Troy Nelson

"I live in a southern town Where all you can do is grit your teeth..." Here are the lyrics to this classic song from Smith's self-titled 1995 LP: genius.com

This is Black Pumas' singular cover of Rodriguez's "Sugar Man." To learn more about both Rodriguez and this cover, go here: bit.ly -- Go here to hear the original from Sixto Rodriguez: www.youtube.com

"I Love You So Much" is the title track from Wild Pink's eagerly anticipated fourth album, due for release on October 14th. --- Far from a straightforward love song, "ILYSM" is a tragedy where John Ross is living with a ghost. He couldn't be happier: "I reached out my hand to touch you," he whispers, "and it went right through." -- They'll be in Seattle in support of the new release, playing Barboza on Monday, December 5th!

A new collaborative record, ‘Cheat Codes’, finds Danger Mouse (real name: Brian Burton) teaming up with Black Thought (aka Tariq Trotter) — founding member of Philadelphia hip-hop outfit The Roots, solo artist and universally acclaimed rapper.: djmag.com --- “Because” features Joey Bada$$, Russ, and Dylan Cartlidge. Joey Bada$$ said, “I’ve always been a big fan of Black Thought and Danger Mouse. I think Black Thought is one of the greatest rappers ever, so when they asked me to get on this record, it was a no-brainer, plus the record is fire!"

Isn't vocalist Beth Gibbons wonderful in this song? -- The music video for this ominous classic enhances it haunting vibe -- with grainy black-and-white visuals inspired by a 1968 Italian music show and by the eerie TB series "The Outer Limits" -- with flickering, grainy images and a nightmare-inducing superimposed shot: www.youtube.com

"Baby, your mind is worth more than gold Wipe your tears so they can see the glow Pray, pray, pray, indigo child Just so you know, they call us monsters 'cause they're in denial..." Read the lyrics to this incredible song: genius.com

This song is an adaptation of blues musician Robert Johnson's "Me and the Devil Blues" (1937). gilscottheron.net -- Gil Scott-Heron was inducted into the Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame in 2021www.rockhall.com

This year, the Norwegian duo Röyksopp have embarked on an ambitious project called Profound Mysteries. Two full-length volumes have been released so far, one in April and one in August, and between them they featured collaborations with Susanne Sundfør, Astrid S, Karen Harding, and more. They have just announced "Profound Mysteries III," which will be released in November. “With Profound Mysteries part III, we conclude our triple album endeavor,” the duo said in a statement. “Beneath its golden, shimmering sheen, lie levels of ambiguity and contrast; the sweet and the harrowing, the wonderful and the wrong. We are human, we dream.” -- This track features Alison Goldfrapp of electronic music duo Goldfrapp.

Here's an in-depth analysis of Beach House's "Superstar": wers.org -- Beach House performed "Superstar" live for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Watch the performance here: www.youtube.com

In 2021, Chromatics announced a collection of remixes which takes the much-loved original in a new direction from the dancefloor to cinematic-sounding reworks, "Shadow" was originally released in 2015 and swiftly became one of the standout entries in Chromatics‘ impressive discography. -- Eric Estornel, better known by his stage names Maceo Plex, Maetrik and Mariel Ito, is a Cuban-American DJ, techno music producer and DJ Awards winner, raised in Dallas and Miami.: djmag.com

Italians Do It Better have shared the fourth volume of their After Dark compilation series, featuring the label's signature, slinky brand of Italo Disco, coldwave and other chilled-out grooves. "It is with immense pleasure & excitement that we share After Dark 4 with you," write IDOB's Johnny Jewel and Megan Louise, who also record together as Desire. "30 artists from 11 countries deliver 27 tracks for the endless summer of your dreams. Clocking in at just under two hours, the melodies have been soundtracking our weekly night drives between our studio in the desert & our offices in Los Angeles. The rhythms have been working their magic as secret weapons on the dancefloor in our DJ sets.": www.beatport.com

Lee Fields will be at The Showbox on Friday, October 28th. -- That same date (October 28th), his first new album in three years, "Sentimental Fool," will be released. It's his first on Daptone Records.

"'Soul Power' is music that honors the rich traditions of classic R&B while keeping its head and heart in the here and now; some folks say you can't have it both ways, but Curtis Harding is here to show that's a lie." Read this review of Curtis Hardin's 2014 debut album: www.allmusic.com

Thanks, James, for the request! -- Here are 20 questions for singer/songwriter Kelly Stoltz: www.thelineofbestfit.com

This is the latest from Alvvays, who will be at The Moore Theatre in Seattle with Slow Pulp on Saturday, October 22nd. -- The band ran into multiple obstacles over the past few years -- global pandemic, a basement flood that ruined almost all of their gear, a theft of their demos from Molly Rankin's apartment, and border closings that prevented rehearsals. Nevertheless, they are back! Learn more about the new album "Blue Rev," the Toronto band's first in five years here: alvvays.bandcamp.com.

Troy hosted Bleached in the KEXP studio in 2019 for this live performance that included "Hard to KIll": www.youtube.com

Oo la la je ne sais pas... Here is Beth Ditto (of Gossip) performing a live version of "Oo La La," a new song from her debut solo album, 2017's "Fake Sugar": www.npr.org

For Wendy, strolling around Green Lake.... --- Toronto musician MorMor has slowly been releasing singles since the 2019 EP "Some Place Else." This is the second new single he has released recently. Speaking about the new track, MorMor says, “‘Seasons Change’ is a song about the constraints of time. The sentiment is that if you are to live once why not give into your natural desires.”

Sylvan Esso will be in Ridgefield, WA with ODESZA on September 22nd, - The duo, from Durham, NC, have just released their acclaimed fourth album, "No Rules Sandy": www.npr.org

This is Khruangbin's cover of Booker T. & The M.G.s' classic 1962 song, "Green Onions"! (Musician and producer Quantic was live on KEXP back in 2014: www.youtube.com) -- Psst...want to hear the original?: www.youtube.com

Kevin Morby is playing at The Showbox on Friday, November 11th! -- Before a family dinner, Morby’s father accidentally doubled his dosage of heart medication and passed out at the table. He recovered, but Morby had worried he was watching his father die. That night, looking at old photos with his mother, he was struck by an image of his father — then 32, the same age Morby was about to be — posing shirtless in the Texas sun. He contemplated his family’s sudden frailty and began writing “This Is a Photograph,” a galloping track about death’s inevitability and the gratitude the fait accompli should inspire. “This is what I’ll miss about being alive,” Morby howls, putting himself inside his father’s former frame.: www.nytimes.com

"Blak and Blu" was Gary Clark, Jr's debut major label album. -- Go back to 2016 to watch an hour-long live concert by this talented musician at Glastonbury: www.youtube.com

Frankie Cosmos, the rock group fronted by Greta Kline, have announced a new album, "Inner World Peace," out in October, their follow-up to 2019’s "Close It Quietly." The songs were culled down from the 100+ that Kline wrote during the pandemic. -- “This music video for "One Year Stand" was created with my best friend Eliza, who makes video and performance art,” Kline said in a statement.: www.youtube.com

Thanks, Valerie, for this request! -- In 2021, The Avalanches released a 20th anniversary reissue of their 2001 album "Since I Left You." In addition to the original tracks, the package includes new remixes from the late MF DOOM, Black Dice, Leon Vynehall, Prince Paul, Sinkane, Stereolab and Carl Craig, among others. (This is, of course, Stereolab's great remix of "Since I Left You.") - -- The original features a prominent sample of The Main Attractions' 1968 "Everyday."

On August 10th, Four Tet (Keiran Hebden) shared a pair of new tracks, “Mango Feedback” and “Watersynth.” The releases follow last month’s drop “Scythe Master” and, under his KH alias, “Looking at Your Pager.”

The Roots took the album's name from William T Vollmann’s 2003 book, 'Rising Up And Rising Down: Some Thoughts On Violence, Freedom And Urgent Means.' -- This song sampled Grand Funk Railroad's "Nothing Is the Same." -- Here are the lyrics; genius.com

Tyrone Jermaine "TJ" Carter, better known by the stage name Lil Silva, is an English record producer, singer, songwriter and DJ, based in Bedford.: www.allmusic.com -- His very-well-received solo debut album also features BADBADNOTGOOD, Charlotte Day Wilson and serpentwithfeet. www.nme.com

Speaking of Little Dragon... Little Dragon have announced their new EP ‘Opening The Door’, set for release on 16th September on Ninja Tune.: littledragon.bandcamp.com -- Little Dragon was live on KEXP back in 2018. Check out the full performance here: www.youtube.com

The song begins with a sampled beat of one song called “Sing Sing” released in 1978 by the disco-funk band Gad. All the instruments on "Roll (Burbank Funk)" are deconstructed in this article and video: www.noisechest.com

ESG is the Scroggins sisters: Renee (vocals), Valerie (drums), Deborah (bass) and Marie (congas, vocals). The band's name stands for emerald, sapphire, and gold. Emerald and sapphire are Valerie and Renee Scroggins' birthstones, and gold refers to the record certification. -- Watch a raucous live version of "Moody," recorded in Australia in 2013: www.youtube.com

Live at KEXP Volume 10 just dropped! Head over to Bandcamp to purchase the album as a digital download where 100% of the proceeds will go directly to the artists. Vinyl lovers, stay tuned for pre-order details coming soon!: www.kexp.org -- See video of this live performance in the KEXP studio in 2018: www.youtube.com

"....'Sugar Kane is six minutes long, but [Nevermind's Butch] Vig’s efforts to focus the band pay dividends. What starts as a straight ahead, catchy alt-rock single descends into and then ascends out of a classic, edgy, dissonant Sonic Youth instrumental breakdown before the three-minute mark. We are led there by a fairly straightforward descending riff on the guitar, but by three-and-a-half minutes that is lost in a squalling solo hurried beneath a thundering baseline...." Learn more about this great song: www.musicradar.com

“Heaven’s on Fire” begins with a sample of Thurston Moore from the documentary “1991: The Year Punk Broke”.: "People see rock 'n' roll as, as youth culture and when youth culture becomes monopolized by big business, what are the youth to do? Do you, do you have any idea? I think we should destroy the bogus capitalist process that is destroying youth culture." -- Here's a live performance of "Heaven's on Fire": www.youtube.com

With 2010's "Swim", Dan Snaith (Caribou) said that he wanted to create "dance music that sounds like it's made out of water" after he took up swimming. He teamed with heavyweights like Four Tet's Kieran Hebden, Junior Boys' Jeremy Greenspan, and Born Ruffians' Luka Lalonde for the album.: tinyurl.com -- Caribou performed "Sun" live @ Lollapalooza Brasil 2022. (There are lots of flashing lights in this video): youtu.be

"Tresor" is the second album of Cornish songs from Gwenno following 2018’s Le Kov. The singer-songwriter, full name Gwenno Saunders, was raised to speak the language by her father Tim Saunders, who writes poetry in Cornish. She lives in Cardiff, which has given her another Celtic language for songwriting. Her debut solo album Y Dydd Olaf was in Welsh. Tresor arrives on the 20th anniversary of the UK government’s official recognition of Cornish in 2002.: www.ft.com

‘Rōnin II’ is the second instalment in a two-part mixtape project, which was released on August 31. “I recorded this over lockdown,” explained UNKLE’s James Lavelle in an official statement. “I always intended the ‘Rōnin’ project to be two different mix tapes; the first being more like a club DJ set and the second as the post-club follow-up. This mix is a nod to the more soulful, laidback headspace of the Mo’ Wax days with a more contemporary electronica influence.” Lavelle joined forces with producer, singer and multi-instrumentalist Miink on ‘Rōnin II’,: unkle.bandcamp.com