Live on KEXP

Crawlspace, the debut album from Tei Shi, is named for the space where the Buenos Aires-born singer would go as a child to confront her fear of the dark, and that bold approach carries through to her skittering, electronic compositions. Joining DJ Chilly in the KEXP Live Room, Tei Shi runs through four tracks from Crawlspace and discusses the origins of her music. Recorded 6/16/2017 - 4 songs: How Far, Year 3k, Justify, Say You DoSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Alynda Lee Segarra first thought of making a record with a concept storyline, she heard a voice in her head telling her she was too lazy to do it. Fast forward and Hurray For The Riff Raff's striking album The Navigator features a collection of vivid songs featuring a young female Puerto Rican protagonist. Performing a quartet of Navigator songs and in conversation with John Richards about growing up in New York City and traveling around the country as a musician, Segarra fills the KEXP Live Room with a raucous, inimitable energy in this session. Recorded 6/15/2017 - 4 songs: Hungry Ghost, Rican Beach, Living In The City, Pa'LanteSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“If the book you want to read doesn't exist, write it.” Quoting the inimitable Toni Morrison, Jamila Woods crafts a story worth diving into on her debut album HEAVN. Joining DJ Morgan in the KEXP Live Room, the Chicago poet and songwriter tells the tale of how she went from singing in her church choir as a child to releasing her solo debut project alongside four HEAVN tracks. Recorded 6/6/2017 - 4 songs: Heavn, LSD, Way Up, Blk Girl SoldierSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The dusty desert-damaged rock of All Them Witches made its debut in the KEXP studios earlier this year, and it only underscores how the wait was too long. The long-evolving Nashville outfit's latest album. Sleeping Through The War, is a fiery, gritty LP that's highlighted in this session with Cheryl Waters, where the band discuss the roots of the project, the benefits of all the band's members not living in the same town, and playing a Rhodes strictly because they'd already paid for it. Recorded 5/5/2017 - 5 songs: Am I Going Up?, 3-5-7, Alabaster, Talisman, The Death Of Coyote WomanSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Close Eyes to Exit is the title of the Klangstof's debut album, and listening to their debut session in KEXP's Live Room, it's easy to be inclined to close your eyes and dive into the Amsterdam group's expansive sound. Alternating between echoing post-punk and crashing guitars, the quartet join Larry Rose in the studio to tell their origin story and perform four Close Eyes tracks. Recorded 5/16/2017 - 4 songs: Hostage, Sleaze, Ignore Me, IslandSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are moments during Valerie June's return to KEXP where she steps away from the mic and simply begins dancing to the rhythm, regardless if the song in question is a blues rocker or a sparse, country crawl. Performing four varied tracks from The Order of Time, the Tennessee songwriter and her band bring her astral Americana into the KEXP Live Room with Cheryl Waters and discuss the process of unlocking her “bubble” to get the songs out into the universe.  Recorded 6/2/2017 - 4 songs: Astral Plane, Two Hearts, Shakedown, Got SoulSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The jazz-inflicted, inspirational dub of Jah9 fills the KEXP Live Room with positive energy in this session. The Jamaican singer leads her band, The Dub Treatment, through songs on her new album, 9, and discusses doing improvisational dub soundtracks to yoga class and linking up with Mad Professor to do a dub version of the record in this session with DJ Miss Ashley. Recorded 6/12/2017 - 4 songs: In The Midst, Greatest Threat to the Status Quo, Unafraid, Steamers A BubbleSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Vieux Farka Touré's latest record, Samba, may mean “second boy” in Songhai, but the dazzling guitar work he displays in this session on Wo' Pop is second to none. Playing songs from Samba and paying tribute to his family with his music, Touré brings a snapshot of Mali's rich musical history into the KEXP Live Room.  Recorded 5/2/2017 - 4 songs: Ni Negaba, Missing, Samba Si Kairi, Ba KaitereSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

During her latest session in the KEXP Live Room, Laura Marling speaks of her music in film metaphors when describing her new record, Semper Femina, to Cheryl Waters. The London songwriter's sixth LP has all the touches of a classic film, filed in with rich scenery (a tight, expansive band) and a thick plot (some of her best songs to date) in this exquisite session. Recorded 4/28/2017 - 4 songs: Nothing, Not Nearly, Wild Fire, Next Time, DaisySupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the most gorgeous and sweeping sessions recorded in the KEXP Live Room to date, Jóhann Jóhannsson - best known as the soundtrack composer for Arrival, Sicario, and Blade Runner 2049, among others - leads the American Contemporary Music Ensemble through songs from his latest album, Orphée, and discusses the value of music as a communicative tool in film with Kevin Cole on the Afternoon Show. Recorded 4/20/2017 - 4 songs: A Song for Europa, De Luce Et Umbra, A Sparrow Alighted Upon Our Shoulder, The Drowned WorldSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.