Formed on the campus of the University of Washington, the young men of Beat Connection play dance music infused with a bit of magical realism. With digital production, live guitar and drums, their songs slink, jump and dive. Accompanied on Portland’s MusicFest Northwest stage for a few songs by the Honey Nut Horns (trumpet, saxophones), the live performance by B.C. filled the room with a type of musical ecstasy. The band labels itself, perhaps somewhat tongue-and-cheek, as “Tropical Psychedelic Pop”. Makes sense though, in a way, as it is easy to see audience members grabbing a mai-tai, sitting back, and grooving to the tunes. Watch their performance here:
Full performance:
It’s a long way from Toronto, Ontario, to the Doug Fir lounge in Portland, Oregon, but any travel issues the critically-acclaimed Canadian band Austra had to endure didn’t show at their MusicFest NW performance on KEXP. The band, as usual, was composed, in control, and luminous. Throughout their em…
Last summer, in Carnation, WA, the folks who put on the Timber! Outdoor Music Festival had a root beer garden. Hard to top that, right? Well, this winter, for the first ever Timbrrr! Winter Music Festival in Leavenworth, the event planners are offering (for those over 21) a hot toddy garden!
Under a blue light on the Music Lounge stage, the New Zealand-born (and, now, New York native) Tamaryn sang a collection of pulsingly-mellow tunes for the Bumbershoot audience. The songs were an interesting mix, with the rhythms almost over-powering the singer’s ghostly, etherial vocals. In this wa…
Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on the Midd…
