Kexp Song Of The Day

Gen & the Degenerates - "Big Hit Single," a 2023 single on Marshall Amplification Plc Records When you ask the Liverpool-based band Gen & the Degenerates to write a "big hit single," well, today's Song of the Day is exactly what you'll get! The cheeky pop-punk track was written in response to a request from their label, Marshall Records.  Vocalist Genevieve Glynn-Reeves explains: "If you want the highbrow answer, then 'Big Hit Single' is about the experience of creating art under late capitalism. If you want the lowbrow – and slightly more honest – answer, then 'Big Hit Single' is me trying to wind up our label. They’d made quite a reasonable request… ‘Please can you write more songs like the song that did well and stop experimenting with every genre under the sun in a completely chaotic and hedonistic manner?’ Unfortunately, I have issues with authority… My parents often regale me with the tale of my Year 4 parent’s evening, in which my teacher described me as ‘too wild, in the bohemian sense.’ If Mr

Welsh duo Siula are new on the scene but you’d be remiss to not realize it given their big and refined sound. Based out of Cardiff, the group brings together the forces of Cotton Wolf’s Llion Robertson and Artshawty’s Iqra Malik. Arpeggiating synths dance vividly against booming beats. It’s a match made in heaven, ready for the dance floor. - Dusty HenrySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Based out of Pamplona, Spain, Melnas are evoking a refreshed, revamped, and revelatory take on dream pop. Supposedly they started out work on their new album Ahora with a basic premise: “can you make jangle pop and garage rock with synthesizers?” The answer is apparently yes. The song “Bang” is effervescent, yet propulsive. A delicate balance of restraint with booming synthesizer whirls propelling their soft, entrancing melodies forward. Evoking Stereolab and Kraftwerk, the band find themselves in good company with this exciting direction. - Dusty Henry Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The moniker of Robin Paul Braum, Athlete Whippet is always challenging himself to push beyond his own boundaries. Studying music at London’s renowned Goldsmiths, he brings that same academic rigor to his production and dance nights. His latest EP, U Never Listen, finds him singing over his own production as well. “U Look at Me” is a perfect ode to dance floor romance. That look across the room, a glance beckoning to dance. The house beats, dreamy vocals, and banging synthesizer lines make for a euphoric club experience, readily available in your headphones. - Dusty HenrySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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.

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.

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 g

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.

Angélica Garcia - "El Que," a 2023 single on Partisan Records The title to today's Song of the Day roughly translates to English as "the fact that," 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/lis

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.

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

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.

Nature Nvoke - "Shadow" a 2023 self-released single 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.  Cleveland-based musician Nate Eberhardt explores the gamut of genres, first through hip-hop and punk rock, but now, with his project Nature Nvoke, through darkwave electronic music. He reflects to Black Techno Matters about the moment he discovered this style: It was like nothing else I'd ever heard before. It wasn't just about the sound; it was about how it made me feel. That's when I realized that making music is not just about telling a story or giving people something to dance to; it's also about what happens in your head when you listen to it. And that's why this project is so important: because when we take our own experiences and make them into something bigger than ourselves, we're able to share them with others who may need t

El Ojo y La Navaja - "Cuerpo Muerto" from the 2021 self-released album Extimidad 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.  Today's Song of the Day comes from El Ojo y la Navaja, a minimal synth project out of Mexico masterminded by musician Erick Arévalo. For this featured track, he collaborated with Paola Gaona aka Fatal Error, an artist from Colombia. You can find the song on his debut LP Extimidad, which he says was inspired by "the sinister mental illness and despair brought on by obsession." Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Small Paul - "Miner for a Dream" from the 2023 self-released album Come Alive & Live Again When you've got four talented musicians in your COVID bubble, the only thing to do during the pandemic is start a band! This is how Ballard-based quartet Small Paul came to be, featuring housemates Kevin Murphy from The Moondoggies, Chris King and Malcolm Roberts from Chris King & The Gutterballs, and Seth McDonald from All Star Opera. Their debut LP, Come Alive & Live Again, was produced by Erik Blood. Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jungle - "Dominoes" from the 2023 album Volcano on Caoila Records/ AWAL. British production duo Jungle return with their fourth LP, Volcano, and this time around, they've tapped into some collaborators like Erick The Architect, Bas, Roots Manuva, Channel Tres, and JNR Williams. The result is a full-length co-founder J Lloyd tells NME is "actually really the most honest record we’ve made." “In my head, I see us as like Daft Punk or Chemical Brothers – that sort of duo that makes electronic music," he continues. “But we’ve always had this soul side and this love for soul music, so it’s always been a little bit more song-based. The new record is just an extension of that journey.” Today's Song of the Day reflects this new direction, with its effervescent vibe and warmth.  Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Activity - "Department of Blood" from the 2023 album Spirit in the Room on Western Vinyl The latest LP from Brooklyn band Activity — titled Spirit in the Room — is appropriately "haunting." Songs take inspiration from the loss of vocalist/mutli-instrumentalist Travis Johnson's mother to pancreatic cancer, including today's Song of the Day.  “The grief was (and sometimes is) this colossal thing,” he shares in a press statement, “and I kept finding myself thinking of how I could find her or get in touch with her, like there was a phone number or address and I just had to find it.” As he explains to Flood Magazine, “Department of Blood" tackles these frustrations, “the feeling of knowing you’re being manipulated by something way more powerful than you and also knowing you can do absolutely nothing about it. Just that resignation. It seemed to work.”  Read the full story at KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Grandaddy - "The Town Where I'm Livin Now" from the 2023 album Sunday: Excess Baggage on Dangerbird Records Long-time KEXP faves Grandaddy recently a digital-only collection of rarities and b-sides titled Sumday: Excess Baggage. With a career spanning three decades, there are a lot of gems within, including today's Song of the Day, a dreamy tribute to songwriter Jason Lytle's home in California. “I like making songs like this," he shares in a press release. "Lots of bleak but sweet visuals. Everyday stuff available for everyone to see…but some of us just end up with the twisted work of documenting it.” On the collection, he continues: “After many years of hammering away at writing and recording as Grandaddy, Sumday seems to be the center of it and where it all peaked. To the journalists we were, ‘On the verge of greatness, underrated, overlooked, unsung.’ It was a tumultuous and exciting time for us for sure. Also very exhausting." “Revisiting this material and reflecting on those times has been a double edge

Tycho - "Time to Run" a 2023 single on Mom + Pop Records It should come as no surprise that our host of The Runcast should choose the track "Time To Run" for today's Song of the Day. Like KEXP DJ John Richards, Scott Hansen — the producer behind long-running electronic project Tycho — is a runner. As he explains in a press statement: “Music has always served as a kind of meditation for me, long before I started creating it. As a competitive runner throughout my early life, I would play back loops of songs in my head to cope with the stress of races, focusing on rhythmic elements to help pace myself and stay calm. There is a unique form of clarity that I have found through the meditative practice of running, it is a fundamentally human experience and when I feel the deepest connection between the mind, body and nature. ‘Time To Run’ is my attempt to translate these ideas into music. My goal was to approach the composition from a new angle and let the rhythmic elements take the lead. I cast the melodic elements

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