Christopher Owens is in love with himself. Chrissybaby Forever, his third solo album, finds the former Girls frontman getting back to basics by writing and recording almost entirely alone. Aided by engineer J.J. Wiesler, Owens performed all instruments, only calling in a few friends for backups. As…
It's not difficult to assay Purity Ring's latest album, Another Eternity. Based on the first three singles, the sophomore effort was undoubtedly pure gold in its alchemic union of Corin Roddick's beats and production and Megan James's resonant voice. The Edmonton duo have added further luster to th…
Raising money is fun! As we think of new ways to connect KEXP supporters with their favorite artists during our KEXP's New Home campaign, no idea is off the table - not even bowling with Shakey Graves. As it turns out, the young Texas troubadour and his band are big-time bowlers, so much so that th…
On this installment of Immigrant Songs, I had the great pleasure of interviewing the Ghanaian-American Hip Hop artist Blitz the Ambassador. Blitz (a.k.a. Samuel Bazawule) represents a modern perspective on the immigrant experience: deeply colored by the internet and mobile technology, and a with a …
Donning a red jump suit, Olivia Merilahti, vocalist of The Dø, looked as if she took the spacey ambiance of the KEXP studio to heart and, based on the sonic transformation The Dø's sound undertook in the creation of their third album, it was a fitting sentiment. Leaving acoustic instruments behind,…
Though they hail from the small village of Castleton, UK duo Drenge is anything but quaint. Brothers Eoin and Rory Loveless load an explosive arsenal of potent hooks to their 2015 release, Undertow, featuring a surprising mixture of metallic riffs and Morrissey-like melodicism. Recently in-studio a…
Israeli shoegaze - it's no idle navel-gazing. Even amid intense political struggle and ongoing war, daily life has a way of proceeding in its usual vagaries, making mundane moments as likely as impassioned ones. Boredom, in fact, is a much part of Israeli life as it is anywhere else and is maybe of…
Cooking up a rich mixture of fuzzed out indie jams and smart lyrics, Massachusetts's Speedy Ortiz knows how to make the tastily technical sound effortlessly easy in this catchy KEXP live session. Showing off a selection of tracks from their new release, Foil Deer, Dupuis controls the room with her …
As DJ Cheryl Waters points out, Surfer Blood may not be the same "pen of puppies" they were in 2009, but on their newest release, 1000 Palms, they go back to their DIY roots. No longer with a major label looking over their shoulder and now with years of touring experience under their belt, the Flor…
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.
