Samory I - "Outside (feat. Lila Iké)" from the 2023 album Strength on Overstand Entertainment / Easy Star Records Kingston, Jamaica-based artist Samory-Tour Frazer — who records as Samory I — celebrates his progeny on his debut solo album, Strength . "It represents the struggles I’ve overcome, both mentally and physically," the roots reggae vocalist says in a press release, "and is also a representation of my son, who is my driving force behind this album." (His baby boy is featured with his pro...
Mar 11, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4705
PAPISA - "Dores no Varal" from the 2024 album Amor Delírio on Costa Futuro PAPISA is Rita Oliva, a musician, singer, songwriter, and producer based in São Paulo, Brazil. She released her first EP in 2016 and has graced some of Brazil's main stages, as well as the SXSW festival in Austin, TX, where she´ll be back this 2024 edition of the El Sonido showcase. The release of the single "Melhor Assim" in 2023 and "Dores no Varal" in early 2024 heralds the arrival of her next album. She now collaborat...
Mar 08, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4704
Mexican Institute of Sound - "Bolero" from the 2024 album Algo-Ritmo : Mexican Institute of Sound Hits 2004-20 2 4 on Soy Sauce Mexican Institute of Sound (MIS) commemorated its 20-year journey with the release of "Algo + Ritmo 2004-2024" on February 2nd. Featuring 23 handpicked tracks, including two new collaborations with Ceci Bastida and Foudeqush + Esteman, this album encapsulates Camilo Lara's eclectic musical career. Blending mariachi soul, sonideros' spirit, and bold electronic beats, Lar...
Mar 07, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4703
Jarina de Marco - "Boca Chica" from the 2023 album Caribbean All-Inclusive Luxury on 3rd Culture Kid. This week’s Songs of the Day spotlight artists who DJ Albina Cabrera will visit during El Sonido on the Road , a 10-day journey visiting Santo Domingo; Dominican Republic, as part of the invitation to the Isle of Light music festival; followed by our annual showcase featuring six Latin American bands at SXSW in Austin, Texas; and finally, arriving in Mexico City for the 2024 edition of the Ibero...
Mar 06, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4702
Pink Pablo - "falco" from the 2023 self-released road 2 neverland EP This week’s Songs of the Day spotlight artists who DJ Albina Cabrera will visit during El Sonido on the Road , a 10-day journey visiting Santo Domingo; Dominican Republic, as part of the invitation to the Isle of Light music festival; followed by our annual showcase featuring six Latin American bands at SXSW in Austin, Texas; and finally, arriving in Mexico City for the 2024 edition of the Ibero-American music festival, Vive La...
Mar 05, 2024•3 min•Ep. 4701
Caribe Acido - "La Carrera de Los Perros" from the 2024 self-released Ciudad Nueva EP This week’s Songs of the Day spotlight artists who DJ Albina Cabrera will visit during El Sonido on the Road , a 10-day journey visiting Santo Domingo; Dominican Republic, as part of the invitation to the Isle of Light music festival; followed by our annual showcase featuring six Latin American bands at SXSW in Austin, Texas; and finally, arriving in Mexico City for the 2024 edition of the Ibero-American music ...
Mar 04, 2024•3 min•Ep. 4700
Chrome Corps - "Body Attestation," a 2024 single on Eskimo Recordings Seattle's own Chrome Corps brings an industrial edge to their dystopic EBM sound, especially on today's Song of the Day, which can be found on the Eskimo Recordings compilation Next Wave Acid Punx DEUX - Secret Cuts . The comp is a companion to last year's collection, Curses’ Next Wave Acid Punx DEUX, also curated by Berlin-based DJ Luca Venezia, AKA Curses . As Curses states in a press release, "Curating Next Wave Acid Punx D...
Mar 01, 2024•5 min•Ep. 4699
Sugartin - "Breakdown" from the 2024 album Breakdown on exlove records Synthpop duo Sugartin spin a dreamy web on today's Song of the Day, the title track off their latest three-song EP, released via exlove records. Formed in Stuttgart, Germany by songwriters Iris and Daniel in 2022, the pair take inspiration from their Krautrock forefathers while infusing modern-day electronic influences. Read the full story at KEXP.org Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener f...
Feb 29, 2024•2 min•Ep. 4698
Sol y Santi - "Have You Heard," from the 2024 album Sol y Santi on Casa/Teca A project of producer Santiago Salazar and vocalist/lyricist Soltera, Sol y Santi released their self-titled LP last month via Casa/Teca. "We started making this album right before the pandemic hit," Soltera states on Instagram . "Santi sent me a hundred songs that he had been archiving for years and I began to write lyrics for them. After completion we sat with the album for a while and it wasn’t until recently that we...
Feb 28, 2024•5 min•Ep. 4697
Ortrotasce - "Seeing Red," a 2023 self-released single Ortrotasce (pronounced: or-tro-task) is the moniker for minimalist-synth artist Nic Hamersly, who has been crafting his unique brand of dramatic darkwave for over a decade. As he told the Orlando Weekly last year, as a teenager, he fell in love with experimental punk label 31G Records and its founder's band, The Locust, before moving on to bands like Coil and Throbbing Gristle. "I was more so into the harsher realm of electronic music," he t...
Feb 27, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4696
The KVB - "Labyrinths," a 2024 single on Invada Records UK Manchester coldwave duo The KVB share the lead single off their forthcoming full-length, Tremors , to be released April 5th via Invada Records. Band members Nicholas Wood and Kat Day describe today's Song of the Day as "the most aggressive track on the album and a nod to some of our early releases." They add, "Lyrically, it was inspired by the collection of short stories by Jorge Luis Borges and its references to historical subjectivity;...
Feb 26, 2024•3 min•Ep. 4695
Day Soul Exquisite - "Mosaic" from the 2024 album Sanguine & Cardamom on La fem Records Seattle-based, QTBIPOC-led sextet Day Soul Exquisite released their debut EP last month via La fem Records, an indie label founded by the band's vocalist/guitarist Francesca Eluhu. Today's Song of the Day is, indeed, a work of art, pieced together by Josh Pehrson's gentle percussion, Lillian Minke Tahar's hypnotic keyboard riff, and Seboulisa's soulful vocals, just to name a few of the elements that compr...
Feb 23, 2024•5 min•Ep. 4694
Salt Cathedral - "Terminal Woes" from the 2024 self-released album Before It’s Gone With today's Song of the Day, New York-based Colombian duo Salt Cathedral share a sneak peek at their forthcoming full-length Before It’s Gone , to be self-released on March 22nd. In a press statement, the band share: “”Terminal Woes” are the woes that will bring us (humanity) to our demise – in this song, climate change. How do I bring a child into a world that is getting, by all predictions, physically worse? H...
Feb 22, 2024•3 min•Ep. 4693
Seven Davis Jr - "Soul Music" from the 2024 album Stranger Than Fiction on Secret Angels Singer/songwriter Samuel Lonnelee Davis — known to us as Seven Davis Jr. — dug into the vault for today's Song of the Day. The track was originally recorded back in 2016 around the time of his LP Universes . As he explains on Bandcamp, "It was supposed to go on the next album but did not match the tracklist. It was released on an underground EP but never officially. Detroit's Kyle Hall began playing this tra...
Feb 21, 2024•9 min•Ep. 4692
Art Feynman - "Chasing My Life" from the 2023 album Be Good The Crazy Boys on Western Vinyl Long-time KEXP fave Luke Temple has been recording under the alias Art Feynman for a few albums now; his press release says, as a way to "explore surprising sonic landscapes without the burdens of identity." And now, on his third LP under the pseudonym, Be Good The Crazy Boys , he's joined by a full band, and the release was recorded live in the studio. "Sonically, I was inspired by records that were reco...
Feb 20, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4691
Butcher Brown - "Down With the King" a 2024 single on Concord Jazz For today's Song of the Day, Virginia-based jazz/hip-hop collective Butcher Brown brings their take on the 1993 Run DMC classic “Down With the King.” The track was created in collaboration with the ACC Network, ESPN’s 24/7 national network dedicated to Atlantic Coast Conference sports, and the song can be heard in promotional spots that kicked off last month. “Virginia music is one-of-a-kind, and always has been, just like the AC...
Feb 19, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4690
Lesser Angels - "Burn it Away," a 2024 self-released single Lesser Angels is a goth/darkwave project out of Eugene, OR, that brings dreamy musical vibes from a trans-feminine perspective. Today's Song of the Day examines the duality of life, as they explain on Bandcamp: "'Burn It Away' is a song meant to evoke the meditative concept of fire as a type of rebirth and the cycle of positive and negative experiences in life. A beautiful day can't last forever or it wouldn't be beautiful, just like ho...
Feb 16, 2024•5 min•Ep. 4689
TISIPHONE - "The Sound of His Voice," a 2024 single on Icy Cold Records French coldwave trio Tisiphone returned this month with their sophomore LP Riot Puppets . Band members Léo and Suzanne met as music students at the Conservatoire de Lyon, with Clara later meeting Léo in the drumming program. In an interview with Threshold Magazine , Clara explains, "We love rock, jazz, classical, but is true that we wanted to make this band around this coldwave thing, post-punk. It was also an aesthetic styl...
Feb 15, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4688
Zanias - "Earthborn" from the 2024 album Ecdysis on Metropolis Records Today's featured track comes from a KEXP Song of the Day veteran , the Berlin-based project Zanias , led by Australian-born multidisciplinary artist Alison Lewis. "Earthborn" is the first single off her forthcoming full-length Ecdysis , out this Friday, February 16th. The album was created around the same time as 2023's LP Chrysalis , but Lewis points out on Instagram that these tracks have a "far more alien quality to them."...
Feb 14, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4687
Glaring - "Burn the Snow" from the 2024 self-released EP DR666 Over the past few years. Germany-based coldwave artist Anna Nin has been recording her melancholy medleys under the name Glaring . Her latest EP — the self-released DR666 — reflects the cold winter month of January in which it was released: chilly synths, glacial pacing, and a vapor-breath vocal delivery. Read the full story at KEXP.org Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Feb 13, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4686
Anja Huwe - "Rabenschwarz" a 2024 single on Sacred Bones As the frontwoman for German post-punk band Xmal Deutschland, vocalist Anja Huwe was at the forefront of the 4AD avant-garde art-rock scene in the 1980s. When the band broke up in 1989, Huwe left music to pursue her visual art career. But now, nearly 30 years later, Huwe re-emerges with her debut solo album, Codes , scheduled for release on March 8th via Sacred Bones Records. Huwe's long-time friend Mona Mur managed to coax her back into t...
Feb 12, 2024•3 min•Ep. 4685
Polyrhythmics - "Clydesdale" from the 2023 self-released album Filter System Now on their 13th year as a band, Seattle's own psych-funk septet Polyrhythmics released their latest LP last fall titled Filter System . “When I listen to this music I feel comforted and excited at the same time,” saxophonist Art Brown said of the album in a press statement. “I really feel like we've created some beautiful musical spaces that can transport you. And in that way I think it can provide a source of inspira...
Feb 09, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4684
Nation of Language - Spare Me the Decision (Cutouts Remix) a 2024 single on PIAS Brooklyn trio Nation of Language revisit last year's single "Spare Me the Decision" with a remix by their bassist Alex MacKay, who also records under the name Cutouts . The original version of the track appears on the album Strange Disciple , which was voted the #2 album of the year by KEXP listeners. “I knew pretty instantly “Spare Me the Decision” was the track I’d have the most fun trying to remix from Strange Di...
Feb 08, 2024•5 min•Ep. 4683
Gustaf - "Starting and Staring" from the 2024 album Package Pt. 2 on Royal Mountain Brooklyn-based no-wave band Gustaf share the lead single from their upcoming sophomore full-length Package Pt. 2 , out April 5th via Royal Mountain. The new album was produced by Erin Tonkon, who worked on David Bowie’s final album Blackstar . With its driving bass and anxiety-ridden performance from vocalist Lydia Gammill, it's easy to see why this group is a tour mate of bands like IDLES, Sleaford Mods, and Yar...
Feb 07, 2024•3 min•Ep. 4682
Ride - "Peace Sign" from the 2024 album Interplay on Wichita Shoegaze pioneers Ride return with the album Interplay , out March 29th on Wichita Recordings/PIAS. It'll be their seventh full-length overall, and their third since reuniting in 2014. “This album has taken a long time to make, and has seen the band go through a lot of ups and downs; maybe the most of any Ride album,” co-founder Andy Bell said in a press release. “But it has seen us come through the process as a band in a good place, f...
Feb 06, 2024•5 min•Ep. 4681
TR/ST - "Robrash" a 2023 single on Dais TR/ST — a project of producer Robert Alfons — shares the first single from his latest release, a self-titled EP from his new label, Dais Records. Formed in Toronto, and now based in Los Angeles, he continues to craft darkwave synth perfect for haunting the dance floor. Today's Song of the Day was co-produced by Nightfeelings and mixed by the legendary Nick Launay, who has worked with everyone from Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds to IDLES to Kate Bush. Read the...
Feb 05, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4680
Brittany Davis - "Sepricon" from the 2024 album Image Issues on Loosegroove Records Last we spoke with Seattle artist Brittany Davis , they had released an EP via Loosegroove Records, the label ran by Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard (who is also Davis's bandmate in the side project, Painted Shield). Now, they've returned with their debut full-length album, titled Image Issues, out March 1st on Loosegroove. It's an ambitious 26-track, concept-driven release, interspersed with spoken word pieces...
Feb 02, 2024•3 min•Ep. 4679
Izzy and the Black Trees - "F-16" a 2024 single on Antena Krzyku. Polish punk rockers Izzy and The Black Trees tap into some COVID anxiety for today's Song of the Day. As vocalist Izabela “Izzy” Rekowska explains to music blog Vanadian Avenue : "Back then, I was watching many movies and Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb really got stuck in my head. Plus, there was a constant hum of jet planes flying over our apartment. So, you get the story. T...
Feb 01, 2024•4 min•Ep. 4678
Waxahatchee - "Right Back To It (feat. MJ Lenderman)" from the 2024 album Tigers Blood on ANTI- On today's Song of the Day, singer/songwriter Katie Crutchfield — best known as Waxahatchee — enlists the talents of MJ Lenderman (of the band Wednesday, as well as a solo artist) for an unconventional love song. “I wrote it backstage at Wolf Trap when I was on tour opening for Jason Isbell and Sheryl Crow,” Crutchfield says in a press statement. “I’m really interested in writing love songs that are g...
Jan 31, 2024•5 min•Ep. 4677
SPRINTS - "Adore Adore Adore" from the 2024 album Letter To Self on City Slang Dublin, Ireland-based garage rockers Sprints rage against the patriarchy on today's Song of the Day, as vocalist Karla Chubb explains on Bandcamp: “'Adore Adore Adore' is a guttural reaction to my experience of criticism, gender, and misogyny. People can't seem to stop pressing their idea of what being a woman or acting like a woman is or should be upon us. You can't act like this, you can't say that, you have to be b...
Jan 30, 2024•3 min•Ep. 4676
