KEXP DJ Kevin Sur on Martin Luke Brown’s therapeutic new track

Hand Habits - "Something Wrong" from the 2023 album Sugar the Bruise on Fat Possum Sugar the Bruise, the latest LP from Hand Habits — led by LA-based artist Meg Duffy — was inspired by a songwriting class they taught back in August 2021. "It was both inspiring and terrifying," they shared via a press release. "I hesitated to consider myself a Songwriter, despite having released three records, let alone enough to teach others how to do it my way. In preparing for this course I examined my own approach with a close eye (at times too close for comfort). I realized how vital improvisation and collaboration are to me; in life and in songwriting. I was asked to design writing prompts, and although this was not typically how I would write left to my own devices, I found it to be a wonderful way to get the wheels of inspiration turning. I also cherished how special it was to see all of these other musicians, some new, some contemporaries, rising to the occasion and following themselves into the unknown." Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

20 Syys 20233min

Sparklehorse - "Evening Star Supercharger” from the 2023 album Bird Machine on ANTI- Today's Song of the Day is a bittersweet one: the track comes from the posthumous Sparklehorse album Bird Machine, recorded by singer/songwriter Mark Linkous in 2009, but unreleased following his death by suicide in 2010.  The release was lovingly spearheaded by Mark's brother and his sister-in-law Melissa. “It’s the hardest decision I’ve ever made,” Matt says in a press release. “It’s difficult making a choice about someone else’s art, even if you’ve known them all your life and worked with them, even if they were your brother and best friend. We had long conversations about not wanting to take this into a different direction. We wanted to bring out what was there.” “Mark communicated these songs," Melissa adds. “We just did our best to transmit them.” Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

19 Syys 20233min

Juan Wauters - “Modus Operandi (feat. Frankie Cosmos)" from the 2023 album Wandering Rebel on Captured Tracks On today's Song of the Day, Queens-based Uruguay-born artist Juan Wauters casts a critical eye on the New Yorkers who were able to vacate the city during the COVID-19 crisis. Against a melancholy plucked melody and with swelling strings, Wauters sings, "People that have options go back to their suburbs / To them it was just like some kind of Disney World." “COVID made it clear that some people have it harder than others,” Wauters told the Tucson Weekly. “People that didn’t have an option, they were locked in their apartments. It was right in your face, the inequality of the world, and I commented on that. Sometimes I feel like ‘Modus Operandi’ could come off like I was resentful that everyone left the city, and people that didn’t have an option could not leave. Maybe I was resentful. But also, as I now look back and have a conversation about it, I realize that it’s just an observation of everyday life.” “Maybe life is supposed to be like that, that some people live more comfortably than others, and some people are supposed to have it harder. But maybe it’s an opportunity to talk about it, and perhaps we can do something that, if COVID hits again, it’s not unfair.” The track features guest vocals from born-and-bred New Yorker Greta Kline, better known as Frankie Cosmos. In the accompanying music video, she and Wauters wander through NYC and Montevideo, respectively. Director Fatos Marishta shared in a press release, "The idea of 'Modus Operandi' is that even though Juan lives elsewhere now, his essence stays in New York. Sometimes he’s in NY, sometimes he’s not, he can be anywhere. We shot through one week in two different countries with Juan wandering through the streets of Montevideo during the inaugural carnaval parade and Greta in Union Square, NYC. As they are having a conversation about New York City, Greta senses and sees Juan in the vicinity but can’t seem to reach him."  Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

18 Syys 20232min

Daisies - "Blue Cowboy," from the 2023 album Great Big Open Sky on K Records On their latest LP, Great Big Open Sky, Olympia, WA-based band Daisies flex their musical muscle, diverging from their previous trip-hop/electro-pop sound into more organic, folkier territory. That said, today's Song of the Day is true to the "electronic paisley underground" sound we've heard them explore over the past seven releases. Vocalist Valerie Warren girlishly coos the story of a "blue cowboy on the range," and the accompanying music video spotlights some stellar moves from Mario.  Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

15 Syys 20234min

Temple of Angels - "Waving to the Wind" from the 2023 album Endless Pursuit on Run for Cover. It's no surprise that the gothic dream-pop of Austin, TX-based band Temple Of Angels finds inspirations from actual dreams. Their debut full-length — titled Endless Pursuit, and out now from Run For Cover — reflects both the good and bad subsconscious nighttime reflections. “Sometimes a beautiful dream will sneak in past the nightmares, which inspire a lot of my writing as well, specifically these dreams I had as a teenager that took place in a past or future life in some kind of parallel universe,” explains honey-voiced frontwoman Bre Morell. “I’ve been thinking about those dreams for 16+ years and they still consume me.”  Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

14 Syys 20232min

Deeper - "Tele," from the 2023 album Careful! on Sub Pop Records On today's Song of the Day, Chicago-based quartet Deeper gets vulnerable. The track can be found on their latest album, Careful!, their third full-length overall and first for Sub Pop Records. “’Tele’ is a song without its shield,” the band said in a press release. “In past Deeper compositions, we would hide behind jerky guitars and abstract vocals telling a story only we could decipher. With ‘Tele’ we wanted to explore the vulnerability behind our music and give focus to the melody and mood of the song. Replacing guitars with synthesizers and drums with samplers we stumbled upon a new way to approach a Deeper song.” “We wanted to make a darker track that people could dance to,” they continued. “Since the foundation is built on a sampler beat, it’s the kind of song we could’ve only created with the limitations of the pandemic. The electronic components left more space for the rhythm, so our engineer Dave started playing with a busier bass line for the verses and laid down the hook on the first pass. At the end we wanted the synth parts to constantly overtake one another and hopefully make the listener feel like they’re being swallowed into the song.” Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

13 Syys 20233min

Shamir - "Our Song (clean edit)," from the 2023 album Homo Anxietatem on Kill Rock Stars Last month, Shamir spoke with KEXP's Sound & Vision about his ninth full-length, Homo Anxietatem, and the anxiety that fueled his latest LP. In the video for today's Song of the Day, the genre-defying artist pays tribute to those who have literally stood by his side throughout it all.  "It took about three months to write this song, which is the longest it’s ever taken me to write a song," he shares in a press release. "The music video is a love letter to my band. Grant Pavol and Rhea Freed are the only reason I still play live. I wanted the video to focus on the three of us as a band."  Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

12 Syys 20234min

Fan Girl - "falling (ft Elizabeth M Drummond)," a 2023 single on Mandatory Music Australian pop-punk outfit Fan Girl returns with another KEXP Song of the Day pick: "falling" featuring guest vocals from Elizabeth M. Drummond.  “Lyrically, ‘falling’ is about how the honeymoon period in a relationship is just the beginning. While it can be an electric and pleasurably nauseating period, it’s not the best bit, and it’s often not the real bit," the band told Jammer Zine. "We tracked ‘falling’ at our studio (Taste Police HQ) in Brunswick, Melbourne, feverishly trying to keep the eclectic balance between colour, manic collage, and directness. The amazing Elizabeth M Drummond was kind enough to lend us some vocals, in what became more of a demonic angel choir part. Aaron Cupples [mixing] dealt with the sonic mess and brought it to life with a hot steamy mix. When we were writing and recording ‘falling’, we wanted the verses to be really fun & bouncy, the chorus to be big & crisp like a bullshit FIFA song, and outro to be anthemic but tight.” Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

11 Syys 20232min