The sheer volume of great pop music coming out of the UK can be overwhelming, and that’s only what makes it Stateside. Imagine actually living there, surrounded on all sides by unending legacy and talent. That’s exactly the type of pressure cooker from which London based pop artist Oscar has emerge…
When frontman Dean Wareham sings, "don't know why I can't stop smiling," he echoes the thoughts of thousands of Luna fans grateful to have the band back together after a decade apart. The beloved New York (well, now L.A.) band called it quits in 2004, but with Captured Tracks reissuing their first …
For the past 15 years, Dungen has been creating a unique blend of expansive psychedelic jazz prog rock that has made them an important and influential band not only in their native Sweden but around the world. With their latest album, Allas Sak, frontman Gustav Ejstes took a more concerted effort t…
Few bands are more iconic in Iceland than GusGus. Starting some 20 years ago, more arts collective than musical act, GusGus broke from their cinematographic origins and through to mainland Europe and the world in the mid 90's with their eclectic electronica assembly of techno, deep house, dance-pop…
If you've wondered what might happen if you combined the sound and spirit of Bikini Kill or Pavement with the politics (as in none) and slacker mentality of Best Coast or Mac DeMarco then wonder no more, because Vancouver B.C.'s The Courtneys have made this a reality. They make fuzzy slacker rock w…
Seattle's Lemolo specializes in the kind of dark, introspective, and haunting music that fit so well in the old live performance space at KEXP's Dexter studio (and will surely fit in the new one as well!), which is perhaps one reason we keep asking them back. Ahead of the release of their 2015 albu…
KEXP has been incredibly fortunate to return to Iceland these past six years, not only to discover new artists to share with our listeners, but also to witness the astounding growth of bands like Vök. When we first heard them in 2013, Vök had recently formed, starting as a duo and winning Músíktilr…
This week in El Sonido we’ve got some rock and roll and some electronic styles to share - taking us from Spain to Puerto Rico, Los Angeles to planet Klajnak.
It's hard to lament The Strokes hiatus when their guitarist Albert Hammond, Jr. keeps putting out such great solo releases. On his third full-length, Momentary Masters, he delves into an unintentional new wave inspiration ("I don't really know how to put it into categories," he tells DJ Troy Nelson…
In 2018, KEXP celebrated the 30th anniversary of local record label Sub Pop with a four-month retrospective, "counting up" every catalog number in their vast discography of over 1,200 releases. Dig into the archives of our catalog coverage, featuring in-depth coverage on the history of their releases.
