Ivy Revives Their Decades-Long Career Alongside Adam Schlesinger on “Traces of You”
Before this year, Ivy last released new music in 2011 with the album All Hours. Now, 14 years later, Ivy has reassembled to share Traces of You, which came out September 5 on Bar/None Records. What makes this album extra special is that it includes parts from one of the late members, Adam Schlessinger, who died from complications of COVID-19 in 2020. The other surviving members — Andy Chase, Dominique Durand, and Bruce Driscoll — wrote 10 brand-new songs that all incorporate parts from Schlesinger. KEXP’s Roddy Nikpour spoke with Ivy about their collaborative approach, how Chase and Durand’s marriage may or may not be affected by a love of Tetris and a self-described “flute fetish,” and ultimately how the band had fun putting this record together. “We couldn’t just leave [the demos] in a storage room,” Durand says in the interview. “We had to do something about it.” When it comes to writing around parts from their late bandmate, Chase adds, “You try every idea. That’s the wonderful thing about the digital era — there’s no limit. We pretty much exhaust all our creativity on every song, and then it’s a matter of subtraction.” This is why the band adopted a “less is more” approach. “There were songs where we would try to add a bunch of stuff and then realize we’d gone too far,” Driscoll says. “We’d realize that the first thing we’d done was the best thing.” Related: Janice Headley talked with the band in 2023 about one of their iconic reissued albums, Apartment Life, which originally came out in 1997. Support the show: kexp.org/deeper photo by Michelle ShiersSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Jesse Beaman Builds His Portfolio Without the Help of Spotify
Jesse Beaman, an ambient composer based in Mexico City, joins a growing number of artists who are no longer making their music available on Spotify. He cites the platform’s requirement for musicians to have 1,000 yearly streams to receive royalties, as well as CEO Daniel Ek’s investments in Helsing, a company that makes AI-powered defense weaponry. While his platform may not be as big as other Spotify protestors like Deerhoof, Beaman’s career is marked with tours across four continents, video production, and collaborations with members of Interpol and M83. These connections have proven vital for his success. KEXP’s Roddy Nikpour talks with Beaman about his complicated Latinx identity, his prolific network, and his stance against Spotify. “Spotify is killing people’s attention span,” Beaman says in the interview. “Before you can even get connected to a certain artist, they’re trying to sell you on another artist.” When it comes to distributing his music, Beaman is turning to Bandcamp and physical media like vinyl. No matter how you listen, he hopes fans will practice intentional listening: “If you can give music the focus it deserves, I’ll be happy.” Support the show: kexp.org/deeper photo by Kate MeyerSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Car Seat Headrest Delivers the Next Big Rock Opera
Will Toledo, vocalist for Seattle-based Car Seat Headrest, wanted the band’s latest release to be a concept album in the tradition of a rock opera. The Scholars delivers just that: strong storytelling within each of its nine tracks, inventing characters in a “fictional America,” attesting to the human search for meaning inside and outside of ourselves. Toledo stopped by KEXP earlier this year to speak with Midday Host Cheryl Waters. He opens up about going back on tour after suffering from the effects of long COVID and the album's collaborative songwriting process. “There’s only so much you can say about yourself before it stops getting interesting,” Toledo says in the interview. “Having this concept of characters helped a lot. It’s me giving a sincere portrait of someone I can relate to rather than it being me.” Car Seat Headrest is one of the headlining bands at Bumbershoot 2025, taking place August 30 and 31 at Seattle Center. Photo credit: Carlos Cruz Support the show: kexp.org/deeperSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Seiji Oda's "Lo-Fi Hyphy" Tribute to the Bay Area
Seiji Oda pays respect to his Oakland roots in his 2025 album HUMAN + NATURE. He not only samples Bay Area titans like Mac Dre and Trunk Boiz — the record also features numerous collaborations with local artists making waves in the scene today, like the producer ClayDough. KEXP’s Dusty Henry spoke with Oda about his signature “lofi hyphy” sound, blending raw nature sounds with party-ready beats. “Starting with the natural environment first, I’m like, ‘Okay, what fits there?’” Oda says of his creative process in the interview. “What chords do I hear in this environment? What drums do I hear in this environment? Whose vocal sound could sound good in this environment? It doesn’t have to be perfect. As long as it feels right and people are moving, that’s what matters.” Support the show: kexp.org/deeper Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Open Mike Eagle on Divorce, Sears Catalogues, and Black Surrealism
Open Mike Eagle’s tenth studio album, Neighborhood Gods Unlimited, continues the rap legacy that he started in the late 2000s when he cofounded the trio Thirsty Fish. From there, he made a bigger name for himself as a solo artist, starting with his 2010 debut, Unapologetic Art Rap. Along the way, he even appeared in the cartoon Adventure Time as a rapping gingerbread cookie. On top of his music career, Open Mike Eagle has also started multiple multimedia endeavors, like the artist collective Hellfyre Club and an alt-comedy TV series called The New Negroes (both of which have since ended). These days, he’s running his own podcast network, Stony Island Audio. KEXP’s Martin Douglas spoke with Open Mike Eagle about the years leading up to his newest album, which included a divorce and various collaborations with other rappers. Neighborhood Gods Unlimited draws heavily on Black surrealism, similar to movies like Sorry to Bother You and Get Out.“ I felt challenged and inspired by these pieces of media,” Open Mike Eagle says in the interview. “I want to tell an absurd story in a rap album. I want people to feel the depths where it might be trying to go emotionally and the questions it might be trying to ask — but I don't want to say all the answers.” He continues, “At every step of that process, I have to deal with self-doubt. I want to make art that is able to contend with that.” Photo credit: Robert Adam Mayer Support the show: kexp.org/deeper Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On A Deeper Listen, host Emily Fox and other storytellers from KEXP talk with artists about the stories behind their songs and the experiences that inform their work. Through each conversation, we uncover the humanity behind the music, allowing us to hear it in a whole new way.
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