In Our Headphones

TV Priest - "This Island" from the 2021 album Uppers on Sub Pop. With today's Song of the Day, London-based post-punk quartet TV Priest share an early look at their forthcoming full-length Uppers, out February 5th via Sub Pop. In a press statement, frontman Charlie Drinkwater calls the track "an unrequited love letter, and a howl of frustration; a mea culpa and a call to arms." He adds: "'This Island' is about incoherence and inarticulate responses, both personal and political, in a time and place you don’t fully understand anymore... We wrote this to an increasingly nationalistic and isolationist drum beat playing out at home and abroad, and frankly we are scared and appalled. As artists we aren’t offering up solutions for living, but maybe we can extend a hand and let someone know that you aren’t alone in feeling under prepared in your responses yet powerful in your convictions. That small boats can still make big waves. That we have a world to win." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ghost of Vroom - "Rona Pollona" from the 2020 Ghost of Vroom 2 EP on Mod y Vi Records. Back in the '90s, NYC-based band Soul Coughing combined improvisational jazz with samples and the stream-of-consciousness poetry of frontman Mike Doughty. Decades later, Doughty returns with Ghost of Vroom (the band name a nod to SC's debut 1994 album Ruby Vroom), a project with bassist and longtime collaborator Andrew “Scrap” Livingston.  "This is the Soul Coughing stuff that was never made," Doughty explained to Stereogum. "It’s a very specific return to ’94, ’95 Soul Coughing. I’m getting deep, but the way the band sounded at the end of the Ruby Vroom tour, but before we went in with David Kahne to make 'Super Bon Bon' and 'Lazybones,' all those songs." On today's Song of the Day, Ghost of Vroom take a lighthearted look at the current pandemic. "If you dig enough, there’s darkness in there, but it’s essentially jokes about coronavirus," Doughty confirms. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

J'Von - "cnn" from the 2020 album THUNDERBOY on PLZCOMEAGAIN. Seattle's own J'Von returned last month with his latest LP of lo-fi hip-hop titled Thunderboy. True to his history of multidisciplinary approach, J'Von wrote, arranged, produced, recorded, and mixed the album himself (with one track co-produced by grady), as well as created all the art, characters, and animations.  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dave B - "Worthy," a 2020 self-released single. With his single "Worthy," Renton, WA-based rapper Dave B wanted to remind the Black community that they are worthy of love and respect.  "A lot of people post their black squares and do what they do and they get to throw it to the side they don't have to live it," he said to King 5 News. "We have to wake up every day and start to do this. I got to walk outside every day and I'm still worried about what might happen if I do the wrong thing or say the wrong thing." Proceeds from the track are being donated to Acts On Stage, WA Black Trans Task Force, and the Black Trans Travel Fund.  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Quetzal - "Justice Never Dies," a 2020 self-released single. As we rebuild the world around us As others still fight and die We keep doing all we can “We don’t just survive We wanna thrive!” Since forming in the early '90s, East L.A.-based band Quetzal have long used their musical platform to speak out about social justice and education. Frontwoman Martha Gonzalez is an associate professor at Scripps College and just released the book Chican@ Artivistas: Music, Community and Transborder Tactics in East Los Angeles. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tiffany Wilson - "America (feat. Lady Tasz & Vitamin D)," a 2020 single on Loosegroove Records. You know a song is good when it brings a record label out of a twenty year hiatus, which is just what happened with Tiffany Wilson and Loosegroove Records, a label founded by Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam) and Regan Hagar (Malfunkshun, Brad). Based in Seattle, Wilson is also a former member of local gospel group SOUL. On her latest single (a first-listen to her forthcoming full length coming in 2021), Wilson recruits the powerful voices of Lady Tasz and Vitamin D to convey a somber message. She writes on her YouTube page: “This song is a question. Is this how they keep America great? With violence and hatred? What role do you play in interrupting and addressing that? I’m thinking about the stigma placed on black people as ‘Dangerous killers and blah blah blah.’ All of the mass shootings and big bombs…those weren’t us. Instead, we’re deemed a threat. The hatred has become so much more prevalent. We’ve gone back in the past. I want to make people aware.  It speaks from the perspective of a young or old white killer and how ‘hard’ their life is having been given everything. It keeps everyone subdued and afraid to fight back. Is this America’s secret weapon?” Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sa-Roc - "The Black Renaissance (feat. Black Thought)" from the 2020 album The Sharecropper's Daughter on Rhymesayers. The first time Sa-Roc met Black Thought of The Roots, he was pulling her up on stage at the 2014 A3C Hip Hop Festival in front of tens of thousands of people.  “We had a mutual friend who’s close to him and had been sharing music or whatever," the Atlanta-based MC remembered to HipHopDX. "He was anticipating meeting us there and Thought, being the Hip Hop icon who went through the fire and came up doing cyphers and freestyles, he completely believed in making sure an MC is up to par with going through that cold trial-by-fire thing. The impromptu performance set the stage for the collaboration on today's Song of the Day. She told ABC Australia: "I knew as soon as I started writing this album, I wanted Black Thought to feature and when [producer] Sol Messiah showed me this track, I was like, 'This is the one.' I have such high regard for Black Thought as an MC and how he elevates lyricism to an extent that's really not seen within the mainstream industry. So, we got on the track, we recorded in the studio, and just went crazy: back and forth bar for bar. So, this is lyricism at its finest." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rell Be Free - "Paythefeee" from the 2020 self-released album P.T.F.D. Rell Be Free (real name: Jerrell Davis) is a self-described "musician, underground educator, and multifaceted entrepreneur" from the South End of Seattle. A rapper since the age of 12, Davis utilizes his skills to speak out for social justice. He's the Restorative Justice Director and co-founder of the youth organization WA-BLOC (Washington Building Leaders of Change), serves as a Corner Greeter Coordinator for Rainier Beach, and was named one of Seattle’s Most Influential People by Seattle Magazine in 2018. "I’m very comfortable with who I am and so I’m not trying to perpetuate a false image," Davis told the South Seattle Emerald. "When you front, you’ve got to keep it up and I’m not prepared to keep up a façade. I’d rather keep up who I really am. No matter how popular my music gets, I’ve got to remember that it’s really not about me. Honestly, I use music as art, but I really see music as a tool toward revolution – a way to change the material conditions of our people." Watch Rell Be Free perform today's Song of the Day from an event held by Decriminalize Seattle.  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Harleighblu & Bluestaeb - "Queeen Dem (feat. Janne Robinson)" from the 2019 self-released album She. British R&B vocalist Harleighblu teams up with German producer Bluestaeb on the collaborative album She. On today's Song of the Day, the duo find inspiration in the poetry of Janne Robinson. Harleighblu told Highsnobiety in an email: I wrote the track Queeen Dem (pronounced like ManDem), after being inspired by a poem called 'This is for the women that don’t give a fuck' by Janne Robinson. The poem reads ‘this is for the women who drink too much whisky, stay up too late and have sex like they mean it — it really spoke to me. I tried to capture the strength of the poem, with a nod to Janne and then elaborate with my own take on completely owning your own womanhood. Within writing the first few lines, I entitled the piece 'Queeen Dem.' Queeen gets 3 E’s to accentuate the fact you are a queen. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fugazi - "Burning Too" from the 1989 album 13 Songs on Dischord Records. We have a responsibility / To use our abilities to keep this place alive / Right here right now / Do it. Now. Do it. Since forming in 1986, DC punk band Fugazi have become synonymous with DIY ethics and progressive political perspectives. “I was born in 1962 and I was here in Washington right through the civil rights stuff, the anti-war stuff, gay rights," frontman Ian MacKaye said in a rare interview with Loud & Quiet. “My parents and I went to a church that was radical liberation – very, very left, it had a woman saying mass in 1972, gay marriage in 1974, the Black Panthers spoke there, rock bands played there – it was radical. I was raised in that environment so I thought that’s how society would be. Then the ’70s came along and you had this period of people partying and disco music and such obsolescence, it was such a bummer and I felt so disconnected from it. I was like, ‘where’s the counter-culture?’ It seemed so real to me as a child but as a teenager it was gone.” MacKaye was able to revitalize a conscientious way of life through music. And while the now-legendary group are reticent when it comes to the meaning behind their lyrics, frontman Ian Mackaye's call to action in today's featured Song of the Day is undeniable. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stella Donnelly - "Beware of the Dogs" from the 2019 album Beware of the Dogs on Secretly Canadian. Following the breakout success of her debut EP Thrush Metal, Australian artist Stella Donnelly knew she wanted to use her first full-length, Beware of the Dogs, to address larger issues in the world. "My generation had this 'enough is enough' kind of feeling and a lot of the women I was working with were finding their ways of expressing that," she told Under the Radar last year. "Whether it was my friends who were artists, or in punk bands, or were poets, it just felt like I was part of a community that was speaking out at that moment." With the title track of the album, Donnelly sums it up, telling DIY Magazine:  This song is about the historic and continuing racism that flows through the Australian media and government. As a white Australian I am extremely privileged to have the platform that I do and whilst I occupy this space that in my opinion is far too often occupied by white people, I am going to use it to speak up. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Noname - "Song 33," a 2020 self-released single. With her first single of 2020, Chicago artist Noname works with producer Madlib to craft a track referencing the murder of George Floyd, Black Lives Matter activist Oluwatoyin Salau, and to, well, call out fellow rapper J. Cole, whose own single “Snow on Tha Bluff” seemed to criticize her social media presence.  "i've been thinking a lot about it and i am not proud of myself for responding with song 33," she tweeted. "i tried to use it as a moment to draw attention back to the issues i care about but i didn't have to respond. my ego got the best of me. i apologize for any further distraction this caused."   She added, "madlib killed that beat and i see there’s a lot of people that resonate with the words so i’m leaving it up but i’ll be donating my portion of the songs earnings to various mutual aid funds. black radical unity." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sango - "Eu Vou Passando (feat. Jé Santiago)" from the 2020 album Da Rocinha 4 on Soulection Records. Former Seattleite, current Michigander, Kai "Sango" Wright continues his Da Rocinha series, described as his "love letter to Rio De Janeiro Funk Carioca.”  “I’ve always been a person of culture through connecting dots and bridging gaps,” Sango says via a press release. “With the Da Rocinha series, it is about highlighting the history of Funk Carioca and paying homage to the creation of the funk sound. With this fourth installment, I wanted to reach out to the community of Rocinha, local areas in Rio de Janeiro and Brazil to give and receive support while I push this North American & South American sound.” On today's featured track, he teams up with São Paulo-based artist Jé Santiago, known for soulful trap-influenced hip hop. It's “from the people, for the people,” he concludes. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Working Men's Club - A.A.A.A. from the 2020 album Working Men's Club on Heavenly Recordings. Yorkshire band Working Mens Club was formed by a bunch of Working Teens last year. Eighteen-year-old frontman Sydney Minsky-Sargeant explains in a press release, "We grew up in northern towns trying to get in to pubs in social clubs because that's all we had. The name is an ode to that. Our surroundings and their differences has influenced us a lot on these tracks." Their self-titled debut album was produced by Ross Orton (The Fall, Arctic Monkeys). Minsky-Sargeant elaborates, “There’s not much going on, not much stuff to do as a teenager. It’s quite isolated. And it can get quite depressing being in a town where in the winter it gets light at nine in the morning and dark at four.” Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jessica Winter - "Sad Music" from the 2020 Sad Music EP on Roya Records. Brixton-based artist Jessica Winter stuns with her debut EP Sad Music, a perfect blend of introspective lyrics and infectious synth beats. “Music helps me realise that you are not alone that every one of us is capable of the best and worst feelings and actions in this world," Winter said via a press release. "This song was born out of a particularly bad day and how music was a saviour at that time.” Winter captures that feeling in the accompanying music video; she says: “This video was made over a year ago. Nan Moore (the director) and I started it with zero budget so we sweet talked our way into Specsavers and took a National Express down to Portsmouth beach to film the initial scenes... a year went past and we hustled, we toured together and eventually convinced someone to give us the cash to finish it off. The only reason we got into Spescavers was because I was there so often with a health condition called blepharitis, you treat it by using artificial tears. I think that reflects how as an artist, a woman putting out pop music, you always feel like there’s an element of being performative. 'Sad Music' is performative, it’s getting through heartbreak with a song and a dance.” Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dark Tropics - "Moroccan Sun," a 2020 single on Quiet Arch. Self-described "pop-noir" duo Dark Tropics return with their second single "Moroccan Sun," just in time to stretch out summer just a little bit longer. While the musicians, Rio and Gerard, reside in Belfast, Ireland, they first met in Morocco, and bring a sultry, sunny Mediterranean feel to today's featured track. In a press release, Rio shares: “’Moroccan Sun’ was written somewhat as a narrative for my first travelling experience fully on my own. It’s letting go of what you believed to be your comfort, your light in life and understanding that you will always have some constants, but by the same measure things will change and mould around you, and embracing this brings a new sense of happiness. Taking the step to leave the old behind, move forward into the new and embracing a new chapter.” “I did take a lot of inspiration from my travel diary, especially my night sleeping under the stars in the Sahara and the 12hr drive back to the city the next day where I spent a lot of time thinking about the life I was coming back to and what I really wanted.” Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Adia Victoria - "South Gotta Change," a 2020 single on Atlantic Records. 'Cause I love you, I won't leave you Won't let you slip away Come what may We're gonna find a way Nashville-based artist Adia Victoria takes an introspective look at her city on her latest single, "South Gotta Change." The song, executive produced by the legendary T Bone Burnett, is not only a love letter to her town, but a plea for change. On Twitter, she declared, "this isn’t a song about hope, this is a howl for change." She continues in a press statement: In 2020 I have watched as the world became irreversibly altered. The upheaval COVID-19 caused has allowed for a sacred pause in our daily life. During this lapse we lost Congressman John Lewis. In the days following his death I pondered the work he accomplished and the work left to us who remain. "South Gotta Change" is a prayer, an affirmation, and a battle cry all at once. It is a promise to engage in the kind of ‘good trouble’ John Lewis understood necessary to form a more perfect union. No other place embodies the American experiment with the precision of the South. It is home to both unspeakable horror and unshakable faith. It is up to us, those who are blessed enough to be Southern, to take up the mantle Brother Lewis left us. As the old saying goes, “As the South goes, so goes the nation.” Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Of Mexican Descent - "All Turn Native" from the 2006 self-released album Exitos Y Mas Exitos (Edicion De Lujo). Of Mexican Descent is a collaboration between Los Angeles-based artists, rapper 2Mex (real name: Alejandro Ocana) and Xololanxinxo (real name: Daniel Rodriguez). They began the project in 1991, and quickly became an elemental part of the rising Los Angeles underground hip hop movement. Their debut EP Exitos y Mas Exitos was originally released in 1998, and was recently re-released digitally via 2Mex's Bandcamp page. KEXP's DJ Gabriel Teodros says: "Of Mexican Descent is the duo of 2Mex and Xololanxinxo, two legendary underground Los Angeles MC's who cut their teeth performing at the famed Good Life Cafe, as documented in Ava DuVernay's 2008 film This Is The Life. As I was just coming into making music myself in the late '90s, OMD's work found its way to my Walkman via dubbed cassettes that friends were passing around, as we were all big fans of the styles coming out of the Good Life and Project Blowed. This was in a time when independent hip-hop had to physically travel to reach you; the internet wasn't used to distribute music the way it is now. 2Mex and Xololanxinxo both had such a courageous vulnerability in their approach, they kept love at the center of everything they did, and they represented an Indigenous perspective in hip-hop I hadn't yet heard at that point. The impact their music had on me then is something you can still see and feel in everything I do today. It only felt right to help shine a light on my OGs. "2Mex and Xololanxinxo are both very active today, Xololanxinxo has brand new music with The Psychic Temple you can listen to here and you can check the latest solo work from 2Mex here. "There's rumors of a new Visionaries album coming soon, too!" Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dioganhdih - "Native New Yorker," a 2019 self-released single. A self-described "queer, non-binary, indigenous rapper, activist, and diversity consultant", Dioganhdih uses their music to celebrate the Haudenosaunee culture. On their latest single, they explain, "this single release details the life of a water protector living in a constant state of emergency and being propelled into action while living in occupation at Oceti Sakowin, Standing Rock in 2016." The track was recorded in Los Angeles with Ziibiwan, an Anishinaabe electronic artist, on beat and post production. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ill-ēsha - "Como la Chicha (feat. Fabian Arias & Dakota Camacho)" from the 2020 self-released album Songs from the Sweat Shed. Last year, veteran DJ/producer Ill-ēsha helped create the Tribal Gathering Festival Recording Studio in the middle of the jungle in Panama, using the new space to record indigenous tribes and artists from all over the world. On her new double EP, Songs from the Sweat Shed, she incorporates samples from these sessions into her infectious electronic beats, with 100% of proceeds to "help continue funding to get tribes from all over the world to Tribal Gathering." On today's Song of the Day, Ill-ēsha features Fabian Arias and Dakota Camacho. Camacho, in particular, was born and raised in Coast Salish Territory, resides in South Seattle, and is of Matao/CHamoru ancestry. A "multi-disciplinary artist/researcher", Camacho also co-founded I Moving Lab, "an inter-national, inter-cultural, inter-tribal, and inter-disciplinary arts collective that creates community and self-funded arts initiatives to engage and bring together rural & urban communities, Universities, Museums, & performing arts institutions." You can see the wide range of projects Camacho leads here. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

DJ Shub - "The Social (feat. pHoenix Pagliacci)," a 2020 single on Shub Music. Award-winning producer DJ Shub has teamed up with Toronto-based artist Phoenix for a powerful new track, with proceeds going to organizations benefiting Black Lives Matter and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. In an interview with Billboard, DJ Shub (who is a Mohawk from Six Nations of the Grand River, Canada's largest First Nations reserve) explained: "Indigenous people in Canada are like the Black Lives Matter movement in the States. It’s pretty bad here, especially when it comes to shootings by police. The statistics are crazy, so I think we [as First Nations people] can relate to what’s happening. That’s why Phoenix [who is Black] gets it so deeply, we’ve both experienced the same struggle in Canada." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Tribe Called Red - "Land Back (feat. Boogey the Beat & Northern Voice)," a 2020 self-released single. Canadian DJ duo A Tribe Called Red have a long history of using their public platform to amplify the indigenous community, and with today's Song of the Day, they're showing their support for the Wet’suwet’en people, whose sovereign lands are being invaded by the RCMP and the Coastal GasLink pipeline. They're offering this song for free on their Soundcloud page and are encouraging listeners to donate to the Unist'ot'en 2020 Legal Fund in return. The band also shared this statement alongside the release: We oppose the invasion of sovereign Indigenous lands by the RCMP and the Coastal GasLink pipeline. We stand with the Wet’suwet’en people and their hereditary chiefs. We stand with all the people working to support their fight.  We will be making this song available to download for free and free to be used for anyone working to defend the Wet’suwet’en territories and all action that defend the right of Indigenous land sovereignty and to promote a true nation to nation discussion between the Indigenous nations of Turtle Island and our Canadian settlers.  Until our Canadians are willing to treat the Indigenous nations of this land with the respect due, a sovereign people’s reconciliation will remain an empty gesture.  It was the work of our good friend Whess Harman that inspired us to give the song away to the movement. Not only because of their work in the frontlines of resistance in Vancouver, but also because they are using their art for the movement. Whess designed the “Land Back” patch that is featured in our cover art, and has been selling them to raise money for the Unist'ot'en Camp Legal Fund. We will be making a donation to the same fund for our use of Whess' art. We encourage you to donate to the legal fund as well by following this link: https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising... The Halluci Nation would like to thank our friends and collaborators who have helped make this possible. Without our community we are nothing. Boogey the Beat, Northern Voice, Whess Harman and Valeo Arts Management.#Alleyesonwetsuweten #LandBack #WaterIsLife #Standwithwetsuweten #unistotencamp #unistoten #unistotensolidarity #indigenousrights #wetsuwetenstrong Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Warren Dunes - "Fishbowl," a 2020 self-released single. KEXP is a listener-funded nonprofit, and we need your help to keep creating podcasts like this one. Donate now for our Fall Fundraising Drive!  Seattle surf-pop trio Warren Dunes are currently working on their debut full-length, but in the meantime, they've shared the stand-alone single “Fishbowl,” a song frontwoman and local-music-veteran Julia Massey tells American Songwriter, “It’s about admitting your weaknesses and asking for help. It’s about making yourself vulnerable during dark times and finding strength in the little things, like taking a walk with someone and holding their hand.” Massey, along with her spouse, Jared Cortese; and his brother, Dominic Cortese, share more details about the new track on their Facebook page. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Slow Pulp - "Falling Apart" from the 2020 album Moveys on Winspear. KEXP is a listener-funded nonprofit, and we need your help to keep creating podcasts like this one. Donate now for our Fall Fundraising Drive! Slow Pulp frontwoman Emily Massey's life was truly falling apart. The band had written an album's worth of songs while on tour with Alex G last year, but then Massey was diagnosed with Lyme disease and chronic mono. They scrapped the first batch and began to undertake more songwriting, better reflecting the current mood, and then things went from bad to worse. She explains in a press release: "As we were finishing up writing the album my parents got into a serious car accident and I came back home to help take care of them. A couple of weeks later COVID-19 started getting worse in the US, and quarantine began. Life felt completely surreal, everything had drastically changed and at such a rapid pace. It was especially strange because everyone was experiencing the same thing at the same time, but couldn’t be physically with each other to support each other. I felt like I couldn’t process any emotions I had about the whole ordeal because I had to keep it together to take care of my family. It became easier to stay numb, and create a facade that I was doing ok, than it was to release any type of healthy emotion for a long time. Luckily I did allow myself to have a full on breakdown induced by a stubbed toe and confusion over taxes, sometimes it’s the littlest things that finally get you." The resulting self-produced debut album, Moveys, will be released October 9th via Winspear. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sufjan Stevens - "Video Game" from the 2020 album The Ascension on Asthmatic Kitty. KEXP is a listener-funded nonprofit, and we need your help to keep creating podcasts like this one. Donate now for our Fall Fundraising Drive! As we reported back in August, acclaimed singer/songwriter Sufjan Stevens has returned with his eighth solo LP, The Ascension, his first since 2015's Carrie & Lowell. The song's video features Jalaiah Harmon, a 14-year-old dancer/choreographer who went viral on Tik-Tok with her "Renegade" dance. Stevens released the following statement addressing both the song and the clip, directed by Nicole Ginelli. "It’s unfortunate that we live in a society where the value of people is quantified by likes, followers, listeners and views. So many people are seeking attention for the wrong reasons. I think we should all be doing our best work without looking for accolades or seeking reward. The main takeaway of “Video Game” for me is: your worth (invaluable) should never be based on other people’s approval (ephemeral). Just be yourself. Keep it real. Keep it moving. Do all things with absolute purity, love and joy. And always do your best." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tomberlin - "Wasted" from the 2020 Projections EP on Saddle Creek. KEXP is a listener-funded nonprofit, and we need your help to keep creating podcasts like this one. Donate now for our Fall Fundraising Drive! Sarah Beth Tomberlin (who records under the name Tomberlin) teams up with lo-fi king Alex G on her forthcoming EP Projections, out October 16th via Saddle Creek. In a press statement, she explains that today's Song of the Day was "the most fun song to record," adding "I brought the song with the guitar part and knew I wanted drums, but wasn't sure what kind of beat I wanted. Alex played this drum beat for me and was all 'kinda left field but maybe this would be cool.' It took the song to a whole new level. Sad song or summer banger? You tell me." For the accompanying music video, Tomberlin brought in actress/author Busy Philipps, who she spent the lockdown with. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lost Horizons - "I Woke Up With An Open Heart (feat. The Hempolics)," from the 2020 album In Quiet Moments on Bella Union. KEXP is a listener-funded nonprofit, and we need your help to keep creating podcasts like this one. Donate now for our Fall Fundraising Drive! Lost Horizons unites the talents of Richie Thomas (aka Dif Juz) and Simon Raymonde (bassist of Cocteau Twins and founder of record label Bella Union), two former 4AD recording artists in the '80s. Their 2017 debut full-length Ojalá featured a stellar cast of guest vocalists, including Marissa Nadler, former Midlake frontman Tim Smith, and Karen Peris of The Innocence Mission. And, on their forthcoming sophomore LP In Quiet Moments, they reinvite those three stunning voices, adding John Grant, Porridge Radio, Penelope Isles, and more to their cast. London-based soul group The Hempolics appear on today's featured Song of the Day.  The duo gave their guests the following theme to inspire their lyrics: "Death and rebirth," Raymonde confirmed via a press release. "Of loved ones, of ideals, at an age when many artists that have inspired us are also dead, and the planet isn’t far behind. But I also said, ‘The most important part is to just do your own thing, and have fun.'” Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Left at London - "Do You See Us? (feat. Nobi)" from the 2020 self-released single Jenny Durkan, Resign in Disgrace. With a title like "Jenny Durkan, Resign in Disgrace", it's pretty obvious Seattle artist Left at London (real name: Nat Puff) does not mince words. And in the verses of today's Song of the Day, she teams up with guest rapper Nobi to sing: Fuck you, and the slavers that you work for This song’s For the people you killed “I fucking despise her,” Puff says about Seattle's Mayor Durkan via a press release. “She gassed her own citizens on Pride.”  The track reappears on her latest LP Transgender Street Legend Vol. 2., which came out last week. “I wanted it to be a series,” she says, “and then the success of the first CD really encouraged me to start working on the second one.” This new album, like today's Song of the Day, takes on a more serious tone. “Comedy hasn’t really influenced this project in any real sense,” Puff confirms.  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Budos Band - "Long in the Tooth" from the 2020 album Long in the Tooth on Daptone Records. Twenty years hardly makes one "long in the tooth," but Brooklyn's Budos Band are celebrating two decades as a musical unit (and 15 years from the release of their debut album) with their sixth LP, Long in the Tooth, out October 9th via Daptone Records. The album continues to expand on their soul-inspired instrumentals, sounding (as they put it) "as if Quentin Tarantino was the music supervisor for a Bond film." “In some ways, it’s reminiscent of our first two albums The Budos Band and Budos II,” says Tom Brenneck, guitarist and producer. “We branched off on Burnt Offering and V. Now, we’re still moving forward. You can play these songs on the dance-floor. We knew the horns had to stand out, too. Thinking about hip-hop allowed us to put the bounce back into The Budos.”  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sneaks - "Faith" from the 2020 album Happy Birthday on Merge Records. A new album from Sneaks is definitely 'cause for celebration, and this fourth full-length from Washington, DC’s Eva Moolchan provides a party-perfect groove with electronic dance beats and a Liquid Liquid-influenced bass line.  Like last year's album, Highway Hypnosis, she teams up with mixing engineer Carlos Hernandez and legendary Grammy-Award-winning producer Jacknife Lee (U2, R.E.M., Taylor Swift, to name a few). The production combined with Moolchan's laid-back delivery takes you right back to New York's early '80s no-wave scene. Crank it up and enjoy the festivities. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Smokescreens - "I Love Only You" from the 2020 album A Strange Dream on Slumberland Records. With their melodic, jangle-pop sound, you might mistake Smokescreens for a New Zealand band. But it's no surprise this Los Angeles-based band's music is infused with the classic "Flying Nun" sound, when David Kilgour, of legendary Dunedin band The Clean, is behind the production on their latest full-length A Strange Dream, out October 30th via Slumberland Records. "The Clean are one of my favorite bands of all time and David is definitely someone I greatly admire which makes this album so special to me," the band enthused on Facebook.  Recorded with engineer Kyle Mullarky (Allah-Las, Little Wings), the band come into their own on this third album, combining buoyant guitar lines with dulcet vocals. And with a trippy painting by Kilgour used as the album artwork, this is one record you'd be OK to judge by its cover. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bully - "Hours and Hours" from the 2020 album SUGAREGG on Sub Pop. On Bully's third album SUGAREGG, frontwoman/songwriter Alicia Bognanno took a more introspective approach to her '90s-inspired, fuzzed-out grunge-pop. “There was change that needed to happen and it happened on this record,” she said in a press statement. “Derailing my ego and insecurities allowed me to give these songs the attention they deserved.” On today's Song of the Day, she reflected on her connection to her Mom. She explained: “Hours And Hours” is about my mother and I finally figuring out our relationship. She and I had a really hard time connecting growing up and at times felt like it would never happen. Over the past five years we have become best friends, she is now the very first person I call when I am at my absolute lowest and has saved my life. I realize now how similar we are and how that probably had everything to do with why we had a difficult time with each other growing up. I wish I knew sooner how much we could relate but am eternally grateful that we have figured it out now and I’m just so thankful to be on good terms, I love her dearly. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Terror/Cactus - "Guanaco" from the 2020 self-released album Confluencia. Local producer Martín Selasco was born in Buenos Aires and raised in Miami, and he brings these influences to Seattle via his electro-cumbia project Terror/Cactus. His latest LP Confluencia is an auditory journey through the spectacular landscapes of South America, combining mesmerizing rhythms and psychedelic guitars. In an interview with Ballard Vox, Selasco talked about how his Latin American roots permeate his music: "Music has always been a way for me to connect to my cultural heritage. My parents moved to Miami from Argentina when I was just a baby, but with most of our family still in Argentina we’d go back and spend at least a month there every summer. This created a sense of nostalgia in me and that of belonging to something that was far away [...]" Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yanna - "Marcaperu," a 2020 self-released single. "My friends take care of me / Not the police" On her debut single "Marcaperu," Afro-Peruvian artist Yanna (real name: Brenda Carpio) uses her voice to denounce the injustices she sees around her: racism, discrimination, and violence.  Raised in the San Martín de Porres district of Lima, Peru, Yanna moved to France to study International Business Administration and instead, fell in love with hip hop.  "When I came back, it was a shock," she told El Comercio. "Having left and identified as a black and empowered woman from that Afro side was reduced to the fact that people on the street were quite violent and they looked at me, but not in a positive way, they made fun of my hair and my features.” She continued, "I felt that being abroad I was treated better than being in my own country. I know people who have gone through this misogynistic, sexist, and abusive violence. I wanted to highlight and put these issues on the table." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Los Blenders - "Perdidos En Pantitlan" from the 2020 album Mazunte 2016 on Devil in the Woods. KEXP has been enamoured with Mexico City's Los Blenders since their 2015 debut album Chavos Bien. (Check out their infectious garage-punk in this 2016 KEXP session.) On their forthcoming full-length Mazunte 2016, out September 25th via Devil in the Woods, the rambunctious quartet bring a new maturity to their surf sound, particularly on today's Song of the Day, inspired by recent events in their hometown. In a press release, they elaborate: "Lost in Pantitlán" is a true story. It happened to a friend of the band. It's a story about how absurd it is to deal with the police in Mexico and this inspired the song. It created a cry of protest in a way. Musically it is the most complex song that the band has released." Frontman Alejandro Archundia continues, "Musically it's a mix between the sound of rock in your language mixed with the most aggressive surf guitars we've ever pulled and a sticky chorus, trademark of Los Blenders." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ghetto Kumbé - "Vamo a Dale Duro" from the 2020 album Ghetto Kumbé on ZZK Records. Ghetto Kumbé take inspiration from their hometown of Bogotá, capital city of Colombia and just a quick flight from the Caribbean coast, infusing Afro-Colombian rhythms with modernized interpretations of dancehall, rumba, and traditional chants and call-and-response vocals. “I think what makes us different is that we’re going further back to the rhythmic roots, back to where the rhythm that exists in Colombia came from, mostly from the Atlantic coast," reflects co-founding band member Edgardo Garcés (aka E Guajiro) to Sound and Colours. "In the process of trying to find the similarities between different rhythms, we really took stock of the fact that so much of it comes from Africa and decided that we’d move more towards the African elements, adding them to the Afro-Colombia part. All this means it [our music] has a different sound.” Today's Song of the Day roughly translates to "Let's Go Hard," and it's a call to action to fight against the capitalist system and "dirty politicians."  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Marilina Bertoldi - "Fumar de Dia" from the 2018 album Prender un Fuego on Pelo Music S.A. Argentinan artist Marilina Bertoldi got her start as the frontwoman for the hard rockin' group Connor Questa, but since going solo in 2012, she's been exploring a range of sounds, landing the Best Rock Album of the Year award at the 2016 Latin Grammy Awards for her album Sexo Con Modelos. On her most recent release, 2018's Prender Un Fuego, she took inspiration from "Sheryl Crow, INXS, the soloist Cerati...," she told Pagina 12. "I make music for myself, one day I understood it and I don't feel bad saying it," she continued. "I don't make music for the public because in fact it is difficult for me to define 'my public'. I do what I enjoy and put it there, available." On today's Song of the Day, which translates to "Smoking During the Day," Bertoldi channels the transformation of her home into a change of attitude, as captured in the accompanying music video where she's cleaning out her fridge, changing outfits, dancing across the room. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lo Tom - "Start Payin'," from the 2020 self-released album LP2. Back in 2017, David Bazan and TW Walsh of Pedro the Lion teamed up with Trey Many and Jason Martin of Starflyer 59 to create Lo Tom, whose self-titled debut combined all the things we love about each of their respective bands: melodic, ‘90s-influenced rock, heavy with guitar riffs.  As the band said themselves, "We had fun making the first album, so we decided to do it again." The sophomore release was funded by fans via Kickstarter, and while they say today's Song of the Day is "coincidentally named," the lyric "might be time to find out what I owe and start paying" seems pretty appropriate here. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kelly Lee Owens - "On" from the 2020 album Inner Song on Smalltown Supersound. On her sophomore album, Inner Song, Welsh artist Kelly Lee Owens explores what she calls “the hardest three years of my life,” allowing her grief and sadness to express itself through her lush production work and her thoughtful lyrics.  As reported in a recent episode of the Song Exploder podcast, today's Song of the Day was inspired by the loss of the Prodigy’s Keith Flint, who passed away last year at the age of 49. (The working title was “Spirit of Keith.”) Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Æ MAK - "i dance in the kitchen (feat. Seba Safe)," a 2020 self-released single. Irish artist Æ Mak (real name: Aoife McCann) has always brought an infectious energy to her work. (Who can forget her dynamic performance at KEXP's 2019 Iceland Airwaves broadcast?) And now she brings that vivacity to the culinary with her new single "i dance in the kitchen," a sneak peek at her forthcoming EP titled how to: make a kitsch pop song to show the world, which will be out September 18th.  Written, recorded and produced during the coronavirus lockdown, the new EP was inspired by HOW TO, a zine by McCann's friend Eleanor Jameson, who "reached out to various Irish artists from different backgrounds, asking them to create a tutorial on a topic of their choosing."   Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Loraine James - "Don't You See It (feat. Jonnine)" from the 2020 Nothing EP on Hyperdub. Throughout the pandemic, London-based producer Loraine James has exercised her creativity, sharing demos and songs that didn't make the cut for her acclaimed 2019 album For You & I, releasing the remix EP Bangers and Mash, and, in July, releasing the five-track EP Hmm, with songs titled "Ahh," "Erm," and "Umm." On her latest EP, titled Nothing, James reached out to a series of collaborators who she felt "empathetically extend the feeling in her instrumental music with their own unique energies." For today's featured track, she teams up with Jonnine Standish of Australian band HTRK for a moody track pairing skittish sampled percussion with Standish's haunting vocals.  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rose City Band - "Only Lonely" from the 2020 album Summerlong on Thrill Jockey. Portland-based musician Ripley Johnson returns with his project, the appropriately-titled Rose City Band, the latest addition to his musical resume that also includes Moon Duo and Wooden Shjips. While the "band" name might allude to a larger outfit, the Rose City Band is more of a solo endeavor for Johnson, with just the addition of John Jeffrey on drums. While his Moon Duo partner Sanae Yamada was committed to a theatre project, Johnson took to his home studio to write and record this sophomore album, Summerlong. With today's Song of the Day, he taps into those feelings of isolation, revealing in a press release: “There are times when you’re feeling so down that you wish you were just plain lonely. I think there’s a sense of resilience in it, though, a determination to roll with the punches and push on through. I wrote the music a while back and figured it would be an upbeat kind of tune. I guess I was just pretty down when I got around to writing the lyrics.” Read the full post KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jupiter & Okwess - "Na Kozonga," a 2020 single on Everloving Records. The phrase "Na Kozonga" translates to "the return" in the Congolese language of Lingala, and that's what Jupiter & Okwess was looking forward to after the 180-date worldwide tour promoting their 2017 album Kin Sonic: returning home. The song is dedicated to bandleader Jupiter Bokondji's father, who passed away recently, and the accompanying music video, filmed in his hometown of Kinshasa, shows the musician boarding a plane to return to his family in Africa, with a "metaphysical" detour. Afropop.org reports the song is about “a mystical universe strewn with spirits and African allegorical incarnations, from Mami Wata (Mummy water) to Aniotas.” The song is a cover of "Gotta Go Home," a 1979 single by German disco-funk group Boney M, which was a re-written take on the 1973 track "Hallo Bimmelbahn" by brothers Heinz and Jürgen Huth. "Na Kozonga" is the title track from Jupiter & Okwess' forthcoming full-length, which is scheduled for release in 2021. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Noga Erez - "NO News on TV," a 2020 single on City Slang. With today's Song of the Day, Tel-Aviv based artist Noga Erez teams up with her partner Ori Rousso to reflect on the COVID-19 pandemic. In a press statement, she shares:  "This song was written during a period where I had more time than I've had in a decade. I was able to sit down and work my ass off on new music without any emails disturbing the silence. No notifications, nothing. I wanted to write a song that talked about that. I felt a deep need to imagine what it would be like to live in a world with no politics, money, grit, racism, or violence. [...] Singing about how ‘everybody’s free’ right now is such an incredible dissonance for me. It says exactly what it needs to say: not everyone is free. Actually most of us aren’t, but some of us are literally, physically not free. And that has to change fast." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fantastic Negrito - "How Long?" from the 2020 album Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? on Cooking Vinyl. With his past two albums, soulful singer/songwriter Fantastic Negrito (real name: Xavier Amin Dphrepaulezz) won Best Contemporary Blues Album at the Grammy Awards, and with his latest LP, Have You Lost Your Mind Yet?, he's poised for a hat-trick. On his new album, Negrito says, "I wanted to write about people I knew, people I grew up with, people whose lives I could personally affect, and whose lives have impacted me," adding, "It was the hardest album I’ve ever written." On today's Song of the Day, Negrito continues to ask the important questions; he tells Pollstar the title was inspired by author James Baldwin's query: “I haven’t got much time left – how long are we going to keep doing this?” He poses the question to "all perpetrators of violence," adding: "There’s so many topics. How long are we going to keep doing all the things we’re doing before we break? Because this is not very sustainable; because we can’t keep doing the same things we’ve been doing in this country for the last 40 or 50 years. You can only destroy, and that’s what we’ve done. It’s broken. Maybe this is just the catalyst for ending [white supremacy]. We’re in need of it. We need to turn it around if we’re going to survive." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Arlo Parks - "Hurt," a 2020 single on Transgressive Records. London-based poet and artist Arlo Parks understands the pain of the pandemic, sharing the new single "Hurt" to commiserate with listeners. The soulful jam provides a hypnotic groove to showcase Parks' warm vocals and reassuring lyrics.  “‘Hurt’ surrounds the possibility of healing from pain and the temporary nature of suffering,” Parks said via a press statement. “It is supposed to uplift and comfort those going through hard times.” Parks told NME back in May that she's spending the lockdown working on her debut full-length, explaining "I’m trying to make it the best body of work that it can be. The album format is really important to me, and in terms of the music that I’ve put out thus far, I feel like I have a sonic identity, but there’s variation in what I put out so far, so I do have scope to experiment and explore different styles within my debut album, which feels exciting. I’m excited for what it could be.” Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Naked Giants - "Take A Chance" from the 2020 album The Shadow on New West Records. Seattle trio Naked Giants return this month with their sophomore album The Shadow, an album they say is "much more honest" than their 2018 debut full-length SLUFF.  “We’ve come to realize that the path to becoming a better person and bringing positivity into the world isn’t always linear, and there’s a lot of growth in taking an honest look at the “shadow-y” parts of life,” they told Spin Magazine. “Whether it’s personal anxiety and depression or collective guilt and trauma, there’s always a part of yourself that’s hard to confront and understand. But The Shadow is all about facing that darkness and having the strength to bring it into the light.”  As for today's Song of the Day, the guys call it, “...a new step in the dance-the-stress-away attitude we’ve had since the band was formed. This time around it’s a bit more focused – we’re exploring these big unanswered questions in our lives, like the mechanisms of privilege and oppression or the capitalist oxymoron of individualism and assimilation, and we’re pairing it all with a danceable backbeat to tell people it’s ok to get up off the couch and do something about it.”  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Widowspeak - "Even True Love" from the 2020 album Plum on Captured Tracks. On their fifth full-length Plum, Brooklyn band Widowspeak continue to craft a dreamy folk-pop sound, punctuated by vocalist (and former Tacoma, WA native) Molly Hamilton's serenely-sweet vocals. In a press release, Hamilton shared: "Prior to writing “Even True Love,” I’d been sitting with some existential dread for the last year or so; honestly, sort of overwhelmed by the recognition that life is absurd and finite. The song itself is upbeat, kind of cruising. I was thinking about those youth-glorifying “yolo” type songs and that big mood, but also feeling like there’s so much more to it than that. Maybe because they only live once, humans tend to want to possess things: objects, success, money, experiences, people. True Love. Amassing the most and best of whatever while you can. But that never really landed with me; I think this one is more about being present with the unknown, letting things go a little more, trying not to hold on too tight." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Songhoy Blues - "Worry" from the 2020 album Optimisme on Fat Possum Records. Malian rock band Songhoy Blues have entranced us with their modern take on traditional West African music since their 2015 debut album Music In Exile. And now, in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the band have released their first song ever sung entirely in English. In an interview with KEXP, vocalist Aliou Touré told us: "We need hope. We need to come together. And when we get worried, there's no way to think positive. So we don't have to be worried, we don't need that bad energy around us. Otherwise, we're not going to be able to go through this situation we are in. So that's why we wrote this song. Who can talk to everybody to keep their self-control. To not get worried and then we can be optimists together." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

TARA - "Oceans," a 2020 self-released single. Even though they've only been together for a few years, Brooklyn quintet TARA have quickly coalesced their different musical backgrounds into the cohesive shoegaze-influenced sound they've displayed on the handful of singles they've released so far, including today's featured track "Oceans."  After relocating to New York from California, guitarist/vocalist Saagar Kurani met another west coast transplant, guitarist/vocalist Wesley Deimling. They added Jack Weiss, Alexa Garay, and Stephen Kingslow to the line-up and proceeded to share their first set of singles last summer. The band shared the background of today's Song of the Day with KEXP: Our intent was to create a sound pallet which makes you feeling nostalgic for a place you've never been. Old but still new. The lyrics are inspired by Alexa's really good friend and visual artist, Sarah N--. Alexa states: 'swirling guitars and crescendos meant to deliver our exhausted selves to places wide open and far away, a song on the theme of dreams, full tide pools, Wuthering Heights, and lightness and fluttering during amid wild storms and turbulence. This fluttering of wings for soothing, for us, for us, for you, for all of us in wearying times, for Sarah.' Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.