan Mangan + Blacksmith. On his fourth album, Club Meds, out now on Arts & Crafts, the Juno Award-winning singer/songwriter expands into new sonic soundscapes with his band, Black…
The guys from ADHD keep busy with a multitude of projects, but that's not to say they distract easily. In fact, since forming on a whim in 2008, this award-winning Icelandic super-group of sorts has produced five albums of expressive avant jazz. But still, bringing brothers Óskar and Ómar Guðjónsso…
Ian McLagan, keyboardist for the '60s UK rock band Small Faces (later, known in the '70s as the Faces), passed away today at the age of 69. In a statement released by his management, it was reported, "He died today, December 3, 2014, surrounded by family and friends in his adopted hometown of Austi…
Despite the recent years of turmoil that almost resulted in a break-up, the beat goes on for Brooklyn band The Drums. Now stripped down to founding members Jonny Pierce and Jacob Graham, it's been a three-year wait for their latest album, Encyclopedia, out now on Minor Records. As Pierce notes hims…
Did you come to Iceland Airwaves to lose your mind? FM Belfast and their fans certainly did. Our fourth show of the day at Kex Hostel was Iceland's highest energy party act, as we once again featured the typically headlining band in this very intimate space during our broadcast. This electro pop ou…
It's 37 degrees in Reykjavik, and KEXP is setting up at Kex Hostel for four days of incredible live music. Iceland Airwaves festival is just getting warmed up (it officially kicks off tomorrow), but things are already hot here at the hippest hostel in Iceland. We've brought along all the necessary …
For a band celebrating The Age of Fracture, CYMBALS sure form a cohesive sound. On their debut, the UK foursome may shirk "concepts", but their songs are nevertheless about ideas – about "action and desire", "the city", "working", "love" and so much more – but they're even more about dancing and el…
The light rain didn't keep the crowds away from attending the first day of the 2014 Bumbershoot Music & Arts Festival, and the improving weather will only make today more enjoyable. No doubt people will come rain or shine for legendary bands like Big Star's Third and The Replacements, but you m…
Founding member Chris Walla has announced he's leaving Death Cab for Cutie. In a statement he shared with The Stranger, Walla says "Deciding to leave the band was not, and is not, easy. It’s really, really sad. I love my bandmates, and I’m proud of what we’ve done, and mercifully, those things don…
It's only fitting that he's on a record label called Truth & Soul Records, because that's exactly the kind of music the legendary Lee Fields creates. The 63-year-old music veteran is still going strong after 43 years in the business, and his most recent release, Emma Jean, is just as vital as e…
I got my first dose of Young Fathers after I bought a t-shirt from the Anticon Record Label’s online store. To promote them, Anticon slipped a copy of Tape Two with every shipped order, resulting in widespread dissemination of the new band's developing sound. Luckily, I was one of the many to recei…
The release of Jack White's highly anticipated album Lazaretto is just around the corner (June 10), and he's already shared the title track and the intense instrumental "High Ball Stepper." Today, White has gifted the world with a third single. "Just One Drink" sounds like a rustic, southern rocke…
