When Guadalajara-based singer/songwriter Sara Valenzuela is not churning out the most charming indie pop ever to have emerged from Mexico -- see Lado Este, her Suzanne Vega-flavored 2005 solo debut, on which Marc Ribot (Elvis Costello, Tom Waits) and Melvin Gibbs (Rollins Band, Marisa Monte) pitch in -- the former lead singer of the pop-punk act La Dosis hosts the radio program Jazz Solo in her hometown. She began hosting the show in 1991, and although most artists would consider weekly DJ duties a sideline, for Valenzuela they're a gateway to more informed artistry.
"I didn'...