Departure Quarterly Issue 3 by DEPARTURE QUARTERLY

DEPARTURE MAKE OVERS

DEER HUNTER

Free. * STEREO PICTURES *

FUTURE PRIMITIVES

DANNY WAY

DESIGN INDABA

ASSEMBLY RADIO

MA RK APP LEY ARD NE W S IGN ATU RE SHOE THE MAHALO HA WAI I T EST ED AND APPROVED AV AIL ABL E N OW

UN ITE D BY FA TE ES T. AUST RAL IA 1994 WW W.GL OBE .TV

MARK APPLEYARD

AVAIL ABL E NOW

HA WAII T ESTED AND APPROVED

NE W SIGNATU RE SHOE THE MAHALO

UNITED BY FATE ES T. AUSTRALIA 1994 WWW.GLOBE.TV

DEPARTURE STEREO PICTURES

Issue 3 / MARCH 2013

PUBLISHER Clayton Peterson clayton@departurequarterly.com EDITOR / ART DIRECTION Stefan Naudeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; stefan@departurequarterly.com COVER Louis Vorster louisvorster.co.za PHOTOGRAPHERS Jacqui Van Staden Louis Vorster Hayden Phipps Daniel Levi CONTRIBUTORS

Free. * STEREO PICTURES *

Rick De La Ray Rouleaux van der Merwe Colby Carter Randy Watson Ruan Scott Donny Winterburn Bill Danforth DC Shoes Jason Bronkhorst (illustration)

The views and opinions expressed within the editorial and advertisements of DEPARTURE do not necessarily reflect those of its staff, nor any of its associates. DEPARTURE and anything contained within is copyright. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form whatsoever, copied or stored electronically without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

SUBMISSIONS Stefan Naude stefan@departurequarterly.com

ADVERTISING

ASSOCIATED PRINTING associated-printing.co.za

Clayton Peterson clayton@departurequarterly.com

CONTENTS

x x x x x x x x x x x x

Keith Haring Deer Hunter Future Primitives Danny Way Senyol Southey Mackay Make Overs Assembly Radio Product Toss Design Indaba Wax Junkie Snake Spanky

Tseng Kwong Chi www.tsengkwongchi.com

10 12 18 26 36 46 54 58 68 76 78 82

PHOTO: REICHE

KEITH HARING 1958 – 1990 ILLUSTRATION JASON BRONKHORST

WORDS BILL DANFORTH

“NO ARTISTS ARE PART OF A MOVEMENT. UNLESS THEY ARE FOLLOWERS. AND THEN THEY ARE UNNECESSARY AND DOING UNNECESSARY ART. IF THEY ARE EXPLORING IN AN ‘INDIVIDUAL WAY’ WITH ‘DIFFERENT IDEAS’ THE IDEA OF ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL, THEY ARE MAKING A WORTHY CONTRIBUTION, BUT AS SOON AS THEY CALL THEMSELVES FOLLOWERS OR ACCEPT THE TRUTHS THEY HAVE NOT EXPLORED AS TRUTHS, THEY ARE DEFEATING THE PURPOSE OF ART AS AN INDIVIDUAL EXPRESSION — ART AS ART.” - October 14, 1978, NYC When looking back into the abyss of street artists or claimed to be street artists, the factual time lines will always point back to the roots of the burden carried by many a wall on city- or even small town streets. From shacks in the ghettos to electrified train tracks where spray cans and giant felt tip markers run dry on public property to mark the territory of the modern cave men and women expressing their fears, hopes, injustices and sometimes joy towards modern society. Like the embryo of rock and roll stems strictly to the blues and all its derivatives, so does the essence of street art have its own pioneers. From TAKI 183’s early markings in the ‘70s to the groundbreaking followers ZEPHYR, Futura 2000, Blade, PHASE 2, CASH, Lady The universe of Keith Haring By Christina Clause - 2008

Pink and Jean-Michel Basquiat, the spirit of a humble minimalist still lingers in the dusty corners of the New York subways. Keith Haring was born in Reading, Pennsylvania and grew up in Kutztown with his mother, Joan Haring, and his cartoonist father, Allen Haring. At the age of 19 he was highly inspired by what he called ‘poetry’ of Jean-Michel Basquiat and the spread of graffiti through the boroughs. Harring’s bold lines and active figures carried strong messages of life and unity. “I am not a beginning. I am not an end. I am a link in a chain...” FOR THE FULL ARTICLE VISIT: departurequarterly.co.za Keith Haring By Jeffrey Deitch - 2008

THANK YOU

Keith Haring: Journals Viking Penguin - 1996

HUNTING HIGH AND LOW PHOTOGRAPHY LOUIS VORSTER

WORDS RANDY WATSON

RECENTLY, DEER HUNTER QUIETLY OPENED THEIR DOORS TO THE UNSUSPECTING PUBLIC NEXT TO THE OLD BISCUIT MILL. SPAWNING THEIR WINGS FROM ITS HUMBLE BIRTH IN GREENSIDE, JOHANNESBURG A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, THE OWNERS SHAUN BASKIND AND KEZIA EALES RELOCATED THEIR RETRO COLLECTABLE SHOP TO WOODSTOCK. DRAWING THE ATTENTION OF SERIOUS COLLECTORS, LOCAL BARGAIN HUNTERS, VINYL JUNKIES AND PENNY PINCHERS, THE SHOP HAS SURPRISED THE PUBLIC WITH THEIR WIDE RANGE OF KITSCH TROPHIES AND VINTAGE SENSIBILITY. Deer Hunter recently moved from Greenside in Johannesburg – what nudged you and Kezia to make the move down to Cape Town? We made the move out of sheer boredom. We got tired of going to the same places and driving down the same roads. Combine that with my fear of dying in the same city I was born in and it made perfect sense to us to move to CT. The shop is much larger than the original and you have added a coffee shop to the front section of the store – what has the response been so far here in Cape Town? Do you find that you get quite a similar type of clientele that you had in Johannesburg?

We always wanted to have a little coffee shop at Deer Hunter, but never had the space in Greenside. We have more than enough space now for both and we’re launching our restaurant soon... a collaboration with Will from Willy’s Food. The response has been great in CT so far and we have been finding amazing stuff. Fill us in on a bit of Deer Hunter’s history and your background with bookshops and bars. You’ve definitely come a long way since your involvement with the original Tokyo Star venue in Melville... Deer Hunter was initially started as a way of dealing with our addiction to stuff. In our spare time we would go to auctions, pawn shops and charity shops. Eventually it got out of control and we started selling some of

our treasures at Rosebank Rooftop Market. That helped for a while, but eventually we outgrew that and then started Junksale at Go-Go Bar, my nightclub in Newtown. Every Saturday we would have a vinyl market and invited all the vintage dealers to sell their wares. It was very successful. JHB was starved for something other than malls and franchises. My first business was Ballard’s Books in Melville where we bought and sold books and LPs. That was where I developed a taste for going through peoples’ houses and garages. I then opened Tokyo Star (the original) which was mental. If you find yourself at Tokyo Star in Greenside, don’t judge me, I had nothing to do with that. I then went into early retirement and resurfaced to start up Go-Go Bar in Newtown. The ‘red tape’ liquor licence bureaucracy bullshit was the reason for its demise, but it was a party and everyone who went there will remember it...

How would you describe the contents of the shop and how would you label what you sell?

You were very lucky with your current location being situated next to The Old Biscuit Mill in Woodstock. Were you looking for a place in that area or was it just pure luck that you found that location?

In your opinion, what makes an object collectable? Can you predict what will be valuable in 30 years time or is it time itself that will eventually predict what society will still find nostalgic as the years pass?

We saw it on Gumtree one day and I flew down to CT – a couple of months later we were here. It was frighteningly spontaneous; we’re still a bit shell-shocked. The location is great and the size of the space is perfect.

That’s a good question. The main variables which determine the value of an item is availability and demand. You want to find something that is in high demand, but has a very limited supply. These days, stuff is produced

Sometimes we look around the shop and we’re like: “Wow... we really own all this shit!” It’s painstakingly-selected junk. There’s too much crap being manufactured today and most of it’s disposable garbage that all ends up on landfills in Africa (the garbage heap of the world). You obviously have a sincere love and passion for all the collectables you have in your store. Where does this interest for all these objects stem from? It started with vinyl and books and quickly turned into something much greater. We now collect big-eye art, crying kids, toys, Tretchikoffs, matchbox cars, high fidelity sound and more. If I’m not out hunting, someone else is – and that just won’t do.

in such large quantities if there’s a demand for it. It’s very difficult to determine what are going to be future collectables. By the time you find out about them, it’s already too late. You must find a lot of things that you want to keep for yourself along the way… Is it sometimes hard to part with some of your favourites? It’s very difficult to part with stuff, but we’re always finding something better and our collection is evolving with us. There’s some stuff we’ll never sell and we’re always adding new items to that list and removing some from it (and they usually end up in our shop). Which objects in the shop seem to draw most of the attention? Guys love the Scope magazines and often point out the lucky lady that they had their first sexual experience

with... Thanks for that! The ladies love the Kewpie dolls and vinyl. What has been the most valuable item that you have dealt with over the years and what would you say is the most valuable item you have in store right now? The most valuable item we have had would be a very rare turntable that’s worth up to R10 000 and R15 000 in the box. We sold it for R5000. Right now, I have a book that’s worth R8 000 (a Biggles 1st Ed). I won’t get that for it, but that is its value on paper. Do you rent some of the items out for props or are you not going to go down that route? We do rentals for the film industry. We also source stuff if someone is looking for something special. FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW VISIT: departurequarterly.co.za THANK YOU

DE EVOLUTION

PHOTOGRAPHY HAYDEN PHIPPS

WORDS COLBY CARTER

“IF SATAN HAD A POOL PARTY, THE FUTURE PRIMITIVES WOULD BE PLAYING LOUDLY IN THE BACKGROUND, WHILE EVERYONE DROPPED ACID AND DANCED LIKE IT WAS 1969.” - ONGAKUBAKA.COM THE FUTURE PRIMITIVES HAVE BEEN RIDING A SOLID UNDERGROUND WAVE THROUGH THE STREETS OF CAPE TOWN. RECREATING THEIR OWN STYLE OF PSYCHOTIC SURF ROCK, THEIR ENERGETIC RHYTHMS HAVE RECENTLY BEEN PICKED UP BY THE PORTUGUESE RECORD LABEL, GROOVIE RECORDS. THEY SEEM TO HAVE MOULDED THEIR OWN CRYPT OF SOUND FOUND IN A BIN OF LEFTOVER CUTTINGS FROM THE DARK SIDE OF POP. I have read and heard many different opinions on the style of music that you are playing. How would the band describe what you are playing? Johnny: Garage rock, with a blend of psych, surf and rockabilly. We don’t really want to be stuck playing in one style – we’d get bored. Heino: Playing a mish-mash of everything we like and like to hear allows us to go in any direction we want at any time. It keeps things exciting for us. Was it a definite choice of style when you guys started playing?

How did you guys go about deciding what you are going to sound like or did it just mould itself from your different interests? Johnny: Yeah, there’s no deciding really – just do. Heino: It’s a style of music that means a lot to each of us. So from the start, we just played what we really wanted. Will the album This Here’s The Future Primitives only be released on vinyl? Johnny: Most likely, yeah, maybe on cassette too.

Quite a few local bands are pressing records again; do you see this just as a gimmick or novelty? Do you think that ‘new vinyl’ can actually become a real contender on the shelves again like in the past? Do think that vinyl will beat its laser-driven nemesis for good? Johnny: Yeah, for sure. People have online releases anyway, like MP3 or better yet, FLAC. So there is no need for CDs really. Vinyl is a much better option. Heino: People can obviously listen to music how ever they want to. We just happen to prefer listening to records. Tell us more about Groovie Records and how you guys got hooked up with them? Johnny: Groovie Records are a label based in Lisbon, Portugal but release bands from all over the place. We hooked up with them through a guy by the name of Chris Jack – he has a band called The Routes who are also on Groovie. Chris heard our EP and digged it and sent it to Groovie. The next day, we were offered a deal.

19, and then after that, years later, The Revelators. Heino: I was in a grunge band with a ridiculous name when I was 20 or so. It was short-lived but a good place to start. About two years later, I met Johnny and we started The Revelators. After that, I jammed with a few friends (now Wild Eastern Arches) before Johnny and I decided to start The Future Primitives. Warren: I used to jam with friends, but other than that, this is my first band. Are you guys all from Cape Town? Johnny: Yes How did you all end up making music together?

Did any of you play in any other bands before The Primitives?

Johnny: Well, I met Heino before we started The Revelators. We met in Stellenbosch I think. We spoke about music and he said he played bass, and I needed a bassist. Actually, Shaun (who was The Revelators’ first drummer) played bass at the time and it was just Shaun and myself – when Heino joined, Shaun moved to drums. And then with The Future Primitives, we met Warren through Heino’s girlfriend Tammy, I think?

Johnny: Yeah, I had a band called The Epsilons back when I was about

Heino: Yeah, Warren was some dude with amazing hair that Tammy knew.

Are you guys planning a bit of a tour soon or are you mainly playing around Cape Town for the moment? Johnny: At the moment, just Cape Town… but we will definitely tour. Heino: There aren’t a lot of places to play in Cape Town, so we’ll definitely need to play somewhere else, sometime soon. I see there is a split cassette out now with the French band Dusty Mush on Cheap Miami. Is there a lot of crossbreeding going down on Bandcamp? Johnny: Not sure really, we are just tight with the guys from Dusty Mush and thought it would be cool to do a split. Heino: It makes sense to do a split with a band that has the same take on music. Have you got a serious deal going with Groovie or are you just releasing as much as possible across the board with anyone that you find relevant? Johnny: Well a lot of bands release on different labels – I guess it helps to get your name out in different places. You can do an LP on one label and a 7” on another, I think it’s all pretty chilled – it’s not as serious as it seems. The

black

alternative

market

seems to be slowly crawling from the shadows with bands like the BLK JKS and The Brother Moves On from Johannesburg. Do you think once that market is bigger there is going to be a lot more room for local alternative bands to make a living from their music? Johnny: It’s hard to tell what’s going to happen in the future. It does seem like things are getting better for bands here. The Internet is a great help too – people all over the world have access to your music. It also comes down to whether the band is good or not, I guess. Do you think alternative music always needs something to rebel against to make it relevant or can it survive on its own? Johnny: Just recently in an interview I was talking about how every genre is a reaction to what came just before it – I think that’s how things move along, but I don’t think music relies on this. Music can survive for years. We are really into ’60s garage and psych – sure, it’s not the most popular thing right now, but it survived. Have you guys considered maybe playing a few shows in Europe, seeing that you have had some interests from that side of the world? Johnny: Yeah, we are definitely

planning a tour – we have some decent contacts now. So, yeah, that’s kind of the big plan at the moment. Heino: There are a lot of bands that we would like to play with from all over the place and Europe definitely includes a considerable amount of them. Do you think there is a lot more interest in South African alternative music since the BLK JKS made waves a few years ago with their After Robots album on Strictly Canadian? Johnny: I think it actually comes down to what a label is looking for in a band, like what type bands they want. I’m not sure that BLK JKS’ label would necessarily put out one of our records, as it might not be something that they dig. You can’t really say if one band from a certain country makes it out and does well that other bands from that country will do the same. I do think there is a lot of

potential here in South Africa, especially now that a lot of great bands are popping up, but it all depends on whether they have what someone else wants. Heino: We’re not riding anybody’s wave, man. What can we expect from the band in the next year or are you just going to see what happens? Johnny: Another LP, for sure. But, yeah, we kind of just take it as it comes. Heino: Looking forward to more recordings and hopefully more releases. If we get to tour, that would be great as well. We’ll just have to see what happens. Warren: A Greatest Hits album

FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW VISIT: departurequarterly.co.za THANK YOU

MORE FROM THE FUTURE PRIMITIVES. This Here’s Groovie Records Vinyl \ 2013

Dusty Mush Split Cheap Miami Tape \ 2013

For more details go to www.thefutureprimitives.tumblr.com

Songs We Taught Ourselves Download \ 2013

ONLY ONE WAY TO DO IT

PHOTOGRAPHY SUPPLIED

WORDS DC SHOES

“THAT’S WHAT WE’RE OPERATING ON TODAY!” DANNY WAY SAID THIS AS HE PULLED OFF HIS SOCK AND PUT HIS BRUISED, BLOATED, FRACTURED ANKLE ON THE TABLE IN THE PRESS ROOM AT X GAMES 11, RIGHT AFTER WINNING GOLD ON THE MEGA RAMP. DANNY ORIGINALLY FRACTURED HIS ANKLE A FEW WEEKS PRIOR, WHEN JUMPING THE JU YU GONG GATE, OF THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA. We have all pondered the question “Who is the greatest skateboarder of all time?” and it’s one of those questions that might be impossible to answer. One can’t really pick the best painter in history, or even the best musicians–sure we have our opinions and they’re all usually based on style, technique, output, longevity, attitude, influence, accomplishments, ability, etc. With skateboarding, some people will say there is no such thing as “the greatest skateboarder of all time,” but chances are, when the question is posed, Danny Way will be mentioned more often than most. So how did he get there? By six years old Danny was already frequenting Del Mar Skate Ranch with his older brother Damon and

skating with the likes of Kevin Staab, Steve Steadham, Billy Ruff and Tony Hawk. While tagging along with Damon and Damon’s friends, Danny spent a lot of time skating street, but was also bullied into skating pools, vert, and mini ramps by the Vista Skate Locals (VSL as Damon’s crew was known) in order to make Danny multi-terrained. “Danny was trying gay twists on vert when he was twelve years old, before he could even do decent airs or inverts. I think after years of that, he figured out how to eliminate fear from his mind,” says Damon. By ten years old, Danny was already sponsored by Hosoi and Vision. He was small, but an obvious talent and there was a buzz going around California about the up and comer. By twelve, Danny 29

Way was asked to turn pro for the newly-formed, soon-to-be-legendary H-Street skateboards. Danny refused and joined as an am. Once on H-Street, Danny produced two video parts for “Shackle Me Not” and “Hocus Pocus” easily two of the most important skateboarding films of all time. At fifteen, Danny was collecting paychecks in the range of $20,000 for board sales. Most importantly, Danny became close friends with Mike Ternasky, who supported Danny’s decision to leave H-Street for the greener pastures over at the newly-formed Blind skateboards, sister company to Steve Rocco’s World Industries. Which soon, with the help of Mike Ternasky, formed another sister company known as Plan B. Danny joined Plan B and “The Questionable Video” was soon released.

The video, and Danny’s part, changed skateboarding forever. The follow up Virtual Reality did the same. In 1993 many riders from Blind and Plan B left to form Girl, shortly after, in 1994, Mike Ternasky tragically died in a car accident. As if the demise of Plan B and the loss of his friend and virtual father weren’t enough, just as DC was getting underway, Danny suffered a near fatal injury while surfing. Recovery was long and hard, doctors were clueless at times, but by Tampa Pro 1996 Danny was rehabilitated and better than ever, winning the vert contest. In 1997, the DC Super Ramp was built

and Danny broke the world’s record for the highest air on a skateboard. The same day he did a 12-foot kickflip indy and bomb dropped from a helicopter into the ramp. Two years later, now riding for Alien Workshop after the decision to finally close the doors on Plan B, MTV asked Danny to try the same stunts again for their Sports and Music Festival. He accepted, did the helicopter drop with a dislocated shoulder that he earned on an earlier attempt, and although he didn’t beat the 1997 world record, he still won the high air contest. In the following years there were some knee and shoulder surgeries, some recovering time, and some filming for The DC Video. Everyone knew Danny’s part would be insane, but no one could even anticipate what was to come between Danny’s mind boggling MegaRamp part in The DC Video and his unfathomable follow-up part in the Deluxe Edition less than 8 months later. In 2004 the milestones continued. Danny brought the MegaRamp to the X Games, telling officials that competing on the MegaRamp would be the only way that he’d ever consider doing the event. And, rightfully so, he won the first ever Gold medal in the event… it’s no wonder considering how much time he’d clocked on the massive structure while filming for the DC Video / DC Video Deluxe Edition. The following year, 2005, Danny took the MegaRamp across the Pacific Ocean to China for his jump

over the Great Wall of China. On day one, on his first drop in, he clipped the edge, bounced upside down, and slid the rest of the way down the biggest skateboarding structure ever created. The slam tore ligaments in his ankle and possibly tore his ACL. The next day, with a swollen ankle and barely able to walk (let alone skateboard), Danny became the first person to jump the Great Wall of China on a skateboard. He did it four times too, and did three legit and distinct tricks over the 60-foot gap. Less than a month later, ankle still bruised and battered from the Great Wall slam, Danny returned to Los Angeles to win his second Big Air Gold Medal at X Games XI. It’s hard to believe Danny could even skate well enough

a whole month later to take Gold at the X Games. He repeated Gold again in 2006, making three straight Golds in the Big Air event. In April of 2006 Danny bomb drops 82 feet from the top of the neon guitar outside the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The feat earned Danny another world record: highest Bomb Drop. It seems like everything Danny does is packed with evidence of astronomical progression, larger than life skateboarding, and unmatched talent. To anyone who wouldn’t already acknowledge that Danny Way is one of the greatest skateboarders ever: he actually isn’t. Danny way is the greatest skateboarder ever– period. FOR MORE INFO GO TO waitingforlightningthemovie.com

THANK YOU 33

WAITING FOR LIGHTNING

This documentary has the difficult job of telling you how Danny Way became Danny Way. Through the victories and extreme hardships he has experienced in his life, all in just two short hours. Surprisingly to me, the film’s anchor point is the jump over the Great Wall of China. I always thought of this as just another notch in Danny’s belt. One of the many, many, many things he has accomplished in his life. The film flashes back and forth from his childhood and early career to the Great Wall ramp construction, planning and the eventually the jump which was witnessed live on television by millions of people live on Chinese television. The jump was also featured in a D.C.Shoes video. Using the wall jump as an anchor point was actually a great concept. It did the jump justice and let you know just how difficult it was on all levels. To honor this historic jump, the country of China inscribed Danny’s name in gold on the wall! This is an honor only a few in history will ever possess. Those of you not familiar with Danny Way need to know that Danny has broken world records, been a partial owner in one of the biggest shoe companies in the world (DC Shoe Co.) and currently owns Plan B Skateboards. He has been a pro skateboarder, motor crosser and snowboarder. He has recovered from a serious spinal injury and still keeps

pushing because of his serious drive to progress. A large majority of skate progression has been lead by Danny Way. He pushed street style tricks on vert and tested how big you can actually go on street. He also gave skateboarding a unique gift of terrifying insanity by introducing the world to Mega Ramp skating. The glimpse into Danny’s childhood was heartbreaking. The tragic death of his father and troubled family life shaped his unflinching character. This early strife was a seemingly necessary evil that Danny had to endure to give him the un-wavering determination that ultimately catapulted Danny to greatness DANNY WAY SKATEBOARDING CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 1991 - won Thrasher Skater of the Year 1995 - won gold at X Games High Air (not Big Air) 1995 - broke his neck surfing 2000 - first of 7 knee surgeries. Danny’s ACL has been replaced 3 times 2003-2004 - won Trans World Skateboarding Best Vert Skater (both years) 2004 - won Thrasher Skater of the Year (first skater to win this award twice) 2004-2005 - won gold at Big Air competition at X Games (both years) 2005 - jumped Great Wall of China (first non-motorized jump of wall in history).

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS POWEL PERALTA PUBLIC DOMAIN 1988

H - STREET HOKUS POKUS 1989

PLAN B VIRTUAL REALITY 1993

WAITING FOR LIGHTNING 2013

SMS SENYOL MACKAY SOUTHEY STUDIO VISIT

PHOTOGRAPHY JACQUI VAN STADEN

WORDS RANDY WATSON

ON A RECENT VISIT TO WOODSTOCK, WE POPPED INTO THE SENYOL, SOUTHEY AND MACKAY STUDIO. WE FOUND THREE FRIENDS AND ARTISTS WITH A STRONG WORK ETHIC AND DRIVE. WITH A GOOD MIXTURE OF CONCEPT AND STYLE, THEY HAVE BEEN BUILDING A SOLID NAME FOR THEMSELVES WITHIN THE CREATIVE COMMUNITY. “I think that narrative is a huge factor in my work, I enjoy the idea that my works take place within the frame work of a narrative of sorts.” - JUSTIN SOUTHEY “The truth is that being a creative, and being an artist is a full time job and takes hard work and time to become established and to succeed.” - PAUL SENYOL “If what you are doing is working and sustainable and fulfilling continue with it, but that doesn't mean you can't experiment with new ideas, techniques, visual languages.” - BRUCE MACKAY

“I can be obsessive compulsive about textures and arrangements of objects and patterns, and I’m a bit of a hypochondriac. I try to create tension and anxiety with scenarios like drowning, storms, floods, the moment a spirit leaves a body, things being consumed or engulfed, violent weather, loose teeth, funerals, falling and floating.” - BRUCE MACKAY

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think that there is a natural bend in many or most creatives, which tends to the creative over the business side, hence I think that Creative people could do better, but will only ever be so good. In light of this, I feel that having business people come along side creatives is an exciting avenue and one that could be mutually beneficial, however this is has been very poorly executed in this countryâ&#x20AC;? - JUSTIN SOUTHEY

“Art should reflect and comment on society, and i do believe that my work does so. i like to portray some kind of hope and beauty through my work.” - PAUL SENYOL

FOR THE FULL INTERVIEWS VISIT departurequarterly.co.za THANK YOU

A CRUSH WITH EYELINER PHOTOGRAPHY JACQUI VAN STADEN

WORDS ROULEAUX VAN DER MERWE

THERE ARE A LOT OF BANDS IN THIS COUNTRY THAT CAN MAKE A NOISE. AND A LOT OF THEM ARE A WASTE OF NOISE. BEING IN CONTROL OF THAT NOISE IS ANOTHER STORY. MAKE-OVERS OWN THAT NOISE, THE SOUND AND THEIR DECIBELS ARE LEFT DRIPPING FROM THE ROOF WHEN THEY PACK THEIR TWO-PIECE EXPLOSION UP FROM THE FLOOR AFTER A GIG. - ST(E)AK Make-Overs formed when Sticky Antlers broke up. How did the transition from a four--piece to a two-piece influence your approach to songwriting?

Andreas: At the time we tried not to over think it, but it significantly influenced the way we do things. After Sticky Antlers disbanded we decided to book some shows, which gave us a month to prepare and come up with a new sound. There was no predetermined idea behind Make-Overs, Martinique had never really played drums before so it was all new for her. I had this 1962 Hofner 173 guitar running through a valve pre-amp made for bass with my vocals going through a chipmunk sounding echo unit and Martinique was singing through a crummy computer headset. We hammered at it for a bit and probably had the basic idea down within the first or second day and spent the rest of the month writing

material for the first album. Sticky Antlers had a lot of noise and layers of sound, so with Make-Overs I was excited about not having to compete with all that to hear my guitar. We wanted to do something recognisable and relatable – something that was really fun to do live. The Sticky Antlers had a way more antagonistic approach to playing shows – it was about terrorising the audience, not with stage antics but just by doing unorthodox music. With the MakeOvers we stopped trying to do weird music and just let our inability to make normal music take over. It’s almost effortless, although I certainly don’t mean that no work went into it. I write songs everyday and we end up playing most of these songs, others are forgotten or scrapped. I have been writing songs this way since I was 13, playing on some junk guitar (Hawk) and recording it to a cassette or tape of some type. That’s the background we both come from

and enjoy now again, writing whatever we want and having absolutely no one to answer to and recording it by whatever desperate means available. There’s a certain freedom as far as song writing is concerned in Make-Overs that we did not have with Sticky Antlers. We tried to stay away from any hooks or anything remotely catchy with Sticky Antlers. Me and Martinique had all these

never said, “Hey you know these guys? Let’s do that!” ever before. We were aware that people were going to compare us to The White Stripes because of our similar setup, but luckily we ended up sounding nothing like them. Although we both really love the blues, there was just no obvious blues influence in our music. I don’t think that’s something that should be forced – just

other influences outside of the noise scene, mostly old pop and rock music like Buddy Holly, the Kinks, The Troggs and The Zombies. We both also grew up with and still love ‘80s and ‘90s punk music such as The Germs, Black Flag, Butthole Surfers, The Pixies, Nirvana and Babes in Toyland. We’re no good at just aping someone else’s sound, so we have

playing the blues because it’s the thing to do now. Martinique: Andreas and I kept it just the two of us, because simply put: it’s easier. The money isn’t ever split because we’re a couple, so everything goes into one account. Touring and travelling is obviously a breeze, we can share a sleeping

bag if needed, and because I know his plan of action from day to day I can book a show on the spot without first having to confirm with other band members. Often in bands family and time with family is what makes touring hard, but not for us, we don’t have the pressure of leaving a loved one behind. In our previous acts as a two-piece we used electronic beats for rhythm, but we felt that we wanted to be able to perform both the melody of a song as well as the rhythm live on a stage, so I hopped from bass guitar to a drum set. We always wrote songs either together or, someone comes up with an idea and then we work on it further in practice – and because by now we were making music together for so long it wasn’t at all hard to come up with material. The challenge was more for me, Andreas was adamant that we needed to play a few shows as Make-Overs before Damon left and Sticky Antlers came to a final end in 2010. That meant I had one month to not only learn a whole new instrument, but at the same time a new set of songs, and then suddenly in between all that he decided we would record these songs for an album to be released before the end of that year (and it was already August). So we rushed, and it seems like that ethic has stayed with us over the last three years, since then it’s almost always been a rush: more songs, record more albums, get it done, do the next one, tour as much as you can, do another album, when

on tour play every night if possible, make merchandise, and then make some more merchandise. What’s the absolute best thing about living in Pretoria and what’s the music scene there like at the moment? Who else should we be looking out for coming down on tour? M: If The Brown Spiders could tour I would say them, but I am not sure if that’s going to happen soon – I hope it does. Otherwise the best thing about living here is that there are no distractions, no pretty mountain view or beaches and not many clubs or cool places to hang for people like us. We aren’t into a lot of the music here, and we have never felt part of any scene, and we never want to, we have to create our own entertainment, and escaping the city without actually leaving it, is a major bonus. So we make music, we make albums, we make art, we try to play as many shows as we can, and we tour at least once a year to get away. Pretoria is great in the sense that it’s forced us to create, instead of going hiking etc., but we both feel it’s time for a major move. If our plans don’t work for May, we were seriously considering going to Cape Town end of the year – like true Carpet Baggers, as our ancestors were. At one of your recent shows in Cape Town (at Carnival Court) the crowd seemed to feed off your

live energy, making that gig very intense and in-your-face. The band also played on the same level as the crowd. How does the audience influence your live performance? A: We only started setting up in-between the audience once we realised that I was going to need more space. The average stage we were playing on was just big enough for Martinique to set her kit up nice and comfortably and then I would have free reign in front of the stage and on the unused parts of the stage to stumble around on. The other advantage was that we could put all the stage monitors facing the drums since I could now hear the mix on the P.A. Really, it was not for the audience’s amusement but our own comfort. Now that there are actually more people in the audience it’s become a bit more challenging. Amps and mic stands get pushed over, and I tend to step on people’s toes or blindly crash into them. They spill beer and step all over my cables and pedals…it’s all

good fun. By the way, we are in desperate need of sponsors to help with some of the upkeep of equipment… but sadly no one will touch us. Is it important for you to have the art and music overlap? A: Absolutely, but the music comes first and the art is secondary, almost like a by-product of the music. I grew up associating album covers with the music, the artwork on the cover would be your only visual connection to what you hear back then. These days, images are more important than music in the mainstream – it’s all about your looks and visual presentation. The result of YouTube being unleashed on the music video generation. M: Yes, but one can influence the other and vice versa, and not always, so also no, you know what, there are no rules. FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW VISIT: THANK YOU departurequarterly.co.za

MORE FROM THE MAKE OVERS. Centipede-Sing-A-Long - 2012

Your Holiday Shopping Ends Here - 2013

By Natural Selection - 2012

For more details go to www.garagepunk.ning.com/profile/Makeovers

RADIO HEAD PHOTOGRAPHY JACQUI VAN STADEN

WORDS RICK DE LA RAY

ON 10 NOVEMBER, 1994, THE DIGITAL MEDIA START-UP, STARWAVE, DID THE FIRST LIVE INTERNET-ONLY BROADCAST OF THE SEATTLEBASED SPACE-ROCK GROUP, SKY CRIES MARY. SINCE THEN, THE BIRTH OF ONLINE RADIO HAS BEEN GROWING RAPIDLY ON A BRAND NEW PLATFORM. A WEEK AFTER THE SKY CRIES MARY BROADCAST, THE ROLLING STONES FOLLOWED WITH WHAT WAS TO BE THE ‘FIRST MAJOR CYBERSPACE MULTICAST CONCERT’. WHO BETTER TO LOCALLY EMBRACE THIS ONLINE FORMAT THAN THE CAPE TOWN LIVE-MUSIC HUB AND INSTITUTION, THE ASSEMBLY? WE SPOKE TO KEVIN KAI ABOUT THEIR CORNER POCKET STATION INSIDE THE CLUB. Who is Kevin Kai? Can you give us a bit of insight into the name behind the radio station? Originally from JHB, I moved to the UK in 1994 – where I finished my education and started my career. It was in 2009 when I decided to come back to SA to pursue new ventures and projects, particularly in the media industry. One such project was being part of a media con-sortium applying for two new regional FM licences in the Western Cape and Gauteng. Unfor-tunately, it didn’t work out, but what came out of it was the idea to start an online radio station. Can you give us a breakdown on how Assembly Radio started and how long it’s been active? Assembly Radio was always an idea

throughout the years, but it never happened. It was only when myself and my business partner got together to start an online station, we chatted to the owners of The Assembly, who we already knew beforehand. It started as a conversation and then it just became a reality. We agreed that if we were to do an online radio station with The Assembly, we were going to do it properly. There’s a legacy that people are very loyal to, so there’s no room to fuck it up. The first live streaming of a live show happened in 1993 – how old were you then and did you ever see yourself ending up venturing into an online radio station? I was only 13 years old and – to be honest – never knew that anything like this would be pos-sible, but I’ve always been a music and technology 57

geek, so an online radio station is a pretty natural place for me to land up. When you first started gathering contributors and content for the station, how did you go about deciding on what would be featured on the station? We decided quite early on that if Assembly Radio was to be successful, content would be a priority. The difficult task was to cater to our current fanbase, but not alienate potential listen-ers. We had the opportunity to communicate with a much wider spectrum of people than just the club goers.

we’re constantly listening out for how we can improve, but we’ve always let the hosts/DJs have as much control and responsibility over their shows as possible. We would never put a playlist in front of someone and tell them to play it. All of our hosts are passionate about their shows and the music they play. I think this comes across well to the audience; we’re inviting the audience to talk with us and we’re sure not to talk at them, which is what some other stations do... not mentioning names. Is the station currently generating any revenue from the shows or is it receiving any support from outside?

We approached a lot of personalities and influencers to come on board with the station. Al-though predominantly Cape Town-based, we were careful to make sure our appeal was national and even international. Many of the shows are hosted/curated by blogs or personali-ties who are deeply involved in music, street, culture and the creative scenes. They’re all popular in their own right and have their own loyal following, but what we’ve tried to do with Assembly Radio is to draw all these entities in together and be the centre point.

We are generating revenue. We’re working very carefully with sponsors to make sure the lis-tener is not bombarded by ‘hard sell’ advertising. We like to be creative in the campaigns we work on with brands. I think this is the way forward, listeners don’t appreciate adverts every five minutes. I apologise if you’re reading this in a year’s time and we’re playing ads every five minutes.

How do you control the content of the shows?

We have two apps out there. One for the iPhone, which I commissioned and was released at the beginning of the year. The other one is for Android

Quality control is important to us, so

How long has the Assembly Radio app been going? Apparently there’s an interesting story about how it came about?

and the crazy thing about this one is that it was created by one of our fans and released one day without me knowing. There was a moment of freaking out, but then I realised how cool it was that one of our fans took it upon themselves to develop an app for us. What is the involvement with Paul Bothner Music and how did they get involved? Paul Bothner has kindly and generously supplied us with the equipment for running the sta-tion. They’ve been an important partner for us from the start and put a lot of faith into the development of the radio station. A study on online radio in 2007 in

the States showed that about 19% of US consum-ers of 12-and-older were listening to web-based radio stations. How long do you think it will take for it to grow over here? Especially if you see how much music is already exchanged via mobile units over a very large spectrum of the community. It’s a matter of time. Online is the future and that’s not just talking about radio. I guess the big one that everyone is waiting for is online radio in cars, and I know some of the bigger car manufacturers are already on the ball with that one; it’s just a matter of time... FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW VISIT: departurequarterly.co.za THANK YOU

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JOSE FELICIANO ALIVE ALIVE-O José is blind. When he starts playing, the listener can’t help but close their eyes and get swept away like a hippie on a magic carpet ride in a cloud of marijuana smoke. Think of Evan Taylor from the film August Rush mixed up with José González and you get José Feliciano. The music is beautiful, soulful. He plays the best cover of ‘California Dreamin’ by The Mamas & the Papas I have ever heard.

GEORGE THOROGOOD AND THE DESTROYERS I discovered George Thorogood by luck. I was flipping through records and found a band with the word ‘destroyers’ in the title. How can someone who loves rock and blues not like a word like ‘destroyers’ in the title? I bought it without hesitation or even listening to the album. Dirty blues about sums it up. Songs about women, beer, whiskey, cigars and smoke-filled nights of being bad and wearing black. What is there not to like?

ANTON GOOSEN BOY VAN DIE SUBURBS

When the first notes of Anton Goosen’s guitar hit your ear it’s easy to shun it as atypical WTF Afrikaans music. I mean, this is the guy who wrote ‘Ou Ryperd’. His music is not what your twentysomething psychedelic-listening hipster would enjoy. It’s like fishing somewhere on the Weskus, eating waterblommetjiebredie, talking kak, smoking dagga and telling stories around a fire till the wee hours of the morning.

BUDGIE NEVER TURN YOUR BACK ON A FRIEND It all kicks off with a guitar riff that precedes its time. A bassline that makes your body move and drumming that will make any punk band be ashamed. Budgie can only be categorised as timeless. Fast-paced, energetic and catchy with choruses and breakdowns to make the stadium crowds ignite lighters and flare up the darkness only to effortlessly fall straight back into some of the fastest and hardest rock ever since the invention of rock ‘n’ roll.

MAKE OVERS MC1R ON THE 16TH CHROMOSOME I went to watch Make Overs Live in Cape Town towards the end of 2012. It was love on the first night and I went to every other show they played on that tour. I can only describe the ep as a solar flare and lasers fighting with a grizzly bear and a pack of wolves in a beautiful orchestra of nightmares and sweet riffs. Drums, vocals and guitars. Keeping it simple, they play fast and make a noise. But like I said they make beautiful engineered noise.

PAUL SIMON GRACELAND This is one of the best and most controversial albums ever to be released. And let no one tell you otherwise. I can’t capture the magnitude of this hit record in such a small space. Watch the documentary Under African Skies to get the full scope. Africaninfused melodic transparent rock with soul and beat that only the people of Africa can produce and muse an artist with.

RODRIGUEZ COLD FACT Sixto Rodriguez is big again. This time it’s not only in South Africa as during the late ‘80s but globally. Partly due to the Oscar-nominated documentary Searching for Sugar Man, but mostly for the music he makes. Musically, it is sweet on the ear and the lyrics are clean, deep and grab your attention to make you listen. From the first to the last track, this is a flawless record.

MILES AWAY ENDLESS ROADS Fast-paced, hardcore, melodic and positive. They maintain a definite old school influence with hard-break, modern-breakdowns that they have moulded into a style of their own. The first track; a 52s instrumental intro sets you up for what follows while the title tracks ‘Endless Roads’ rips your heart out. As with most/all positive hardcore bands it can become a bit bland, but for the most part it will psych you the fuck up

HAIR OF THE DOG PHOTOGRAPHY LOUIS VORSTER

WORDS RANDY WATSON

WHEN IT COMES TO CONNOISSEURS OF DODGY BARS AND POOL HALLS WHO BETTER THAN LOCAL DRUMMER AND PACEMAKER JACO S VENTER OR “SNAKE” TO SHARE HIS TALL TALES OF CHAOS WITH US. WE ASKED HIM TO DIG DEEP INTO THE BARREL OF HIS MEMORY BANKS AND RECALL A FEW STORIES OF SOME OF HIS FAVOURITE WATERING HOLES AROUND THE COUNTRY. Let’s start this thing straight off the bat. I see that Fokof has a10-year reunion going on at the moment. Who would you say remembers the least out of all of you guys? I think all of us are pretty hazy on different times and details, BUT collectively we’re an elephant built from memory sticks. It also helps that other people have documented the outlines of our band’s history. Now you have seen more bars, dives and poolhalls around the country than most of us. What makes a place memorable? For good memories all you need is good tunes and friendly owners that give you drinks on the house. For bad memories, feces in the urinal and fights will do the trick. You must have dealt with a lot of dodgy club owners and tour organisers. Who would you say was

the dodgiest out of all of them? We’ve learned over the years how to spot dodgy deals/promoters but a couple of years ago there was a guy in Rustenburg who didn’t want to pay for the show because he was a tik-smoking piece of shit. He changed his phone number a whole bunch of times and when our label owner wanted to sue him the tikhead threatened to kill us. Needless to say we never got that cash. You once jumped out of a moving van and busted your arm pretty badly. Was there a moment of doubt afterwards where you thought: “This is it, I’m not going to be able to play ever in my life again”? I’m a pretty positive guy and was very determined to get my arm back into shape but I must admit that if it wasn’t for the second operation I got from a super-super-specialist I probably still wouldn’t have been 79

able to close my fly. The first guy’s verdict was that I shouldn’t even be thinking of touching a drumstick for at least three years. I took that as a challenge and played OppiKoppi’s main stage six months later. How different would your life have been if you hadn’t been able to play drums after that incident? Do you think you would have only been remembered as Fokofpolisiekar’s first drummer, the one that jumped out of the moving van…? What direction do you think your life would have taken?

party with yourself – let’s say about eight years ago when the whole Fokof ball really started rolling – do you think you would be able to keep up with yourself? Ohhh! I’ll destroy the young me. I’ve got better at drinking over the years. Some people call me Booze Fordyce. Ho-ho! When would you say you guys were the most out of control? Probably around the time we took the break from playing in 2007.

Probably something like that. I actually have no idea where I would have been now. Probably doing something in video or photography.

Was there a time where you guys ever sat down as a band and said: “Ok, guys, we are getting a bit out of hand here…”?

How did you end up choosing the drums as your instrument of choice and were there any drummers that inspired you when you first started?

Not that I can remember.

I played guitar in a band in high school with Johnny (FPK), Jax Panik and the designer Merwe Marchand le Roux and we kicked our drummer out because he wasn’t as committed as we were. We had another guy who was going to take his place but he ditched us. So I had to learn to play the drums. The drums are super fun to play but travelling with all the gear is such a bitch – that’s predominately why I play a very simple setup. If you could go back in time and

At what stage of the game did you realise that Fokof was really making an impact on South Africa? Did it sink in at the time or was there no time to think? If there ever was a time, it must have been after we took the break in 2007 for six months. We started playing again and then all of a sudden we were playing bigger capacity places and it was as if we never left and our fans had just multiplied. Which show or event stands out the most for you over the last ten years?

There were many great shows over the years but last year’s OppiKoppi festival was awesome. We played the midnight slot and there were no other bands playing at the same time. We basically had the whole 20 000-capacity festival watching us. It was electric. aKING has evolved into quite a force of its own now and has proved to be very successful. Do

you see a time where all the members of Fokof are going to call it a day and permanently move into their separate ventures? Possibly. You never know. Certainty isn’t a factor in music. We’ll do Fokof as long as we enjoy doing it.

FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW VISIT: departurequarterly.co.za THANK YOU

TOP 5 FAVOURITE BARS IN SOUTH AFRICA:

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GIN - JHB “For a small place it packs a big party.”

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SGT PEPPERS - CT “Good Pizza in the day and the only place where you can buy ‘Long flying Canadian duck-fucks’ at night.”

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GREAT DANE - JHB “Late night fun in Jozi-Town.”

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THE SHACK - CT “If you’re going out in Cape Town you’re gonna end up there, whether you like it or not.”

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LUCKY RODRIGO - PT “Great food and you can take your own drink.”

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PERSONAL FAVOURITES.

KEVIN ‘SPANKY’ LONG PHOTOGRAPHY DAN LEVI

WORDS RICK DE LA RAY

“WE JUST CAME BACK FROM A THREE-DAY SAFARI. THAT’S GOT TO TAKE THE CAKE MAN. IT’S JUST SOMETHING THAT I HAD TO DO BEFORE I CROAK.” You kind of flew in below the radar, what are you doing here and how long are you here for? I’m here with my wife on a sort of belated honeymoon. She is from Cape Town so we are hanging with friends and family. I’m going to be here for a month in total. Have you been skating at all while you are here or is it more just time to hang out for a while and give the bones a rest? I haven’t been skating much at all so far. I will definitely get some skating in before I leave but we have been SO fucking busy. There is just too much to see and do in this city. Next time we might need more than a month. But it’s nice to give the bones a rest. This is the first time I have been on vacation overseas without any skating obligations in over ten years. I must admit I’m dying to skate now. Tell us more about ‘The Goat’ The Goat is our band. Just a bunch of skateboarders who don’t really know how to play their instruments very well and are playing skate rock.

It’s myself, Andrew Reynolds, Atiba Jefferson, Beagle and Shane Heyl. We’ve been playing shows for a few years. I like to describe it as a novelty act. Like a bad joke at a dinner party. It’s a hell of a lot of fun though. What would you say is the worst and the best place that skating has taken you during your travels over the years? The worst would probably have to be any one of the hundreds of mall parking-lot demos that we’ve done in the goddamn armpit of Middle America. The best is a tough one... So many trips have had their unique charm. Off the top of my head I would say Cappadocia, Turkey. I don’t know, I feel extremely fucking fortunate that skateboarding has taken me around the world. Where does your nickname ‘SPANKY’ originate from? Spanky was a little fat kid in that old show The Little Rascals. Someone just started calling me Spanky and it stuck. One of those strange things, I guess. FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW VISIT: departurequarterly.co.za THANK YOU

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