I’ve mentioned KEXP, a Seattle-area listener-supported radio station that plays great local and indie-pop (and lots of other stuff) music. I listen as much as I can. You’d think that wouldn’t be a lot, since I live in Portland, OR, hundreds of miles south of Seattle, but thanks to the internets, I not only get rumors but I get streaming feeds from KEXP.
John in the morning yesterday had John Roderick as an in-studio guest, (shortly after 9:36 AM, according to their web-based archived playlist. Roderick is the main member of The Long Winters, a band who, I think, should get far more airplay than they do. Roderick’s lyrics and arrangements are catchy, sweet, and very much like indie-pop versions of traditional Irish folk songs.
Roderick traded quips with the DJ, and sang three songs; “Ultimatum”, a brand-new song that is supposed to appear on the Long Winter’s upcoming third album, “Cinnamon”, a great sing-along song from their second album “When I Pretend To Fall”, and “Fire Island”, a brand-new song that apparently isn’t going to appear anywhere but here, or possibly in live performance (if Roderick can find and train a band that will stick with him long enough to tour).
I have fond memories of Long Winters concerts… so I was transfixed Friday morning, resisting the urge to call up friends (and ex-friends) and tell them to tune in. It was… brutalful.