Smokey Brights - "Long Goodbye" from the 2023 album Levitator from Nine Mile. For over a decade, Seattle natives Smokey Brights have been building a loyal fanbase with their high-energy shows and emotionally resonant music. In early June, the quartet, led by husband-and-wife duo Kim West and Ryan Devlin, unveiled their fourth full-length Levitation . The record is touted as, “A motivational mix-tape for our collective crisis of confidence,” and a “musical, magical incantation cast to lift off an...
Jun 30, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4524
Strange Ranger - "She's On Fire" from the 2023 album Pure Music from Fire Talk. New York-via-Philly-via Portland quartet Strange Ranger are have been making genre-bending indie rock since 2016, when they were just the duo of Isaac Eiger and Fred Nixon and went under the name Sioux Falls. A lot’s changed for them besides relocation. On their upcoming album Pure Music , due out July 21st via Fire Talk, they’re leaning heavier into the shoegaze-inspired sounds they dabbled with on their 2021 mixtap...
Jun 29, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4523
Grian Chatten - "Fairlies" from the 2023 album Chaos for the Fly from Partisan Records This Friday, Fontaines D.C. frontman Grian Chatten will release his debut solo album, titled Chaos for the Fly, via Partisan. He says he knew from the start that he wanted to tackle these tracks on his own. “I just thought: I want to do this myself. I know where we as a band are going next and that’s not where I want to go with this. I’ve got a couple of exaggerated aspects of my soul that I wanted to express,...
Jun 28, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4522
Margo Cilker - "Lowland Trail" from the 2023 album Valley of Heart's Delight from Fluff & Gravy For today's Song of the Day, Goldendale, WA-based singer/songwriter Margo Cilker shares an early listen of her sophomore LP Valley Of Heart’s Delight , slated for a September 15th release via Fluff & Gravy Records. The album was produced by long-time KEXP fave Sera Cahoone, and recorded with guest musicians from The Decemberists, Band Of Horses, and Beirut. She says of the new album: I wrote t...
Jun 27, 2023•2 min•Ep. 4521
Sea Lemon - "Cellar," a 2023 single from Luminelle Records. "Sometimes I imitate / Things that make me afraid" So sings Seattle-based singer/songwriter Natalie Lew — who records as Sea Lemon — in today's dreamy, yet eerie Song of the Day. “‘Cellar’ was inspired by my love of really classic horror and thriller films, like Blow Out and Misery , and how loving scary movies can sometimes feel like something is wrong with you," Lew shares in a press statement. "That idea of the ‘cellar’ in the song i...
Jun 26, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4520
Spoon Benders - Dichotomatic, from the 2023 self-released album How Things Repeat . Spoon Benders are a face-melting band from Portland who are making the pilgrimage that any young band bursting with the kind of energy that their hometown just can’t keep up with - to LA. Since the release of their 2020 debut album Dura Mater , they’ve been blowing minds with their psychedelic spin on hardcore and garage punk and that momentum has continued with the recent release of their sophomore full-length H...
Jun 23, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4519
Vagabon – Can I Talk My Shit?, a 2023 single on Nonesuch Records. Lætitia Tamko recently announced her third full-length as Vagabon , titled Sorry I Haven’t Called . The record sees the Cameroonian-American artist reinvent herself for her most exuberant and bold record yet. While her prior albums, 2017’s Infinite Worlds and her 2019 self-titled saw Vagabon pointed inwards for introspective indie rock, Sorry I Haven’t Called looks outwards, channeling dance music and effervescent pop. This new ch...
Jun 22, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4518
This week's Songs of the Day were selected by Kennady Quille as part of KEXP's Pride celebration. Tune in on Saturday, June 24th for a special day of programming from noon to 6 PM, and then join us LIVE from Pride on Capitol Hill at the Wildrose on Sunday from noon to 4 PM Pacific with Riz Rollins and friends; continuing our on-air celebration till 6 PM. More information here . On today's Song of the Day, Seattle power trio Black Ends return with "My Own Dead," the band's first release since 202...
Jun 21, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4517
Palehound - "The Clutch" from the 2023 album Eye On The Bat from Polyvinyl. El Kempner — the singer/songwriter behind Palehound — found inspiration for today's Song of the Day right after the band's last tour ended. The track will appear on their forthcoming full-length, Eye On The Bat , out July 14th via Polyvinyl Record Co. It'll be Palehound's first new LP since 2019’s Black Friday . “‘The Clutch’ is the very first song I wrote for this album, back in 2020 right when lockdown started,” Kempne...
Jun 20, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4516
Nonbinary Girlfriend - "BIG AND KIND" from the 2023 self-released album BIG AND KIND On today's Song of the Day, Portland pop-punk band Nonbinary Girlfriend champions the philosophy that being " kind is not the same as being small " and " sometimes, many times, kindness requires you to be big and tall. " It's a spirit of compassion that carries through their debut full-length, also titled BIG AND KIND , that came out back in February. Vocalist Anaïs Genevieve shares vulnerable lyrics around gend...
Jun 19, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4515
Day Soul Exquisite - clair des antilles a 2023 single on La fem records. While the pandemic was obviously a long and fraught-filled time, the bands formed and sowing their seeds during the first two most difficult years are now blossoming. Seattle-based sextet Day Soul Exquisite are one of those bands. Fronted by singer Francesca Eluhu, the group makes Latin American and French Caribbean-fused neo-soul that fits into a variety of arenas, all of which make you want to shimmy. While they've only r...
Jun 16, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4514
Witch Prophet - Memory from the 2023 album Gateway Experience from Heart Lake Records. Toronto-based neo-soul artist Ayo Leilani aka Witch Prophet recently unveiled her third studio album, Gateway Experience , which delved into her personal experience with focal aware seizures, sometimes known as Déjà vu or Déjà reve. They’re out-of-body experiences that include lucid dreaming and memory loss. “If I came out with an album like this five years ago, it would probably be a little too witchy,” says ...
Jun 15, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4513
SoulChef & Uptown Swuite - "Wheels Fall Off" from the 2023 album LUA on SoulSwuite Music New Zealand-based artist SoulChef teams up again with west coast MC Uptown Swuite for today's Song of the Day. (We spotlighted the duo last year with another of their singles.) The latest in their "SoulSwuite" series is titled LUA , or "two" as translated from Samoan. The duo have long used their music to celebrate their shared heritage. As Uptown Swuite told HipHopDX , "We really just wanted to capture ...
Jun 14, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4512
dragonchild - "Sera" from the 2023 album dragonchild on FPE Records. dragonchild is the new project from saxophonist DA Mekonnen, who previously led the Boston-based 11-piece Ethiopian music collective Debo Band. As a solo artist, he says he plans to take his exploration of Ethiopian music and explode it "into vivid, three-dimensional space." On today's Song of the Day, he collaborates with Addis Ababa-based electronic artist Ethiopian Records (real name: Endeguena Mulu); he also samples the tra...
Jun 13, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4511
Speakers Corner Quartet - "Can We Do This? (feat. Sampha)" a 2023 single on OTIH Records KEXP loves a literal name ("The Morning Show on KEXP," anyone?), and jazz collective Speakers Corner Quartet have just that. The group formed in 2006 as the in-house band at South London landmark Speakers' Corner, a place that hosted open-mic nights where these four musicians would play for hours, improvising hip-hop beats for guest MCs to rap over. “There’s never been a rush as we’re just happy being in a r...
Jun 12, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4510
La Fonda - New Mexico from the 2023 self-released album We Are Infinite . Seattle-based quintet La Fonda recently released their sophomore full-length We Are Infinite , a dream pop-indebted elegy to navigating life in a corporation-led city and the financial and mental health struggles that brings and finding the specks of hope within. Led by Filipino-American sisters Valeria and Veronica Topacio, the two have been grinding to make La Fonda into the band it is now since 2016. Playing every venue...
Jun 09, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4509
Miya Folick - So Clear from the 2023 album Roach on Nettwerk. Los Angeles-based musician Miya Folick released her sophomore full-length ROACH in late May, an album that unpacks “trying to get to the core of what life really is,” according to Folick. Following her 2018 debut Premonitions and 2022’s 2007 EP, the album is full of rich, shimmery production with help from Gabe Wax (War on Drugs, Fleet Foxes), Mike Malchicoff (King Princess, Bo Burnham) and Max Hershenow (MS MR), heightening her quart...
Jun 08, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4508
Hallelujah Lilly - "Bunny Rainbow Revolution," a 2023 self-released single DJ Kevin Cole picks another mystery track for this week's Song of the Day: while I can't seem to discern if Hallelujah Lilly is based in Reykjavik, Iceland or Nashville, Tennessee (or Canada?), Kevin was kind enough to share how he discovered her music: I was doing a DJ set at Lucky Records in Reykjavik last year on the Sunday of Iceland Airwaves. She came on and performed a solo acoustic set after me, and I was taken aba...
Jun 07, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4507
Ooh La La - "Life's Too Fast To Feel" a 2023 self-released single. There's not a lot of information out there yet about brand-new Los Angeles-based duo Ooh La La , but sharp-eyed KEXP listeners might recognize the name Kii Arens from the liner notes of past Live at KEXP compilation albums! The long-time artist/director/graphic designer has previously created album covers for us. Now, relocated from his hometown of Minneapolis to Los Angeles, he and partner Jessy Greene (who has played violin for...
Jun 06, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4506
CIEL - "Somebody" a 2023 single on Jazz Life With today's Song of the Day, Brighton-based trio Ciel share a sneak peek at their upcoming EP Make It Better , which will be released July 7th via Jazz Life. “’Somebody’ is a song that came together for most part on the spot in the studio," frontwoman Michelle Hindriks explained in a press release. "It’s about starting to feel a deep urge to socialise, connect with others, party and be more outwards again after a period of needing solitude. Spring ti...
Jun 05, 2023•2 min•Ep. 4505
Telehealth - Taliesin Grid a 2023 single on Very Famous. Telehealth is the Seattle-based project of Alexander Attitude (Deep Sea Diver, Brian John Appleby) and Kendra Cox (Lemolo) that make Devo-esque synthscapes targeting capitalism and the absurdities of our modern world. Their debut album Content Oscillator was released in March and specifically delves into Alexander Attitude's transition from musician to architect and back to musician, after discovering his disillusionment with their utopian...
Jun 02, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4504
Nabihah Iqbal - Dreamer from the 2023 album DREAMER on Ninja Tune. In late April, Nabihah Iqbal dropped her long-awaited sophomore record Dreamer via Ninja Tune. Five years after the release of her debut, Weighing of the Heart , and six since Iqbal’s last EP under her former moniker Throwing Shade, the record is a resplendent re-introduction to the London-born artist, curator, broadcaster and lecturer. Blending elements of early ‘80s electronica, shoegaze, and trance with ruminative lyricism, it...
Jun 01, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4503
mui zyu - "Demon 01" from the 2023 album Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century on Father/Daughter Records With her solo project mui zyu , London-based musician Eva Liu (also of Dama Scout) sought to capture the sounds she heard growing up at her family's Chinese restaurant. As she explains to Talkhouse : My debut record, Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century , is about self-exploration and identity, at times told through a lens inspired by fantasy video-games and Chinese folklore. In the process of pull...
May 31, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4502
Sessa - "Vento a Favor" a 2023 single on Mexican Summer São Paulo-based musician Sessa returns with his first new single since last year's enchanting LP Estrela Acesa . The track is co-produced by Brazilian artist Biel Basile and American musician Mikey Coltun, who also plays bass in Mdou Moctar. "'Vento a Favor' started as a track meant to be on Estrela Acesa," he tells Stereogum . "It was recorded, mixed, and mastered in the same sessions as the whole LP but somewhere along the way, when putti...
May 30, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4501
deary - "Fairground (Saint Etienne Remix)" a 2023 single on Sonic Cathedral. London-based dreampop duo deary couldn't have chosen a better group than long-running UK trio Saint Etienne and composer Augustin Bousfield to remix their debut single, "Fairground." (The mix is formally titled the "Saint Etienne Meet Augustin Bousfield At The Top Of Town Mix.") “It was fun putting the guitars down for once, playing around with different synths instead,” says Ben, co-founder of deary. “I got into [Saint...
May 29, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4500
Corvair - Right Hook from the 2023 self-released album Bound to Be . Portland duo Corvair describe themselves as “Scorpio weirdo power duo serving up lush guitar pop w/ sharp incisors,” which this fellow Scorpio can certainly appreciate. Made up of Brian Naubert (Ruston Mire, Tube Top, Pop Sickle, The Service Providers) and Heather Larimer (Eux Autres), the romantic, as well as musical, duo are veterans of the Portland music scene. They released their debut self-titled album in 2021 and are foll...
May 26, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4499
Feeble Little Horse - Tin Man from the 2023 album Girl with Fish on Saddle Creek. Pittsburgh quartet Feeble Little Horse formed three years ago during the pandemic lull but have exploded since dropping their 2021 debut full-length Hayday . They’re on the verge of releasing its follow-up, Girl With Fish, via Saddle Creek, a perfect home for their slowcore brand of noise pop. Out June 9th, we’ve so far gotten three tastes of Girl With Fish , “Steamroller,” “Pocket,” and our Song of the Day “Tin Ma...
May 25, 2023•2 min•Ep. 4498
ĠENN - "A Reprise (That Girl)" a 2023 single on Liminal Collective On today's Song of the Day, Anglo-Maltese quartet ĠENN team up with guest vocalist John Newton (of fellow four-letters-all-caps duo JOHN ) for this stylistically sinister slice of post-punk. On their Bandcamp page, vocalist Leona Farrugia speaks to the track's themes: “Naturally I’ve always felt like there’s a pressure to compare myself, be that through the lens of present technologies or within the creative industry. It’s someth...
May 24, 2023•2 min•Ep. 4497
MAN ON MAN - "Showgirls" from the 2023 album Provincetown on Polyvinyl. “ As we lean into what Man on Man is and will be, two things immediately come up. Energy and community. ’Showgirls’ is all that. ” — Roddy Bottum, Man on Man As co-founder Roddy Bottum puts it, today's Song of the Day embodies the fun-loving duo's ethos. The track is a sneak peek at their sophomore LP Provincetown , out June 16th via Polyvinyl Records and named for the town in Massachusetts where Bottum and his partner/bandm...
May 23, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4496
Caroline Polachek - "Fly To You (feat. Grimes and Dido)" from the 2023 album Desire, I Want to Turn Into You on Perpetual Novice. New music from Caroline Polachek is exciting enough, but when it features collaborations with both Grimes and Dido , it's a mind-blower. In an interview with Vulture , Polachek says he wrote part of the song in Grimes' bedroom at 6 AM — "Just the two of us, in this very sweet session," she details. As for Dido, Polachek wrote her a fan letter, asking for her involveme...
May 22, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4495
