Deerhunter ‘Escapes,’ Courtney Barnett evolves on MBE this week

Welcome to your weekly Morning Becomes Eclectic update, for news and performances over Nov. 2-7, 2015 on KCRW and KCRW.com

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 4: KCRW caught up with critically-acclaimed Australian singer/guitarist Courtney Barnett just hours before she opened for Blur at the Hollywood Bowl, one of the biggest shows of her career! She played us a short set of songs solo on electric guitar and talked to MBE host Jason Bentley about her evolution as a songwriter. The session was recorded at Sonos Studio L.A.

Fun fact: I’m terrified of clowns and this is still one of my favorite videos of the year.

THURSDAY, NOV. 5: Soul/funk/jazz collective Hiatus Kaiyote is the first Australian band to ever be nominated for a Grammy Award in an R&B category. It was for a track off their debut record, which earned them big name fans including Prince, Questlove, Erykah Badu, and more. Their new record is even more ambitious and we get a taste with a live session recorded at Apogee Studio, hosted by KCRW DJ Aaron Byrd.

Fun fact: The band likes to make up their own genre names, like “wondercore” and “tinselgoth” (perfect for the holidays!).

FRIDAY, NOV. 6:Deerhunter, the Atlanta-based band led by frontman Bradford Cox, reinvents itself once again on their 7th album “Fading Frontier.” Utterly captivating and unafraid to take chances, the band impresses with a fresh take on songs new and old. The famously outspoken singer also shares his thoughts on the decline of culture in an interview with KCRW DJ Travis Holcombe.

Fun fact: The band played an extended version of “Snakeskin” and Bradford named the improvised ending “Escape from the Nursery.”