A Deeper Listen

Sound & Vision’s mini-series, Apparently, explores the stories of musicians, performers and arts workers who are juggling parenthood with their art.   On this episode, contributor Celine Teo-Blockey profiles the Australian band Middle Kids and how they lost money in order to do a US tour during a pandemic with a toddler in tow.  Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound...

What is the Black Constellation? If you know, you'll want to listen to this podcast. If you don't, you'll want to listen, too. "Fresh off the Spaceship" is the newest podcast from KEXP, telling the story of the highly influential yet scarcely documented artist collective. The Black Constellation has included such varied musical acts as Shabazz Palaces, THEESatisfaction, Ya Tseen and Porter Ray. Ho...

Sound & Vision’s mini-series, Apparently, explores the stories of musicians, performers and arts workers who are juggling parenthood with their art.  On this episode, we get parenting advice from Inuk throat singer Tanya Tagaq. She talks about the importance of staying calm for your children and allowing them to be bored. She also talks about intergenerational wisdom, being a s...

In honor of Women’s History Month, Sound & Vision is bringing you another installment of Apparently, where we talk with musicians and those involved in the field about their art and parenthood. Today, KEXP's "Drive Time" Producer Rachel Stevens shares her journey through pregnancy loss and job loss, to now giving her all to her daughter while also being a working mom. She reads her New Y...

Seattle’s Brittany Davis has released a debut EP on Pearl Jam Guitarist Stone Gossard’s label, Loosegroove Records. Davis was born blind and started recording music around the age of 13 when they were homeless. They talk about their musical journey, reflecting on the past two years through music, collaborating with Gossard and addressing blindness in a song. “As much as blindness...

Band of Horses is out with their first new album in six years. While it's called ‘Things Are Great,' the lyrics paint a different picture. Frontman Ben Bridwell talks about how the record was inspired by heartache and breakups. He also discusses his experience arriving in Seattle homeless years ago before starting the band. Finally, he shares his thoughts on the music industry and how he spe...

James Bookert used to tour with a well-known bluegrass punk band, Whiskey Shivers (they even made an appearance in the movie Pitch Perfect 3.) After burnout and a battle with seizures, Bookert is making new music and community at his day job at a local liquor store. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

DakhaBrakha is a band from Ukraine whose live performance on KEXP from 2017 has garnered more than two million views on our YouTube channel. One member of that band, Iryna Kovalenko, has been living in Seattle for the past five years. She spoke with Sound & Vision’s Emily Fox on March 11 while her husband, Oleksandr Cherniyenko helped with interpretations. They talked about what is going...

Musicians who score video games have found luck making connections and finding work here in the Pacific Northwest rather than larger cities like New York or LA. Seattle is a hub for big video game developers like Microsoft, Nintendo, and Valve, and indie musicians have found (or even made) their own opportunities here, too. Sound & Vision’s Roddy Nikpour brings us the story of two Seattl...

Laura Ballance is the bassist of the band Superchunk as well as a co-founder of Merge Records. Nearly 10 years ago, she stopped touring with Superchunk because of a hearing condition she developed from being exposed to loud sounds and music. Ballance talks about how her hearing issues have impacted her career in music.   “If I’m around loud noises, which can be as minor as people...

Jen Malone is the music supervisor behind the hit TV shows Euphoria, Yellowjackets, Atlanta and more. KEXP’s Larry Mizell Jr. is a big fan of those shows and a fan of Malone’s work. He caught up with her recently to learn how it takes both a music lover and a sleuth to get songs placed on television.  Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for pr...

It has been 25 years since the one-hit wonder White Town released the album that contained the hit, "Your Woman." The man behind White Town, Jyoti Mishra, breaks down how the song came together and why he wrote a song from a woman’s perspective. He discusses the bullying and racism he faced growing up in “white towns” in the UK after his family moved from India, his struggle...

Screaming Trees lead vocalist Mark Lanegan died February 22 at the age of 57. On today's bonus episode, we hear reflections on Lanegan's music, career, personality and life. To share with us are founding Screaming Trees member and drummer, Mark Pickerel, along with guitarist Jeff Fielder who played with Lanegan from 2010-2020. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listen...

Last Friday marked the official release of Beach House’s latest album, 'Once Twice Melody,' out via Sub Pop Records. Fans had already heard more than half of the album, though , since the band released it digitally in four “chapters” each month starting last November. Sound & Vision’s assistant producer Roddy Nikpour brings us this review of 'Once Twice Melody.' Support...

Yoko Ono turned 89 last Friday, the same day a new covers album of her music was released. The album was curated by Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard and features artists like Japanese Breakfast, Sharon Van Etten, and David Byrne. Gibbard talks about how Yoko Ono's work has been overlooked and that he hopes this tribute album "is not just a reevaluation but an evaluation" of her work as an a...

Anaïs Mitchell has won a Grammy and 8 Tony awards for her musical, 'Hadestown.' She’s also in the band Bonny Light Horseman and has been featured as part of Big Red Machine, the musical project of Justin Vernon of Bon Iver and Aaron Dessner of the National. She’s now out with her first new solo album in a decade. Mitchell talks with Sound & Vision’s Emily Fox about leavi...

Animal Collective’s Josh Dibb aka Deakin talks about the various inspirations for the band's latest record, 'Time Skiffs,' including concerns over climate change, the feeling of losing human connection during COVID, and a musical art installation in New Orleans. Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The band Bait Bag calls North Haven Island, Maine, home, but their influences come from Washington State’s Riot Grrrl movement of the 90s. Their feminist punk sound and ethos challenges sexism, racism, transphobia and fascism and responds to reproductive justice, childbirth, climate change, and biology. Contributor Caroline Losneck reports on Bait Bag’s inspiration and perception on th...

The late MC and producer J Dilla would have been 48 years old on February 7th. In honor of his birthday, KEXP’s Larry Mizell Jr. talks with author Dan Charnas about his new book, “Dilla Time: The Life and Afterlife of J Dilla, the Hip-Hop Producer Who Reinvented Rhythm.”  “To slam swing rhythms against straight rhythms simultaneously in ways that put them in a kind of...

Discord is a communication software that lets users chat in real time via text, audio, or video. Gamers have been using the platform since 2015. Sound & Vision’s Roddy Nikpour reports on how Discord is growing in the music industry and is being used to connect with fans, especially during the pandemic.   Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for p...

Seattle had a thriving funk and soul scene in the 60s and 70s. There were dozens of bands and more than 20 venues specializing in the genres. For today’s episode, Emily Fox talks with KEXP DJ Supreme La Rock about how he first discovered Seattle’s funk and soul scene while digging for records. His discoveries later turned into a compilation called 'Wheedle’s Groove,' released by...

The soulful trio Gabriels released their first EP in 2021. Elton John called it “one of the most seminal records I've heard in the last 10 years.” They’re now out with their latest EP, 'Bloodline.' Singer Jacob Lusk (who was a former American Idol contestant) talks about being “the most myself I’ve ever been” with this group. He also discusses how the theme of f...

January 22, 2022 was the 49th anniversary of Roe v Wade, the landmark US Supreme Court case that legalized abortion across the nation. Today on the podcast, we reflect on the human rights issue through music: Ishmael Butler and Larry Mizell, Jr. discuss the Digable Planets song, "La Femme Fétal," which was about the decision to terminate a pregnancy.   KEXP’s Albina Cabrera share...

Cat Power produced and released her 11th studio album and third covers album on January 14th. The cover songs span decades and genres, from old school country and Billie Holiday, to Nick Cave and Bob Seger, to contemporary artists like Lana Del Rey and Frank Ocean. Chan Marshall of Cat Power spoke with Emily Fox about the record, overcoming her struggles with mental health, and how motherhood has...

Bonobo's most recent full-length album, 'Fragments,' came out on January 14. He talks with Emily Fox about the samples he used in the record, getting through his writer's block with the help of modular synths, and finding solace in nature on tour and during the pandemic.   Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.