Jamz of the Week

This week I have been listening to a lot of KBCS 91.3 FM, which is an independent radio station based out of Bellevue College. For people who aren't in the know, Bellevue is an affluent suburb of Seattle. In this Neiman-Marcusian morass of affluence and materialism, KBCS shines as a beacon of idiosyncratic hope for a less monotonous future. Hit the jump to peep their program schedule and/or listen to their live feed. I would recommend Zulu Radio (Saturdays 10pm-Midnight), and the Spice Route (Wednesdays 9-11am). You can also listen to playlists and audio archives at your leisure online.

Now to the jamz, which were inspired by cuts I heard on KBCS over the week. The first is from the R&B/Soul artist Solomon Burke. "Valley of Tears" is a powerful soul/gospel ballad which he mercs with the help of Gillian Welch and some unknown white. It's one of those Jamz that some people will love, and others will hate. Give S. Burke a chance. The man may look like Jabba the Hut now, but he was probably knee deep in it in his heyday.

The second JOTW, is from Wiz Khalifa's recent Mixtape, Kush and Orange Juice. I have to admit that some of Khalifa's music is repetitive and bland, but a lot of the beats are agreeable and I like the stuff he and Curren$y have put together. He's one of those emcees that has a theme, in this case the ganja, and pretty much sticks to it, but does so well. "Mezmorized" is, in my humble opinion, the best song on Kush & OJ.