A little bit of a late start to Record of the Week this week but with Beatlemania happening around here it’s finally here.
After releasing their debut EP, Mystery, earlier in the year, Blk Jks were already my favorite new band of 2009. I was incredibly excited for their debut full length and wasn’t let down in the slightest.
The band, hailing from South Africa, made their second trip to the U.S. to record this full length, After Robots, with Brandon Curtis of Secret Machines producing. If you are not familiar with Blk Jks, their sound is an incredibly unique blend of afro beat and progressive rock. More song oriented than Mars Volta but definitely on par in terms of musicianship, with vocalist Lindani Buthelezi goes back and forth singing in English, Zulu and Xhosa.
The album is full of bombastic highlights. From the huge honrs and chanting on the first track “Mololatladi” that builds and builds into a monster of a song to the dub sounds of “Skeleton” the band churns out one memorable tune after another.
While the band mixes complex songs together seemlessly, they also strive when working with a limited pallette of sounds. “Lakeside,” which appeared on the Mystery EP, gets stripped down to it’s bare essence of a song to show just how proficient they are at writing. Perhaps even more telling is the closing track, “Tselane,” which strips the band down to mostly just acoustic guitar and vocals being sung in one of their native tongues.
This album is not just record of the week but a strong contender for record of the year. Just an absolutely refreshing record and one of the most promising debuts I have heard in some time.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser."Molalatladi" from Blk Jks' 2009 album After Robots
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser."Lakeside" from Blk Jks' 2009 album After Robots
Honorable mentions for September 8th Record of the Week:
- Health - Get Color (Lovepump United)
"Die Slow" from Health's 2009 album Get ColorAudio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
- Vivian Girls – Everything Goes Wrong (In the Red)
"When I'm Gone" from Vivian Girls' 2009 album Everything Goes WrongAudio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
- Nudge – As Good As Gone (In the Red)
"Burns Blue" from Nudge's 2009 album As Good As GoneAudio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
