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Sunday, Nov 14 2021, 2AM
The band formed in 1971 by brothers Bobby, David, and Dannis Hackney, and initially played funk music. Inspired by the energy and ferocity (and politics) of fellow Detroit bands the MC5, The Stooges, and Alice Cooper, their sound developed into raw-but-precise proto-punk and began recording an album.
In strong support of the band’s music but concerned about their very anti-commercial name, Clive Davis asked the Hackneys to change the name, but the band (and especially guitarist David Hackney) steadfastly refused. Davis ended the studio sessions and pulled all financial support for the band.
An album was not released until 2009.: www.dragcity.com
One of my favorite KEXP in-studios of all time, you can watch all of it here: youtu.be
Read the legend of Kurt Cobain hand-delivering the band’s first Sub Pop single, “Love Buzz," ( a cover of a song by Shocking Blue) to KEXP and then calling in a request for the track from a gas station payphone.: www.historylink.org
Playing the Tractor Tavern TODAY for Freakout Festival at 10:30 pm. www.the-freakout.com
KEXP & Cloudbreak Music Festival Present: Smokey Brights 10 year Anniversary 2024
Friday, Nov 22, 2024
Event Info
Playing Salmon Bay High for Freakout Fest TODAY at 10pm. www.the-freakout.com
Playing Conor Byrne for Freakout Fest today at 10:30 PM. www.the-freakout.com
Mitski is playing two nights at The Moore Theatre, with CHAI, on Wednesday & Thursday, March 9-10.
bit.ly
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Back with another new single, Mitski announced her new album 'Laurel Hell,' which will be out February 4 via Dead Oceans.
The latest song is titled "The Only Heartbreaker" and was co-written with Semisonic's Dan Wilson, who has a long history of working with musicians like Adele, Taylor Swift, and the Chicks (back when they were going by Dixie).
Mitski said that the song depicts “the person always messing up in the relationship, the designated Bad Guy who gets the blame. It could simply be about that, but I also wanted to depict something sadder beneath the surface, that maybe the reason you’re always the one making mistakes is because you’re the only one trying.”
bit.ly
youtu.be
mitski.bandcamp.com
www.mitski.com
Nation of Language will be at The Crocodile on Thursday, March 24th, 2022. Go right here to get tickets: www.jambase.com
Read the KEXP tribute to Talk Talk lead singer and songwriter, Mark Hollis, from Feb 2019: www.kexp.org
The video shows the late Mark Hollis at the London Zoo in Regent's Park, but he's not singing - his mouth is digitally obscured as he stands among the exhibits. The rest of the footage came from the BBC nature series "Life on Earth."
Directed by Tim Pope, it may have been the first video to feature a band's lead singer not performing. Hollis was likely making a statement about lip synching: youtu.be
This song is based on singer Win Butler’s childhood nightmares of somebody, or something “coming to take me away”. In his imagination he crosses rivers and mountains and is always on the move, urging for the car to be ready at all times: bit.ly.
Want to see Arcade Fire perform it live?: bit.ly.
Where did you first hear Arcade Fire? On KEXP we hope! kexp.org/donate
In this interview, Ari Up, Viv Albertine and Tessa Pollit speak about how The Slits proved that young women could be responsible for some of the most influential and innovative music of the punk movement.: www.loudandquiet.com
The third EP from this Mexican artist (and lead vocalist of the group Sotomayor) is a vibrant five-song EP of cumbia and other Latin styles, combining a variety of acoustic instrumentation with electronic beats and textures.
Bonobo will be at Showbox SoDo on Tuesday, March 22.
bit.ly
Bonobo's new album, 'Fragments' is set to release in January 14th and features the talents of artists like Jamila Woods, Kadha Bonet, and Joji.
Woods said of her participation on "Tides":
"I connected with the track as soon as I heard it. It felt like rain and waves to me before I even knew the project had a theme of cycles and tides, so it all came together very organically.”
Video for "Tides" here: youtu.be
Back in 2017 Bonobo played live on KEXP and you can check out the full performance here:
youtu.be
bonobomusic.bandcamp.com
bonobomusic.com
The song's title refers to the nickname of a 1930s Italian boxer Primo Carnera, who won the 1933 heavyweight championship but was accused of being a Mafia-sponsored "false champion." The lyrics reference various opponents of American prizefighter Joe Louis, including Carnera.
Australian rocker Alex Lahey says of this new rocker: "“‘Spike The Punch’ is a song about the fun that comes with self-sabotage and reckless abandon. It’s big, it’s loud, it’s fun, it’s its own beast. There are some super sinister tones in there rubbing up against really bright anime style guitar harmonies (guitarmonies, anyone?..) and shout choruses. ‘Spike’ feels like a raucous bookend to navigating these cruelly unpredictable times. Touch wood.”
bit.ly
The video was directed by Matt Sav and features a performance by Matthew Pope, who goes from sporting a business suit to rocking out in heels and drag.
youtu.be
alexlahey.bandcamp.com
From the London-based musician's upcoming sophomore album, PAINLESS, out on March 4.
“It’s a record about emotion,” Yanya said in a press release. “I think it’s more open about that in a way that Miss Universe wasn’t because there’s so many cloaks and sleeves with the concept I built around it […] I’m not as scared to admit my feelings.” - bit.ly
The fourth album from this Baltimore band featuring members of Turnstile and Trapped Under Ice is a smartly crafted set of ‘90s-influenced power-pop inflected at times with folk-rock, surf, doo wop and other styles, combining crunchy/jangly guitars and energetic rhythms with an abundance of catchy song hooks.
Boy Harsher recently announced a new album that also serves as a soundtrack for a short horror film that the Northampton, MA duo made called The Runner. www.stereogum.com
DoNormaal is a Seattle-based emcee/artist!
The Stranger ask you to "listen to this masterpiece of indie, gritty post-hip-hop at least three times."
donormaal.bandcamp.com
Asked in an interview how he felt about other people using his music, Idris Muhammad said, “It don’t really belong to me, man,” adding: “The gift the Creator has given me, I can’t be selfish with. If I keep it in my pocket, it’s not going to go anyplace.”
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Well, it went someplace as Jamie xx sampled the previous song for his 2015 song, "Loud Places."
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The Simon Halsall and Jean-Baptiste Fugger-directed video features both Jamie "xx" Smith and Romy Madley Croft skateboarding through the streets of London late at night: www.youtube.com
Margaritas Podridas will be LIVE on KEXP on Wednesday, November 17th, at noon.
*insert Cillian Murphy riding a horse in early 20th century Birmingham here*
“‘Stranger’ is something of a confrontation between my past and present selves in relationship to my trans identity. I started testosterone about 3 or 4 years ago, and It’s been simultaneously liberating and alarming to note the changes to my mind and body over the years. ‘Stranger’ is an admission to myself that, while I welcome all of those changes—especially the deepening effect of testosterone on my singing and speaking voice—it’s still scary and there is a degree of internal ambivalence to my transition. In transitioning I lost, or gave up, a part of myself. And that is hard to reconcile. ‘Stranger’ is an attempt at some semblance of reconciliation, I guess.”
Check out Gabriel's Live at Home session with the Boston artist!
youtu.be
www.anjimile.com
anjimile.bandcamp.com
Here's Nada Surf performing this one live for KEXP donors at The Triple Door in January 2020, when live music still existed in the world: www.youtube.com
The War on Drugs are playing The Paramount Theatre on Monday & Tuesday, February 21-22, 2022. Get tickets: www.stgpresents.org
The Wall Street Journal says of this new album --"Tinged with hope, the band’s new album is about change and acceptance, and might be its best record yet.": tinyurl.com
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Hear backing vocals from Lucius and see a Emmett Malloy-directed music video referencing a ton of older rock videos. youtu.be --
Bartees Strange, Dr. Dog’s Eric Slick, and Ohmme have shared a cover of TV on the Radio’s “Province.” It’s the A-side to a new single that includes Anjimile’s version of Beverly Glenn-Copeland’s “Ever New” on the B-side.
“I’ll never forget when I found TVOTR,” Bartees Strange said in a press release. “I saw their performance on Letterman while channel surfing. I jumped out of my bed. They gave me somebody to look up to. I don’t think I really knew what I wanted to do musically until I saw them. That was a big deal for me.”
Bartees Strange will join Courtney Barnett at the Paramount Theatre on Tuesday, December 14th! Get your tickets here: bit.ly
