BLK JKS - Zol! Album Review - REDEFINE magazine - music art film journalism

BLK JKS released their first US full-length last year, and it made a relatively small ripple in the music pond. This year’s EP Zol! from the South African band promises to make much more of a splash, due mostly to the well-deserved hype that has surrounded them recently. Not only did BLK JKS win a prestigious SAMA (South African Music Award) for their full-length After Robots, but they will also be playing at the first ever FIFA World Cup Kickoff Celebration Concert, a high honor.

ALBUM REVIEW CONTINUED BELOW
Listen to “Zol!” – DOWNLOAD MP3

This prestigious distinction is well-timed for their album release this week, and the EP is an instrumentally tight and lyrically interesting entrance onto the world stage, literally and figuratively. BLK JKS’ unique take on spacey, progressive rock is evident on the first and second tracks, “Lietys” and “Bogobe,” but the highlight of the album comes right in the middle, with the title track. The upbeat and bouncy song is a celebration, and it is hard to sit still while listening to it. The album falls flat a little during “Paradise,” despite the song’s fantastic bluesy guitar lines, but picks up again with “Mzabalazo.”

Zol! is definitely a good entrée into the world of BLK JKS, but it only provides a taste of their varied style. At the rate they are rising, it is assured that there is much more to come.