Alt-J formed in Leeds, England in 2007. Their debut album won a Mercury Prize, and their second was nominated for a Grammy. They released their third album, Relaxer in June 2017. In this episode, singer Joe Newman and keyboardist Gus Unger-Hamilton break down their song “In Cold Blood.”
You can get “In Cold Blood” on iTunes.
Illustration by Carlos Lerma.
For a transcript of this episode, click here.
Michael Kiwanuka is a singer/songwriter from London. His second album, Love and Hate, came out in 2016, and was named one of the Best Albums of the Year from the BBC, NME, The Guardian, GQ, and more. One of the songs on the album was used as the theme for the hit HBO series Big Little Lies. In this episode, Michael breaks down the song “Black Man in a White World.”
You can get “Black Man in a White World” on iTunes.
Illustration by Carlos Lerma.
For a transcript of this episode, click here.
footnotes
Son House – Grinnin’ in Your Face
Curtis Mayfield – Move On Up
This week, I want to revisit one of my favorite episodes of Song Exploder, with Perfume Genius telling the story of making “Slip Away.” This episode originally came out in May 2017. The album the song’s from, No Shape, went on to be nominated for a Grammy, and was named one of the year’s best in lots of places. And next week, on March 16, Perfume Genius will be playing at the Song Exploder Stage at SXSW. I’m really excited to be putting on a showcase at the festival, and the other artists playing will be Kimbra, Sarah Kinsley, Fly Anakin, and Jenny Owen Youngs.
Mike Hadreas has been making music under the name Perfume Genius since 2008. In May 2017, he put out his fourth album, No Shape, to widespread critical acclaim. In this episode, Mike breaks down the song “Slip Away.” I also spoke with producer Blake Mills, who also plays on the track, and recording engineer Shawn Everett about the unusual way the song was recorded.
You can buy or stream “Slip Away” here.
Illustration by Carlos Lerma.
For a transcript of this episode, click here.
footnotes
The guitar-shaped mbira (photo courtesy Blake Mills):
