Angélica Garcia - "El Que," a 2023 single on Partisan Records The title to today's Song of the Day roughly translates to English as "He Who," and songwriter Angélica Garcia describes the lyrics as "a specific inner monologue that I have navigated most of my life." The Brooklyn-based artist continues in a press statement, "Keeping myself and my body safe as a woman is such a careful dance that I often play out in my head, like a lion tamer facing a lion. The vocals were done in one take, and the ...
Nov 06, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4615
This week’s Song of the Day picks were chosen by Sharlese , in honor of Halloween week. For more dark sounds in various wave and synth genres, check out her show Mechanical Breakdown , Friday nights/Saturday mornings from 1-3 AM PT. Vancouver-based duo Wire Spine has been weaving their industrial-influenced darkwave sound since 2015. It's been a few years since their debut full-length, Bury Me Here , but we're excited to share their brand new single as today's Song of the Day. On Facebook , foun...
Nov 03, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4614
Brixx - Erotomania (feat. Kim Little) from the 2023 album Erotomania on SYNTHICIDE This week’s Song of the Day picks were chosen by Sharlese , in honor of Halloween. For more dark sounds in various wave and synth genres, check out her show Mechanical Breakdown , Friday nights/Saturday mornings from 1-3 AM PT. Melbourne, Australia-based DJ, producer, and composer Brixx teams up with Kim Little aka Hnymlk on today's Song of the Day. The single comes off Brixx's latest LP, Erotomania, which was ins...
Nov 02, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4613
XTR Human - "I Want More" from a forthcoming full-length out 2024 on Wie ein Gott Records This week’s Song of the Day picks were chosen by Sharlese , in honor of Halloween. For more dark sounds in various wave and synth genres, check out her show Mechanical Breakdown , Friday nights/Saturday mornings from 1-3 AM PT. With today's Song of the Day, German post-punk project XTR Human shares an early listen at their forthcoming full-length out 2024 via Wie ein Gott Records. Johannes Stabel, the long-...
Nov 01, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4612
Nature Nvoke - "Shadow" a 2023 self-released single This week’s Song of the Day picks were chosen by Sharlese , in honor of Halloween. For more dark sounds in various wave and synth genres, check out her show Mechanical Breakdown , Friday nights/Saturday mornings from 1-3 AM PT. Cleveland-based musician Nate Eberhardt explores the gamut of genres, first through hip-hop and punk rock, but now, with his project Nature Nvoke , through darkwave electronic music. He reflects to Black Techno Matters a...
Oct 31, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4611
El Ojo y La Navaja - "Cuerpo Muerto" from the 2021 self-released album Extimidad This week’s Song of the Day picks were chosen by Sharlese , in honor of Halloween. For more dark sounds in various wave and synth genres, check out her show Mechanical Breakdown , Friday nights/Saturday mornings from 1-3 AM PT. Today's Song of the Day comes from El Ojo y la Navaja , a minimal synth project out of Mexico masterminded by musician Erick Arévalo. For this featured track, he collaborated with Paola Gaona...
Oct 30, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4610
Small Paul - "Miner for a Dream" from the 2023 self-released album Come Alive & Live Again When you've got four talented musicians in your COVID bubble, the only thing to do during the pandemic is start a band! This is how Ballard-based quartet Small Paul came to be, featuring housemates Kevin Murphy from The Moondoggies, Chris King and Malcolm Roberts from Chris King & The Gutterballs, and Seth McDonald from All Star Opera. Their debut LP, Come Alive & Live Again , was produced by E...
Oct 27, 2023•6 min•Ep. 4609
Jungle - "Dominoes" from the 2023 album Volcano on Caoila Records/ AWAL. British production duo Jungle return with their fourth LP, Volcano, and this time around, they've tapped into some collaborators like Erick The Architect, Bas, Roots Manuva, Channel Tres, and JNR Williams. The result is a full-length co-founder J Lloyd tells NME is "actually really the most honest record we’ve made." “In my head, I see us as like Daft Punk or Chemical Brothers – that sort of duo that makes electronic music,...
Oct 26, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4608
Activity - "Department of Blood" from the 2023 album Spirit in the Room on Western Vinyl The latest LP from Brooklyn band Activity — titled Spirit in the Room — is appropriately "haunting." Songs take inspiration from the loss of vocalist/mutli-instrumentalist Travis Johnson's mother to pancreatic cancer, including today's Song of the Day. “The grief was (and sometimes is) this colossal thing,” he shares in a press statement, “and I kept finding myself thinking of how I could find her or get in ...
Oct 25, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4607
Grandaddy - "The Town Where I'm Livin Now" from the 2023 album Sunday: Excess Baggage on Dangerbird Records Long-time KEXP faves Grandaddy recently a digital-only collection of rarities and b-sides titled Sumday: Excess Baggage . With a career spanning three decades, there are a lot of gems within, including today's Song of the Day, a dreamy tribute to songwriter Jason Lytle's home in California. “I like making songs like this," he shares in a press release. "Lots of bleak but sweet visuals. Eve...
Oct 24, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4606
Tycho - "Time to Run" a 2023 single on Mom + Pop Records It should come as no surprise that our host of The Runcast should choose the track "Time To Run" for today's Song of the Day. Like KEXP DJ John Richards, Scott Hansen — the producer behind long-running electronic project Tycho — is a runner. As he explains in a press statement: “Music has always served as a kind of meditation for me, long before I started creating it. As a competitive runner throughout my early life, I would play back loop...
Oct 23, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4605
Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Oct 20, 2023•6 min•Ep. 4604
Dabda - "Flower Tail" from the 2023 album Yonder on Electric Muse Records Korean quartet Dabda / 다브다 call their unique brand of math-rock "Pastel Psychedelic," which you can hear in the soft, dreamy sonic waves they weave on their latest EP Yonder . Though based in Seoul, the band found inspiration in a recent trip to Thailand, describing it as "an intense experience." "The gap between the manufactured nature in vacation spots, which we usually are comforted with, and the nature that exists wild...
Oct 19, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4603
During KEXP’s fall fund drive, discover the variety of music podcasts we produce at KEXP and hear some of our favorite clips from each one. We’re thankful to the thousands of amplifiers who already donate to KEXP, building the foundation for our community of storytelling, and we want you to join them with a one-time donation or a recurring gift! 50 Years of Hip-Hop: https://www.kexp.org/podcasts/50-years-of-hip-hop/ El Sonido: https://www.kexp.org/podcasts/el-sonido/ Fresh off the Spaceship: htt...
Oct 19, 2023•9 min
Subsonic Eye - "Performative," from the 2023 album All Around You on Topshelf Records. Singaporean dream-pop group Subsonic Eye continue their exploration of nature on their latest LP, All Around You . This examination of the natural world around urban landscapes began on their third album, 2021's Nature of Things . "Ticking boxes / charging laptops / separating causes from ourselves," they sing on today's Song of the Day. "Nature is everywhere around you, even in the city," vocalist Nur Wahidah...
Oct 18, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4602
James and the Cold Gun - "Something to Say" from their self-titled 2023 album on Loosegroove Records Often referred to as “South Wales’ loudest group,” the Cardiff, UK-based garage rockers James and the Cold Gun share their self-titled debut album via Seattle's own Loosegroove Records, the label owned by Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam) & Regan Hagar (Malfunkshun, Brad, Satchel). Gossard describes the band as "a shot of pure adrenaline," and invited the group to open for Pearl Jam at their Hyde Par...
Oct 17, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4601
DAIISTAR - "Speed Jesus" from the 2023 album Good Time on Fuzz Club Records Austin, TX psych-rock band DAIISTAR shine on their debut LP Good Time . The album was produced by Alex Maas of The Black Angels and engineered by James Petralli of White Denim. Formed in the Spring of 2020, Alex Capistran (vocals/guitar), Nick Cornetti (drums), Misti Hamrick (bass) and Derek Strahan (keys) escaped the doldrums of the pandemic through sonic waves of guitar. “To us, these songs were a glimmer of light," Ca...
Oct 16, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4600
Drew Martin - "Second Nature," from the 2023 album Where's Your Feet on Kritter Records Kānaka Maoli singer/songwriter Drew Martin recently returned to Seattle from Maui, releasing his latest LP Where’s Your Feet? . As he writes on Instagram , "There’s some joy on this record, there’s some grit on this record, there’s some chicken skin on this record." Drew utilizes a Hawaiian slack-key guitar in his folky blues-style songs, as you can hear on today's Song of the Day. Read the full story at KEXP...
Oct 13, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4599
Miiesha - "Made for Silence," from the 2022 self-released album Smoke & Mirrors Though still in her early-20s, R&B artist Miiesha is already a five-time ARIA nominee (like the Australian GRAMMYs) and NIMA (National Indigenous Music Awards) award-winning artist. Her 2019 debut LP, Nyaaringu , explored themes of growing up in Woorabinda — an Aboriginal community in Queensland — with interludes of her late Grandmother's voice woven between the songs. ("For me, she was and always will stay w...
Oct 12, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4598
Bobby Sanchez - "the premonition (lethalneedle)" from the 2023 album Melancholy Tgirl on Harawiq Records "Indigenous people is who I pray for / The past can be painful so we face forward" A veteran Song of the Day featured artist, American-Peruvian Indigenous songwriter Bobby Sanchez kicked off 2023 with their sixth EP, titled Melancholy Tgirl. The three-song release continues Sanchez's mission of using art to speak out for Indigenous rights, as well as for LGBTQ+ rights, environmental preservat...
Oct 11, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4597
This week’s Song of the Day picks, as chosen by DJ Miss Ashley, coincide with Indigenous Peoples’ Day. While Indigenous Peoples’ Day is recognized on October 9, KEXP will be paying tribute to Indigenous artists throughout the whole week here and throughout the rest of our podcasts and programming. Learn more about our Indigenous Peoples’ Day coverage . Warning: This write-up touches on topics of suicide. In 2019, Statistics Canada delivered an alarming report about the Indigenous suicide rate cr...
Oct 10, 2023•5 min•Ep. 4596
This week’s Song of the Day picks, as chosen by DJ Miss Ashley, coincide with Indigenous Peoples’ Day. While Indigenous Peoples’ Day is recognized on October 9, KEXP will be paying tribute to Indigenous artists throughout the whole week here and throughout the rest of our podcasts and programming. Learn more about our Indigenous Peoples’ Day coverage . Mali Obomsawin is an award-winning jazz musician from Abenaki First Nation at Odanak. Though she only just released her debut album, Sweet Tooth ...
Oct 09, 2023•8 min•Ep. 4595
Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Oct 06, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4594
Speedy Ortiz - "You S02," from the 2023 album Rabbit Rabbit on Wax Nine Records On today's Song of the Day, Speedy Ortiz songwriter Sadie Dupuis finds inspiration in season 2 of the Netflix series You . She explains in a press statement: "Mostly when I’ve met my musical heroes, they’re kind and principled people. But occasionally someone whose work I love(d) reveals themselves to be anti-union, or anti-’woke,’ or some other gear-grinding ugliness. That’s who I wrote ‘You S02’ about, the song’s f...
Oct 05, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4593
nour - "wana," a 2023 single on Ra Records On her debut EP Daydreaming , Egyptian artist Nour shares a sparkling synth-pop, with lyrics in both Arabic and English. After discovering fellow Egypt-based producer Kubbara on Instagram, Nour sent him some lyrics and a beat, igniting the creative fires behnd today's Song of the Day. The song is about empathy. "It's someone agreeing with the same thing you're going through," she explains in an interview with SceneNoise . "So, if someone says 'wana,' it...
Oct 04, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4592
Tara Clerkin Trio - "The Turning Ground," a 2023 single on World of Echo On today's hypnotic and dreamy Song of the Day, the Bristol-based band Tara Clerkin Trio draw influence from the dub-step-heavy influences of their backyard (think Portishead and Massive Attack), combined with their own past as the eight-piece psych-folk group the Tara Clerkin Band. (“You could say the Tara Clerkin Trio started mainly because everyone else un-joined the Tara Clerkin Band,” Clerkin tells Loud & Quiet . “...
Oct 03, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4591
Little Dragon & April + Vista - "Rebels," from the 2023 album Slipping Into Color on Ninja Tune Grammy-nominated quartet Little Dragon are about to head out on tour with Washington D.C. duo April + VISTA , and what better way to kick off the tour than with a collaborative release? The EP, titled Slipping Into Color , is out now via Ninja Tune Records. “On a recent trip to the US we got to hang with April + VISTA and we couldn’t resist their sound," Little Dragon explain in a press statement....
Oct 02, 2023•4 min•Ep. 4590
Emi Pop - "Lo Sé," a 2023 self-released single Now based in Seattle, Emi Pop began her musical journey in her home of Puerto Rico. Following stints in bands like Mely y Los Poppers, and local groups Famous Lizards and 38 Coffin, Emi Pop has ventured out on her own with her debut single "Lo Sé." The track is an irresistible blend of punk and pop, punctuated with some new wave-y keyboards. As she writes on her Instagram , "It was about time I put my music out into the world — this song is just one...
Sep 29, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4589
Pachyman - "Trago Coqueto," a 2023 single on ATO Records L.A.-based artist Pachy García — who records as Pachyman — reflects on his homeland of Puerto Rico on today's Song of the Day. “It’s like a stream of consciousness,” he tells Remezcla . “I wanted to play with the idea of being a bartender, the profession of getting people drunk, and my constant dilemma about returning home – which I am still not ready to do. It’s about grappling with the emotions of my daily life in a casual yet poetic man...
Sep 28, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4588
Verito Asprilla - "Letras Millonarias," a 2023 single on Discos Pacífico Colombian artist Verito Asprilla arrived on the scene from Tumaco-Nariño at the age of 18, yet possessing a maturity beyond her years on her debut EP Mundo Lila . She writes of women's empowerment, and on today's Song of the Day, she raps, "I'm still poor but my lyrics are millionaire." An inspiring message of self-esteem in any language. “It flows to me,” she says in a Google-translated interview with Colombia Visible . Sh...
Sep 27, 2023•3 min•Ep. 4587
