In Our Headphones

STRFKR - “Never The Same” from the 2020 album Future Past Life on Polyvinyl. STRFKR returned this month with their sixth full-length, Future Past Life, which finds the long-running Portland-based band evolving from their psych-synth dance-heavy pop to something more stripped down and organic. For the first time ever, every song on the album is led by acoustic guitar with the synth sounds on the side. Today's featured track is quite possibly the most vulnerable song in their decade-long discography. It's a surprising twist, but we wouldn't expect anything else from the shape-shifting trio. Listen below.  Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Washed Out - “Too Late," a 2020 single on Sub Pop. What started out as a hindrance due to the coronavirus pandemic, ended up becoming a beautiful expression of support and community. For his latest digital single “Too Late”, Ernest Greene (aka chillwave pioneer Washed Out) had planned to shoot the music video in Italy, collaborating with an international team of filmmakers. In a statement, he explains: "I’d spent months planning a music video for a new song called 'Too Late.' My inspiration was a Mediterranean sunset I saw late last year, and the plan was to shoot on the coast of Italy with a team of UK and European collaborators..." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hazel English - “Off My Mind” from the 2020 album Wake UP! on Polyvinyl / Marathon Artists. Don't let her sweet voice and the swingin' '60s vibe of today's Song of the Day fool you. Australian-born, LA-based artist Hazel English just released her debut album Wake UP!, and she's imploring listeners to do just that. She describes the album as “a reminder to wake up and be present in a time where we are used to switching off and looking for constant entertainment.”  English worked with producers Justin Raisen (Angel Olsen, Yves Tumor) in Los Angeles and Ben H. Allen (Animal Collective, Cut Copy) in Atlanta to craft this 10-track LP. She describes today's featured track as “about feeling stuck in a situation but too afraid to make a move. It’s about the limbo state between where you are and where you want to be.” Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chemtrails - “Frightful in the Sunlight” from the 2020 album The Peculiar Smell of the Inevitable on PNKSLM. "Like riding into hell on a unicorn." That's how a friend of Manchester-via-London band Chemtrails described their latest single. (They clarify on Facebook, "his music taste is questionable, but we'll take it.")  Originally a lo-fi home recording project of musical and romantic partners Mia Lust and Laura Orlova, Chemtrails have been riding that unicorn since the release of their 2016 digital-only EP Love In Toxic Wasteland. Even though they had only played one live show (at Trans Pride Brighton), Swedish label PNKSLM Recordings signed them right up. (You should check out an episode of our podcast focused entirely on the renowned label.) Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Woods - “Where Do You Go When You Dream?” from the 2020 album Strange to Explain on Woodsist. New York psych-folk band Woods return this Spring with their first new album in three years, titled Strange To Explain. The album will be their first since frontman Jeremy Earl became a father and since guitarist Jarvis Taveniere relocated to Los Angeles, adding new challenges for the 15-year-old band, but also invigorating their 11th full-length to date (and the 99th release for their label, Woodsist). They recorded the forthcoming full-length in Stinson Beach in northern California, adding to the warmth and sun-soaked songs on the new release. On today's Song of the Day, Earl describes it to Fader Magazine as "a gateway into dream and an escape from everyday reality." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shane Tutmarc - "A Brave New World," a 2020 self-released single. “We’re all together / We’re not alone / Through the window through the phone / Where it stops nobody knows” Former Seattle-ite/current Nashvillian Shane Tutmarc shared the quarantine-inspired track "A Brave New World" earlier this month, inspired by reporter Eric Johnson of KOMO News in Seattle. Tutmarc remarked on his Facebook page: "It gave me a chance to really examine my feelings in a tangible way while searching for a light at the end of the tunnel and how this scary moment that we are all sharing may connect us all more than we had been." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Catholic Action - "There Will Always Be a Light" from the 2020 album Celebrated by Strangers on Palo Santo Records. Glasgow garage-rockers Catholic Action returned with their second album Celebrated by Strangers last month, their first new LP since 2017 debut In Memory Of. And while the full-length was written and recorded way before the coronavirus sent everyone into quarantine, many messages on the release will resonate during this lockdown.  Today's featured song, in particular, is a soaring anthem of hope, reminiscent of Pink Floyd's "Fearless" as covered by Spiritualized. Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Iceage - "Lockdown Blues," a 2020 single on Escho. Gibbard's not the only one releasing quarantine-inspired songs to benefit charity. Danish post-punk band Iceage have shared a new single inspired by feelings that have been brought up during lockdown.  “The only way out is through,” sings frontman Elias Rønnenfelt. He paints a picture of the world as we know it now: "Empty shelves in barren streets / Confined domestic quarantine." The band writes on their Bandcamp page: "Written in the wake of the lockdown on gatherings, borders, schools and life as we know it, 'Lockdown Blues' is an attempt at addressing this troubled new reality during Covid-19." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Benjamin Gibbard - "Life in Quarantine," a 2020 single on Barsuk Records. Since the start of the statewide stay-at-home mandates, Death Cab for Cutie frontman Benjamin Gibbard has been there for us, streaming live performances from his home studio almost daily. (He's since pared down to just performing on Thursday evenings, which is still an incredibly generous act to do week after week.) During one of his sessions in late March, he debuted a new track he had written titled “Life In Quarantine.” "I know this is a really fucked up and scary time for everybody, including myself," he said, introducing the track. "And I know that we're all trying to figure out what we can do to make it better, or what we can do to alleviate the suffering of someone else." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ellis - "Fall Apart" from the 2020 album Born Again on Fat Possum Records. Hamilton, Ontario dream pop artist Ellis (real name: Linnea Siggelkow) had hearts aflutter with her 2018 EP The Fuzz. Earlier this month, she re-emerged with her debut full-length, titled Born Again, which, as the title alludes to, finds Siggelkow exploring her feelings on faith. As for today's Song of the Day, she explains, "This is really just an honest reflection of my struggle with anxiety and how I can't hide it from the people closest to me. It's about the feeling the first time someone you admire sees you in your most vulnerable state, about putting in the work to get better but still having moments of weakness..." Read the full post on KEXP.orgSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.