Live on KEXP

Nabihah Iqbal's silvery electronic cuts have a futuristic allure to their popping rhythms that make for a quixotic listening experience.The razor-sharp electronic musician formerly known as Throwing Shade performs four songs from her debut album Weighing of the Heart from the Musée de la danse during Trans Musicales 2018. Recorded 12/5/2018. 4 songs - Saw U Twice, In Visions, Zone 1 to 6000, Untitled FridaySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Love Is Magic, John Grant's fourth solo album, is another collection of clever and heart-wrenching songs delivered with a delectable croon and a razor-sharp wit. In this session, Grant joins Troy Nelson at Avast! Recording Co. for a session of four songs from the album. Recorded 12/18/2018. 4 songs - Touch and Go, Is He Strange, TC and Honeybear, VietnamSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Colorful and aqueous, the Rennes, France brass band whips up a rhythmic, sharp performance from the Musée de la danse in their hometown during Trans Musicales 2018. Recorded 12/8/2018. 4 songs - Harika Maru, Savana, Route 35, MonnSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Seattle staple for over a decade, Gabriel Teodros' incisive and reflective music reached a new peak with his 2018 LP History Rhymes If It Doesn't Repeat (A Southend Healing Ritual). In this session, Teodros joins Troy Nelson at Avast! Recording Co. for a session of four songs from the album. Recorded 11/28/2018. 4 songs - First Cut, Quantum Entanglement, Continuum, Around The WaySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hazy and alluring, Red Ribbon channels a smokey, Twin Peaks-esque mystique in their atmospheric rock. The Seattle outfit perform four songs from their debut album Dark Party at Avast! Recording Co. with DJ Sean Morrow. Recorded 11/28/2018. 4 songs - Seven Months, Overdrive, Your Car, Idiot OrangeSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Seattle veterans John Atkins (764-Hero) and James van Leuven (Plan B) joined forces for the scrappy lo-fi art punk project Sun Breaks. The Seattle duo join DJ Atticus at Avast! Recording Co. for a four-song session. Recorded 11/29/2018. 4 songs - All on Camera, Summer of Broken Bones, Heart, MomentsSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Westman Islands, Iceland musician is quickly becoming a KEXP live session regular, and his talent for enrapturing melodies shines through in this session from KEX Hostel in Reykjavik during KEXP's broadcast from Iceland Airwaves 2018. Recorded 11/8/2018. 6 songs - Until the Last Minute, Across The Borders, Lay Your Head, Let It Pass, Love Child, High AlertSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John Craigie imbues his songs with a wry sense of humor tempered with a deep understanding of American folk rock tradition. The San Francisco songwriter joins The Roadhouse's Greg Vandy at Avast! Recording Co. for a session of five songs. Recorded 11/29/2018. 5 songs - While I'm Down, Let's Talk This Over, When We're Sober, Don't Ask, Westbound Bart, 28Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The kaleidoscopic garage pop of South London's WOOZE is both flirtily playful and endlessly beguiling. Theo Spark and Jamie She perform four songs in session with KEXP at Musée de la danse in Rennes, France, during Trans Musicales 2018. Recorded 12/9/2018. 4 songs - Hello Can You Go, Ladies Who Lunch With Me, I'll Have What She's Having, Party Without YaSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Maria Uzor and Gemma Cullingford's chrome-plated electronic music has a brilliant dance sensibility. The Norwich duo perform five tracks from their self-titled debut album live from Rennes, France as part of KEXP's sessions at Trans Musicales de Rennes 2018. Recorded 11/15/2018. 5 songs - If You See Me, Petrol Blue, Glass, Pushin', SubstitutesSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Seattle's Cold Soda boasts quite a bit of Pacific Northwest musical pedigree - namely the members of the Cave Singers who swap instruments for this new project. Playing four songs from their self-titled debut, the quartet join Cheryl Waters in session at Avast! Recording Co. Recorded 11/26/2018. 4 songs - Houses, Roll Up, Neon Cross, Holly LeafSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Los Mundos' rugged sound pumps up its intensity with hints of psychedelic sludge and ripping guitars at every chance it gets. The Monterrey group join DJ Chilly at Avast! Recording Co. for a four-song session. Recorded 11/15/2018. 4 songs - El Color Que Cayó Del Espacio, Amantes de la Sangre, Lenta Combustión, Rompe Tu GuitarraSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reykjavik electronic outfit aYia's jagged electronic rhythms are fascinatingly caustic. The group perform cataclysmic songs live from KEXP's Iceland Airwaves 2018 broadcast at KEX Hostel. Recorded 11/9/2018. 5 songs - Sparkle, Crystal, Slow, New Moon, RuinsSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reykjavik composer Kristín Björk Kristjánsdóttir's work is emotive and moving in its graceful poise. The composer performs two pieces as part of a tribute to Jóhann Jóhannsson live at Mengi in Reykjavik. Recorded 11/11/2018. 2 songs - Talk To Your Hands, A Miracle Is A Shift In Perception From Fear To LoveSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bjarni and Sigurpáll, aka Bagdad Brothers, create dreamy, metallic guitar pop that shines with the best of Iceland's music scene. In this session from KEX Hostel in Reykjavik, the outfit perform nine songs during KEXP's broadcast from Iceland Airwaves. Recorded 11/07/2018. 9 songs - carlos í mölinni //, kamelblús, úr öskunni í elfin, góðir hálsar / góðar glósur, Brian Eno Says: Quit Your Job, sjálfbær elskhugi, Dansa, malar í kassanum, Pepperoni ProjectSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cumulus' five year gap between records found Alexandra Niedzialkowski's songwriting aging richly, returning with the crips and radiant Comfort World. The Seattle musician and her band join Kevin Cole in the KEXP Live Room for five songs and a conversation about the album. Recorded 11/20/2018. 5 songs - Sing To Me, Retreat, Stereo, Cannonball, Tough CrowdSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A glammy enigma, Art D'Ecco's reverb-soaked shimmer bursts with a hazy energy. Performing four songs from his debut album Trespasser, D'ecco and his band join DJ Abbie in the KEXP Live Room. Recorded 10/29/2018. 4 songs - Never Tell, Last In Line, Mary, Who Is It Now?Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the better part of the last five years, Young Fathers' blend of hip-hop, electronic, and avant music has been impossible to pin down, and despite being their most accessible album to date, 2018's Cocoa Sugar remains a thrillingly difficult to grasp piece of art. The Scottish trio perform four Cocoa Sugar songs in the KEXP Live Room and speak with DJ Atticus on the album's themes. Recorded 11/21/2018. 4 songs - Wire, Feasting, Wow, ToySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Adopting a new moniker ahead of her eponymous second album, Chris took a massive leap forward with one of the most physical and kinetic pop albums of 2018. Joining DJ Kevin Cole in the KEXP Live Room, Chris and her band perform four songs from the new album and discuss its themes. Recorded 10/23/2018. 4 songs - Comme si, Girlfriend, 5 dollars, Doesn't matterSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At the end of his previous album cycle, Matthew Houck put Phosphorescent on hold for a moment to focus on raising a family and building out a new studio. Renewed and revitalized, Houck returned with his seventh studio album C'est La Vie, highlighted with four songs in this session with DJ Troy Nelson. Recorded 11/21/2018. 4 songs - New Birth in New England, There From Here, Around the Horn, C'est La Vie No.2Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Seeking to remove himself from the traditional album cycle, Kristian Matsson chose to make his next project as The Tallest Man On Earth an audio/visual project called When The Bird Sees The Solid Ground. Explaining his choice of medium and highlighting four songs from the project, Matsson joins Cheryl Waters at Avast Recording in this session. Recorded 11/24/2018. 4 songs - Somewhere in the Mountains, Somewhere in New York, Johnny and Mary, Then I Won't Sing No More, Forever Is a Very Long TimeSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Glistening, eruptive, and immense, Aurora's electronic-tinged pop is a gale of infectious melodies and propulsive rhythms. In this session, Aurora and her backing band perform five songs from her EP Infections of a Different Kind – Step 1 and an old favorite live from KEX Hostel as part of KEXP's broadcast from Iceland Airwaves 2018. Recorded 11/08/2018. 4 songs - Churchyard, Gentle Earthquakes, All Is Soft Inside, Runaway, Forgotten Love, QueendomSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sóley, Sin Fang, and Örvar Smárason (of múm) spent 2017 recording a track per month, resulting in Team Dreams, an album that captures the airy kinetics of all three musicians. The trio perform five songs from the record live from KEX Hostel during KEXP's broadcast from Iceland Airwaves 2018. Recorded 11/09/2018. 4 songs - Random Haiku Generator, Wasted, Tennis, The Sun Will Go Out, Dream Team Party KidsSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nashville, Tennessee's finest purveyors of mind-bending rock returned in fine form in 2018 with their fifth album, the self-referential and swirling ATW. Joining DJ Cheryl Waters at Avast! Recording Co., the band perform three songs from ATW and an old favorite. Recorded 11/16/2018. 4 songs - Diamond, Fishbelly 86 Onions, Workhorse, Blood And Sand / Milk And Endless WatersSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Be The Cowboy, Mitski's fifth album, is an instant classic, a snapshot of a singular songwriter crafting her most compelling and incisive work to date. Joining DJ Troy Nelson in the KEXP Live Room, Mitski and her band perform four songs and discuss the process of becoming the cowboy. Recorded 10/31/2018. 4 songs - Geyser, Why Didn't You Stop Me?, Nobody, Two Slow DancersSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Marissa Nadler's increasingly consistent and intriguing discography expands excellently with her eighth album, For My Crimes. The Boston songwriter performs four icy, intricate songs from the record in this session with DJ Kevin Cole. Recorded 10/19/2018. 4 songs - For My Crimes, I Can't Listen To Gene Clark Anymore, Blue Vapor, Said Goodbye to That CarSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Heaven, Dilly Dally's second album, is roaring and relentless, finding Katie Monks and co. more direct and dynamic than ever. In this session, the Toronto group perform four Heaven songs and in the KEXP Live Room and discuss making the album with DJ Troy Nelson. Recorded 10/30/2018. 74 songs - I Feel Free, Marijuana, Sober Motel, HeavenSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Boy Azooga's colorful, charismatic debut arrived in 2018 to establish the Welsh rock outfit as one of the UK's breakout artists of the year. In this session in the KEXP Live Room, the band play four songs from their debut album, 1,2, Kung Fu! Recorded 10/29/2018. 4 songs - Face Behind Her Cigarette, Walking Thompson's Park/Jerry, Breakfast Epiphany, Loner BoogieSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wrapped in echoing drums and cinematic synths, New Compassion, Nini Fabi and Benny Gebert's second album as HAERTS, is a glimmering slice of neon pop. The Munich-via-Brooklyn group highlight the new album in this KEXP VIP Concert. Recorded 10/22/2018. 7 songs - Healing, The Way, Matter, Your Love, Sign, In This Time, New CompassionSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lost Under Heaven's evolution as a thrillingly progressive outfit continues with their 2019 sophomore effort, Love Hates What You Become. Previewing the record on the Morning Show with John Richards, Ellery James Roberts and Ebony Hoorn perform five songs. Recorded 10/31/2018. 5 songs - Lost Under Heaven, Bunny's Blues, For The Wild, I and I, Post Millennial TensionSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Natalie Prass's sophomore effort, The Future and the Past, is an elegant, kinetic collection of songs that finds the Virginia R+B songwriter in fine form. Joining DJ Sean Morrow in the KEXP Live Room, Prass and her band perform four songs from the album and discuss being in your twenties and dog clothing businesses. Recorded 9/24/2018. 4 songs - Never Too Late, Ship Go Down, Lost, Short Court StyleSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jonathan Wilson's resume is one of the more accomplished ones of his generation, and his newest album, Rare Birds, is another left turn in a career full of them. Fresh off playing guitar on tour with Roger Waters, Wilson joins DJ Evie in the KEXP Live Room to perform five songs from Rare Birds. Recorded 09/25/2018. 5 songs - Over The Midnight, There's A Light, Trafalgar Square, Living With Myself, Loving YouSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than twenty years into their career, DeVotchKa remain as beguiling and enrapturing as ever. Returning to the KEXP Live Room, the Denver outfit perform four songs from their new album This Night Falls Forever. Recorded 09/20/2018. 4 songs - Angels, Straight Shot, Break Up Song, Empty VesselsSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tacoma's Perry Porter rides crisp beats and slicky slides between verses with an effortless, magnetic confidence. Joining DJ Chilly in the KEXP Live Room, Porter performs four tracks from his excellent album Channel Surfing. Recorded 08/28/2018. 4 songs - Corners, Surf, Bling Bloaw, Bobby RozaySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Arthur Buck - the aptly-named project of Joseph Arthur and Peter Buck - finds both journeymen in fine form, with their self-titled debut an excellent addition to both artist's canons. The pair join Cheryl Waters in the KEXP Live Room for a set of four songs. Recorded 09/07/2018. 4 songs - Wide Awake In November, The Wanderer, Can't Make It Without You, Fall In Love With MeSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reverting back to a solo project for her second album as IAN SWEET, Jillian Medford wrangled dissonance to create a powerful document of moving forward. Medford and her band join DJ Atticus in the KEXP Live Room for a bracing session of four songs from Crush Crusher. Recorded 10/24/2018. 4 songs - Hiding, Spit, Bug Museum, Holographic JesusSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ten years after its release, The Helio Sequence's Keep Your Eyes Ahead remains a stark, stunning snapshot of 2000s indie rock, and on its anniversary, frontman Brandon Summers joins John Richards in the KEXP Live Room for a set of four songs from the record and to tell the story behind the . Recorded 10/26/2018. 4 songs - Lately, You Can Come To Me, Can't Say No, HallelujahSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fifteen years into their career, We Were Promised Jetpacks sound revitalized and resolved on their fourth album, The More I Sleep, The Less I Dream. The Edinburgh rock quartet perform four songs from that album live in the KEXP Live Room with DJ Cheryl Waters. Recorded 10/03/2018. 4 songs - Hanging In, Someone Else's Problem, The More I Sleep, The Less I Dream, Repeating PatternsSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Harriet Pillbeam's shimmering dream pop under the moniker Hatchie emerged at the beginning of 2018 and closes out the year as one of the last twelve month's emergent artists. Joining Cheryl Waters in the KEXP Live Room, Hatchie performs four songs from her debut EP Sugar & Spice. Recorded 09/18/2018. 4 songs - Sugar & Spice, Try, Bad Guy, SureSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's difficult to think of a band that's had a bigger breakthrough in 2018 than IDLES, but then again, it's different to think about anything else when their furious and vulnerable songs pulverize speakers, venues, and ears in the way that they have all year. Performing four songs from their sophomore album Joy As An Act of Resistance, the Bristol quintet walk into the KEXP Live Room with John Richards and exit 30 minutes later with an instant classic KEXP session under their belts. Recorded 10/04/2018. 4 songs - Colossus, Never Fight A Man With A Perm, Television, Danny NedelkoSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A musician who needs no introduction, Johnny Marr is responsible for some of the most thrilling and innovative rock music of the last half century. The Mancunian guitar legend walks into the KEXP Live Room for a wide-ranging chat with Cheryl Waters and a four-song set spanning his career. Recorded 09/21/2018. 4 songs - Bug, Hi Hello, The Headmaster Ritual, Easy MoneySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018 is "the year of two EPs” from Smokey Brights, with a pair of releases bookending the band's busiest year yet. The pop-rock Seattle staples join John Richards on the Morning Show to perform a pair of tracks from each EP. Recorded 08/30/2018. 4 songs - Different Windows, Flash Your Lights, Come To Terms, The Other WaySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Incisively driving and immediately arresting, Bodega's slicing post-punk doesn't pull any punches. The Brooklyn outfit join Troy Nelson in the KEXP Live Room (“in the internet”, as singer Ben Hozie dubs it) for four songs from their debut album Endless Scroll. Recorded 8/14/18 - 4 songs: Jack In Titanic, Name Escape, Gyrate, Truth Is Not PunishmentSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jófríður Ákadóttir's work as JFDR is baroque and graceful, but remains powerful without ever relying on volume. The Samaris-member performs four songs from her solo catalog in this session from KEX Hostel during KEXP's 2017 Iceland Airwaves broadcast. Recorded 11/02/2018. 4 songs - Instant Patience, My Work, Anything Goes, White SunSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Somewhere between the ethereal and the emotional, Kiasmos glide with their atmospheric, stirring brand of electronic music. Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen kicked off KEXP's live broadcast from KEX Hostel during the 2017 Iceland Airwaves with a glistening set. Recorded 10/31/2017. 6 songs - Gaunt, Looped, Blurred, Thrown, Burnt, BentSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So fuzzy you can practically hear the fog leaking out of their amplifiers, Spirit Award's razor-sharp rock songs get gloriously filtered through a reverb-drenched filter as they blow through the speakers. The Seattle trio enter the KEXP Live Room with DJ Morgan to perform four songs from their debut album Muted Crowd. Recorded 09/14/2018. 4 songs - Witching Hour, Seven Sisters, Wasting Time, Supreme TruthSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of 2018's breakout bands (in either hemisphere), Auckland, New Zealand's The Beths exploded with their debut album Future Me Hates Me, a collection of clever, shimmering, and resonant rock songs. Liz Stokes and co. join DJ Cheryl Waters in the KEXP Live Room for four songs from Future Me Hates Me. 4 songs - Future Me Hates Me, Uptown Girl, Little Death, Happy UnhappySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Like a lipstick-stained group of New Romantics, Spesh's scuzzy neon blur is infectiously accessible and thrillingly dynamic. The Seattle quartet enter the KEXP Live Room with John Richards to perform four songs from their debut album Famous World. Recorded 08/29/2018. 4 songs - Counterfeit, Orange Man, Teflon, Candy LegsSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let's Eat Grandma's second album, I'm All Ears, isn't just a huge leap forward for the Norwich duo, it's one of the finest art-pop albums of the year. Joining DJ Cheryl Waters in the KEXP Live Room, the duo (outfitted with a live drummer) perform four songs from I'm All Ears. Recorded 08/29/2018. 4 songs - Hot Pink, It's Not Just Me, I Will Be WaitingSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With each album, Seattle's Bad Luck become more thrillingly difficult to pin down, fusing elements of jazz, electronic, and experimental music into a bewitching tempest. The duo of Neil Welch (saxophone/electronics) and Chris Icasiano (drums) join DJ Sharlese for a session of songs from their new album Four on Audioasis. Recorded 08/3/2018. 4 songs - Four, R.G.B., Bends, CapitalSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.