Archive for November 15th, 2009
Listing the Best Albums of the Year by Artist from A to Z: BLK JKS
November 15th, 2009
Posted in Best of 2009
Released September 8th on Secretly Canadian
Philadelphia DJ/producer and former boyfriend of M.I.A., Diplo, is often credited for having discovered the African band BLK JKS (pronounced Black Jacks) and dubbing them “the African TV on the Radio.” Although they’ve been together for nearly a decade, they’re still a fairly young band, having just released their debut album a couple months ago, entitled After Robots. Response to the band and the album has been quite favorable, with Rolling Stone and Spin magazines calling BLK JKS one of the bands to watch in 2009.
Backed by the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, BLK JKS mix together a number of styles, giving each track its own distinct style and sound. From the blasting horns in the jammy “Molalatladi”, to psychedelic/prog rock in “Banna Ba Modimo” and “Lakeside”, to the experimental/atmospheric “Standby” and “Kwa Nqingetje”, to the dubbed-out “Skeleton”, to the slowly-building/post-rock of “Cursor”, BLK JKS are mixing up their African roots with traditional elements of American rock that will interest the indie hipsters, the World music lovers, the rappers, and everyone in between. Have a listen for yourself.
