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

Swamp Wife - "The Spit" from the 2023 EP Swamp Wife EP on LACE Records Seattle quartet Swamp Wife are so new, they just played their first live show back in June. Today's Song of the Day comes from their self-titled debut EP, which was just released last month. KEXP Music Director Chris Sanley calls it "a solid introduction to their both melodic and fierce post-punk sound, with swirling guitars and catchy hooks." Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

10 Nov 20233min

Drop Nineteens - "A Hitch" a 2023 single on Wharf Cat Records It's been 30 years, but Boston shoegazers Drop Nineteens returned last week with their long-awaited third full-length, Hard Light. The album features the band's original line-up of Greg Ackell, Steve Zimmerman, Paula Kelley, Motohiro Yasue, with drummer Pete Koeplin (who played on the band's second album, National Coma). Co-founder Ackell describes the new album as "the band’s proverbial follow up to [their 1992 debut] Delaware, a modern Drop Nineteens record that is completely singular in its sound and vision." In fact, today's Song of the Day is the song that got the reunion rolling. “’A Hitch,’ was the first song the band wrote when they got back together,” Ackell explains in a press release. “It set the tone for the rest of the album, for what a new Drop Nineteens song could sound like.” Read the full story at KEXP.org  Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

9 Nov 20233min

Sheer Mag - "All Lined Up," a 2023 single on Third Man Records Philadelphia-based punks Sheer Mag have been signed to Third Man Records, who will not only be reissuing their older albums, but their forthcoming full-length as well (no hard details yet, but stay tuned for a release date).  “Having been aware of Sheer Mag since their earliest 7-inch singles and keeping up with their self-released, independent, DIY take-no-prisoners ethos, I never envisioned a world where they would ever sign to a record label,” said Third Man’s Ben Blackwell in a press statement. “So imagine how ecstatic we were at Third Man when the band reached out to us directly and asked if we’d be interested in partnering with them. Still doesn’t seem real. We are beyond honored, humbled really, to receive their handshake and their trust. This is gonna be fun as shit.” Today's Song of the Day is a tease at what's to come. The band explain the track was inspired by "late nights at the bar playing pool. Last call has long come and gone, the gate is down, the ashtrays are out and your friend behind the bar is giving it all away. Despite the revelry, there’s a looming sense of dread — a fear that no matter how far ahead you get, all it takes is one bad shot to lose the game.” Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

8 Nov 20233min

IAN SWEET - "Your Spit" a 2023 single on Polyvinyl Records Ian Sweet — the project of L.A.-based artist Jilian Medford — returned last week with her fourth full-length, titled SUCKER, an album she began writing during a post-COVID cross-country road trip to an artist residency. “I went there not knowing exactly what I wanted to do or make, but I knew I wanted to explore and get out of my comfort zone," she says via a press release. "I forced myself to make things on the spot, in the moment and not overthink it too much.” One of the resulting tracks is today's Song of the Day, a track Medford says is "about the joy and fear that surrounds new relationships. The excitement that’s also accompanied by doubt. But I’d be lying if I didn’t say the song is just mostly about making out.” Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

7 Nov 20233min

Angélica Garcia - "El Que," a 2023 single on Partisan Records The title to today's Song of the Day roughly translates to English as "He Who," and songwriter Angélica Garcia describes the lyrics as "a specific inner monologue that I have navigated most of my life." The Brooklyn-based artist continues in a press statement, "Keeping myself and my body safe as a woman is such a careful dance that I often play out in my head, like a lion tamer facing a lion. The vocals were done in one take, and the performance required so much of my energy I couldn’t sing for two days afterwards. The chorus gets its power from all the backing voices coming in to support me from another realm, and it’s where I name the danger. When you’re exorcizing a demon, you have to call it by its name." The track was produced by Chicano Batman’s Carlos Arévalo, and marks the first time Garcia has released a single in her native language.  Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

6 Nov 20235min

This week’s Song of the Day picks were chosen by Sharlese, in honor of Halloween week. For more dark sounds in various wave and synth genres, check out her show Mechanical Breakdown, Friday nights/Saturday mornings from 1-3 AM PT.  Vancouver-based duo Wire Spine has been weaving their industrial-influenced darkwave sound since 2015. It's been a few years since their debut full-length, Bury Me Here, but we're excited to share their brand new single as today's Song of the Day. On Facebook, founding members Robert and Jesi say to "keep an eye out for details about the full album release." Wire Spine is playing Sunday, November 12th in Seattle at Substation with Actors, Dead Spells, and Graveyard Gossip. Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

3 Nov 20234min

Brixx - Erotomania (feat. Kim Little) from the 2023 album Erotomania on SYNTHICIDE This week’s Song of the Day picks were chosen by Sharlese, in honor of Halloween. For more dark sounds in various wave and synth genres, check out her show Mechanical Breakdown, Friday nights/Saturday mornings from 1-3 AM PT.  Melbourne, Australia-based DJ, producer, and composer Brixx teams up with Kim Little aka Hnymlk on today's Song of the Day. The single comes off Brixx's latest LP, Erotomania, which was inspired by film scores from Wang Chung's soundtrack for To Live and Die in L.A. to cinematic composers Harold Faltermeyer, Brad Fiedel, and Claudio Simonetti. “I wanted to create a soundscape that was an amalgamation of the musical palette defined by these films — icy synths, gated drums and arpeggiated bass,” Brixx says in a press statement. “The challenge was to create instrumental pieces I could imagine in such a film, and then to use the defining elements of these scores to create music that could also be played on a dancefloor.” Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2 Nov 20234min

XTR Human - "I Want More" from a forthcoming full-length out 2024 on Wie ein Gott Records This week’s Song of the Day picks were chosen by Sharlese, in honor of Halloween. For more dark sounds in various wave and synth genres, check out her show Mechanical Breakdown, Friday nights/Saturday mornings from 1-3 AM PT.  With today's Song of the Day, German post-punk project XTR Human shares an early listen at their forthcoming full-length out 2024 via Wie ein Gott Records. Johannes Stabel, the long-time mastermind behind the act, describes today's featured track as "a deep dive into an unyielding urge to consume."  Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

1 Nov 20233min