UKNY For April 1

It's both Easter and Passover and in the spirit of spring renewal and freedom, tonight's UKNY at 11 features a few artists forging some intriguing paths in pursuit of their own creative resurrections.

XL Recordings head Richard Russell has released his debut album, Everything Is Recorded by Richard Russell, brimming with cool collaborators and friends, like Damon Albarn, Sampha, Ibeyi, Infinite and Scritti Politti's Green Gartside. We'll hear something from that record, as well as London's Mono Club, a sextet of ex-members of Goldheart Assembly and solo artist Lyla Foy.

In her latest chapter, pop singer Eliza — who used to record as Eliza Doolittle — is finding inspiration in the early '90s grooves laid down by Janet Jackson or TLC. And This is the Kit's Kate Stables returns to early demos for her band's 2017 release Moonshine Freeze for a new all-acoustic EP, Moonshine First Goes.

Finally, a couple of songs from David Bowie. I finally had the chance to see "David Bowie Is" at the Brooklyn Museum and urge everyone to not just see it once, but at least twice before the exhibit closes on July 15. It's not simply an expansively curated gathering of videos, costumes, memorablia, handwritten lyrics, and music, but an enlightening journey through Bowie's creative process, decade by decade.

The exhibit doesn't follow a strict or rigid timeline, but zigzags through Bowie's seemingly infinite and often surprising motivatations—what spurred him on as a child, a teenager, a young musician seeking his own identity, and beyond. I was struck by his voracious reading habits—400 books from Bowie's personal library are on display, ranging from James Baldwin to Dorothy Parker to Anthony Burgess.  Bowie was an inventor too; I'd never known about a lyric writing software from the mid-Nineties, called the Verbasizer, which he co-created; it enabled him to cut up phrases and words while writing songs.

There are faxed exchanges of whimsical illustrations between Bowie and his friend Laurie Anderson, and plenty of iconic items too, like the poignant three dimensional figures used in director and artist Tony Oursier's video for Bowie's "Where Are We Now?" video, and designer Natasha Korniliff's ornate Pierrot costume from 1980's "Ashes to Ashes" video which so dominated early MTV.  Even Bowie's battered keys from his Berlin flat are hung on the wall, as if waiting for him to open the door one more time.

It's an extraordinary exhibit which demands a leisurely afternoon's exploration and an essential destination not only for Bowie fans, but for anyone pursuing a life in the arts. It's tremendously inspiring to follow Bowie's own risks, gambles, frustrations, and triumphs. He never gave up. He never ceased learning, dreaming, or reinventing himself. Neither should we.

Missed the show? You can catch up to UKNY immediately after broadcast in the Weekend Archives.

Songs played:

1. XTC, “Easter Theatre,” Apple Venus Volume I
2. Mono Club, “Best Laid Plans,” Sky High and Submarine
3. Our Girl, “Our Girl,” single
4. Earhart, “A Cross,” single
5. Eliza, “Livid,” single
6. Everything is Recorded feat. Infinite and Green Gartside, “Bloodshot Red Eyes,” Everything is Recorded by Richard Russell
7. Scritti Politti, “Absolute,” Cupid & Psyche 85
8. Field Music, “Share a Pillow,” Open Here
9. The Cornshed Sisters, “Running,” Honey and Tar
10. Paul Littlewood, “Television,” Today-Television single
11. This is the Kit,” By My Demon Eye (First Go),” Moonshine First Goes EP
12. David Bowie, “Life on Mars? (2016 Mix)” Legacy
13. David Bowie, “5:15 The Angels Have Gone,” Heathen