Jason Bentley, KCRW Music Director

When Malian singer-songwriter Rokia Traore stopped by KCRW's studio, she was in the middle of a cross-country tour and bound for Northern California. The travel-ready artist is the daughter of a diplomat who has been all over the world and cites her rich cultural experiences as her source of ...

Fusing traditional Latin rhythms with Afro-Peruvian beats, Novalima is a one-of a-kind collective from Peru. During a visit to KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic the day after Nelson Mandela's death, the group brought its signature energy to "Liberta" — performed with a dedication to the late South African president.

Whether she's creating songs in L.A. or New York, it's clear that Glasser (a.k.a. Cameron Mesirow) has put as much effort into her music as she has into the total artistic package of form and atmosphere. In songs like "Shape," she creates moody, intoxicating environments with her voice and presence.

When the down-and-dirty Austin rock band White Denim stopped by the KCRW studios on the day of its album release, its members had one goal in mind: Put as much pressure on our studio equipment as possible before total collapse. They nothing held back, even sweating through their shirts on ...

Devon Welsh has an unmistakable presence as the singer for the Montreal duo Majical Cloudz, but producer Matthew Otto is just as vital to their live sound. When the two performed a set for KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic, they played off one another seamlessly, and often without eye contact. This ...

Ernest Greene, a.k.a. Washed Out, has always been intrigued by the kinds of records that take you on a journey from beginning to end. During a recent visit to Morning Becomes Eclectic, Greene brought in a full band for a set of lush and dreamy tracks that meander, yet ...

With his distinctive baritone voice and his art-rock spin on contemporary country music, Daughn Gibson didn't have a hard time grabbing our attention. Clad in a ripped-up Garth Brooks shirt he'd acquired the night before, this one-time truck driver took us along for the ride with songs like "You Don't ...

When The National came through the Morning Becomes Eclectic studios, the band was in the midst of a sizable tour, including two sold-out shows in Los Angeles. Drummer Bryan Devendorf opted out of the morning session to nurse a bad back, so we ended up with a pared-down and ...

When New Zealand-based pop sensation Lorde made her Morning Becomes Eclectic debut, she told our audience that she feels like a normal teenager — except that she rides on planes to go to work instead of the bus. Definition of normalcy aside, it's clear the chart-topping singer will have to ...

The Glaswegian dance-rock champions in Franz Ferdinand took a brief hiatus, but they never missed a beat; in fact, they sound better than ever. Upon their return to Morning Becomes Eclectic, Franz Ferdinand's members seemed to be having a blast. In songs like "Love Illumination," you can hear the ...

Hearing the controlled intensity of Savages' music is one thing, but watching the band perform live is another altogether. When we welcomed the U.K. post-punk group to KCRW's studios, its members brought with them powerful energy and a moody aesthetic that they've been carefully cultivating throughout a short but successful ...

Junip relishes distortion, but with with tender melodies and soft tones set atop a bed of electronic production that teeters on chaotic. In songs like "Your Life, Your Call," you can sense the urgency in every note, even as singer José González keeps his delivery sounding hushed and sweet.

Queens Of The Stone Age is one of the best rock bands working today, with a diverse and unpredictable catalog dating back to the '90s. Southern California native Josh Homme and his talented collaborators recently treated a small studio audience in Santa Monica to a full-on assault of sweat-inducing ...

Emily Wells is one woman with the force of a band — and her sound has evolved as much as her setup. Starting with a loop pedal and a violin, she's incorporated additional instrumentation to add depth to her hip-hop-influenced style, which is one part Biggie ...

Led by Tracyanne Campbell's effortlessly breezy voice, Camera Obscura's easygoing new album arrived just in time for summer. During the indie-pop band's recent live session on Morning Becomes Eclectic, Campbell credited Desire Lines' fresh and upbeat aura to recording in Portland, Ore., instead of Camera Obscura's hometown of Glasgow. ...

Quadron combines the efforts of singer Coco O and super-producer Robin Hannibal (also of Rhye), who together craft a beautiful, soulful sound. With a modern take on soul and R&B and a mutual love of Michael Jackson, they've created one of the year's best albums in Avalanche. Coco O recently ...

Jennifer Lee, also known as TOKiMONSTA, has discovered her own sound within a niche genre: Her beat-making ability and spaced-out, experimental form of dance music has won her favor with L.A. production royalty Flying Lotus and the Brainfeeder camp. Recently, she and labelmate MNDR visited Morning Becomes Eclectic and played ...

For its return to KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic, the Detroit duo Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. brought with it some new tracks, a ton of dance-happy beats and, of course, a saxophone. After previously touring as a duo, Joshua Epstein and Daniel Zott brought in extra players to fill out ...

Yo La Tengo has been able to stick together and make music on its own terms for more than 20 years; in today's climate, that's as rare as it is impressive. In an interview for KCRW, singer Ira Kaplan said the band likes to keep its process in the ...

Whether its members see it as blessing or a curse, Vampire Weekend's early success placed the band squarely under a microscope. Since even before the release of its first album, Vampire Weekend's clever lyrics and use of worldly rhythms have commanded attention; fortunately, the group's fame hasn't waned as ...