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Tuesday, Jan 3 2017, 6AM
The lyrics reflect a man calling out to God, asking why he works so hard, but can't find love. At the end of the song, he finds hope and decides he will not accept defeat. This version is a tribute to Freddie Mercury, George Michael sings lead. This is widely reputed to have been Freddie Mercury's favorite song he ever wrote. RIP George Michael. blog.kexp.org
Ramin is the composer behind Westworld and Game of Thrones. Here he talks about composing for both shows and why the Radiohead covers will keep coming pitchfork.com He'll also be featured in a Game of Thrones "Live Concert Experience" (???) coming to Key Area March 31st
Considering all of the terrific live sessions Cheryl Waters is witness to in the KEXP live room, it’s rare she’d be knocked speechless after a first song blog.kexp.org
Haelos were here back in February with their earthy yet emotive songs that will leave you starstruck. Gaze into their cosmos now: blog.kexp.org
Each track on How To Be A Human Being is a story about a different character and each character has their own website. Here's Youth's: po.st or check them all out as they're introduced: www.glassanimals.eu
No Seattle dates but Bonobo will be in Vancouver BC on May 24th & 25th. He came by back in 2013 so hopefully he'll be adding Seattle to the tour blog.kexp.org
First track on The Unforgettable Fire, the first U2 album produced by Brian Eno. It had a different sound than previous U2 albums, as Eno buried the guitar in the mix.
Pitchfork called Boxer their best new album back in 2007 pitchfork.com
Italian group Soviet Soviet release their sophomore full-length, “a consistently strong set of dark, ’80s-steeped post-punk with stormy angular guitar riffs, driving rhythms, dramatic vocals and anthemic song hooks.”
Who slugs bottles of milk on stage? Ian McCulloch, that's who. blog.kexp.org
They describe their music as "the rapture of My Bloody Valentine entwined with the romance of Fleetwood Mac. Imagine dreamy Beach House riding Led Zeppelin dynamics, with unabashedly androgynous vocal harmonies." They don't have any shows scheduled currently but expect a worldwide tour this year.
Digging around the library for some vintage vinyl, this time REM's major label debut: blog.kexp.org
No Seattle dates yet but she does have four nights in B.C., April 5th - 8th.
In Seattle February 21st at Barboza! Hear their debut single from this album with the Song of the Day: blog.kexp.org
In Seattle at the Vera Project on March 27th! Her Facebook seems to be missing some dates but find the full list here pbs.twimg.com
The song starts out with a coherent story - Harry getting propositioned in a restaurant - but it quickly veers off in many directions, simulating a dream where one idea jumps to the next with no real rhyme or reason. It works well with the theme and with the track, including the bridge where Harry repeats the first word of each line:
Feet feet, walking a two mile
Meet meet, meet me at the turnstile
Take a ride for yourself with Bombay Bicycle Club’s in-studio performance at KEXP now: blog.kexp.org
At the Crocodile on February 23rd! Chicano Batman formed in LA in 2008. Four young men in vintage formal wear, playing songs that blended Brazilian Tropicalía with early ’70s psychedelic soul and the romantic pop of bands like Los Ángeles Negros. At www.chicanobatman.com you can find limited edition, autographed, colored vinyl.
In the book Van Morrison, into the music, Morrison is quoted as saying about the song: "It's a romantic love ballad not about anybody in particular but about a feeling."
he band's new album, 50 Song Memoir, due out March 3,(Nonesuch Records) is , well, 50 songs long and features frontman Stephin Merritt playing more than 100 instruments... while never smiling. At the Moore Theater May 6th! 50 Song Memoir is available in five-LP and five-CD editions.
As frontman and principle songwriter of rock band Eels for over 20 years, Mark Oliver Everett has created a cast of unique characters, but none may be as interesting as the one that is himself. blog.kexp.org
The band would sometimes end their shows with this song, at times without being onstage. During the last few minutes of the song, an unmanned sequencer and drum machine could play out the song while the band departed, leaving the crowd staring at the instruments. Eschewing an encore, the band would disappear, leaving the audience to wonder what happened.
"A Tribe Called Quest’s sixth (and final) album was a rumor for 18 years. It’s here, and against many odds, it reinvigorates the group’s discography without resting on nostalgia." pitchfork.com
This was the last song Marley performed; he sang it from a stool at a show in Pittsburgh on September 23, 1980. Marley's cancer had spread to his brain and it was surprising he could perform at all, but he did a 20-song set that night, closing with a 6-minute rendition of "Get Up, Stand Up," and collapsing soon after the show.
“I wrote ‘Guilty’ after receiving a letter from my brother when he was incarcerated during the holidays and away from our family,” Wray tells Consequence of Sound. “It has a double meaning to me, referring both to his verdict and how I felt looking at the Christmas tree and not experiencing his pain with him. I wanted to be just as uncomfortable as he was.” consequenceofsound.net
Grow Till Tall for an Irish legend lost in 2016. You can also hear Jónsi from back in 2010 www.youtube.com
Lots of Portland's The Helio Sequence on the Song of the Day podcast...Stoic Resemblance: blog.kexp.org October: blog.kexp.org Keep Your Eyes Ahead: blog.kexp.org Can't Say No: blog.kexp.org
At the 2005 Live 8 Concert in London, McCartney performed this in a duet with George Michael. www.youtube.com
Cloud Nothings are playing two nights at Barboza, February 17th & 18th! Here's another track from their upcoming album Life Without Sound, this one is Modern Act: blog.kexp.org
Country artist Sturgill Simpson recorded a cover version for his 2016 A Sailor's Guide to Earth album. Simpson grew up in a broken home and found solace in Nevermind. "I remember in seventh or eighth grade, when that album dropped, it was like a bomb went off in my bedroom," he explained. "For me, that song has always summed up what it means to be a teenager, and I think it tells a young boy that he can be sensitive and compassionate - he doesn't have to be tough or cold to be a man. So I wanted to make a very beautiful and pure homage to Kurt."
"these are songs you've been hearing your whole life even when you can't place them, all the while managing to sound like no one else." pitchfork.com
The Walkmen are a long-time favorite of KEXP listeners. Here's to 2017 and good riddance to 2016! blog.kexp.org
A video of Car Seat Headrest and Naked Giants performing this cover at the Neptune has surfaced... www.stereogum.com
February 7th is International Clash Day... We're edging closer! London Calling was a double album, but it wasn't supposed to be. The band were angry that CBS had priced their previous EP, The Cost of Living at £1.49, and so in the interests of their fans they insisted that London Calling be a double LP. CBS refused, so the band tried a different tactic: how about a free single on a one-disc LP? CBS agreed, but didn't notice that this free single disc would play at 33rpm and contain eight songs - therefore making it up to a double album! It then became nine when "Train in Vain" was tacked on to the end of the album after an NME single release fell through. "Train" arrived so late on that it isn't on the tracklisting on the album sleeve, and the only evidence of its existence is a stamp on the run-out groove and its presence on the end of side four. So in the end, London Calling was a 19-song double-LP retailing for the price of a single!
Strand of Oaks will be playing Neumos on March 24th! Nearly a year from their last visit playing the (No longer new)home grand opening... blog.kexp.org
This song is a tribute to former Box Tops/Big Star member Alex Chilton, credited by many as being the founder of Power Pop. He has produced several songs for The Replacements. The song is not only a tribute, but a reminder of Alex Chilton's relative obscurity, as emphasized in the ironically hyperbolic chorus: "And children by the million sing for Alex Chilton/When he comes 'round/They sing, "I'm in love/What's that song?/Yeah, I'm in love, with that song."
You can credit the Muppets for inspiring the very early inceptions of what is now Earwig. Lizard McGee (lead guitar and vocals) bought his first guitar with paper route money. www.intherecordstore.com
José González christened KEXP’s live room and broke listeners’ hearts with a full set of gorgeous, heartbreaking bliss...blog.kexp.org
Meet The Humans "Tender sun-dappled folk runs throughout, laced with old-raver ingredients" www.mojo4music.com
Grandaddy reunited way back in 2012, and the new album is out in March, their first new music in nearly 11 years. consequenceofsound.net
"1994 was an awesome year to be a nerd." www.theverge.com
Hembree is the brainchild of Isaac Flynn who along with Eric Davis (keyboards, synths) and Garrett Childers (guitar, vocals). This song was born out of frustration after the success of their first single `Can’t Run Forever.’ Flynn commented “The song started with me making a conscious decision to stop letting the bad win. It was time to start embracing the obstacles and then doing my best to overcome them. I really just want to be true to myself and good to others, and I want the same for other people. Perhaps that’s the message from this song.”
In December, The Jesus and Mary Chain announced a new album release, their first since 1998's Munki. "We started to – can you believe? – listen to each other a bit more," singer Jim Reid said in a statement. "In the last couple of years, we’ve buried the hatchet to some degree, and thankfully not into each other. Most people who know us would say that we haven't mellowed that much. I think it was to do with the fact, dare I say it, that wisdom comes with age. Let’s live and let live, and let’s take each other’s opinions into account." They are touring Europe but no US dates...yet.
"Barbed Wire Kisses lifts the stone and allows us to explore the dark world underneath. I kind of like it under there." thequietus.com
March 3rd at the Sunset Tavern! They've come by KEXP for in-studios a few times so hopefully they will when they're in town. Until then, here's the latest www.youtube.com
This song finds Lydon starting afresh and going deeper after the Pistols. He told Mojo magazine August 2012: "I think it was clear: 'I don't need to repeat where I stand politically, not ever again. Now let's deal with the personal politics, sort myself out, get rid of the wrong things in me.' You can change everything that's wrong with your enemy by changing yourself first."
In Seattle January 18th at the Nectar Lounge! Here's some more Brownout on the Song of the Day podcast covering The Wizard blog.kexp.org
"Jacuzzi Boys are back with all the fuzz, all the haze and all the energy that won them Iggy Pop as a fan." prettymuchamazing.com
Human Cannonball was originally titled Canine Cannonball but Capital Records deemed it too close to animal abuse.
How often do we find ourselves less than the sum of our parts, in terms of what we bring to the table in relationships, creativity, or other endeavors? Listen to <2 again with the Song of the Day podcast http://blog.kexp.org/2016/11/24/song-of-the-day-sad13-2/
King of America - more jangly, jaunty, lo-fi sprawl you can find on the Song of the Day podcast blog.kexp.org
Mercury Prize nominated artist Jungle were terrific in their live session at KEXP in 2014: blog.kexp.org