CONTENTS Proud Supporters of SA Music!
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From The Editor Better Red than Ded - New York City - The Psychedelic Sno-Globe Chickenfoot And The Heavy Stomp Chickenfoot And The Heavy Stomp Rocking The Daisies Megadeth: Lucking Number Thirteen Megadeth: Lucking Number Thirteen The Black Hotels: We're Not Up To International Standards jezebel's VPL: with Roxy Robin - Blues bop, baby! The Rescu: Everybody Wants To Live In Hollywood The Rescu: Everybody Wants To Live In Hollywood In Flames: Ready To Rock South Africa Legends Of SA Music: Carlo Mombelli Van Coke Cartel: The New Sun Rise Over Belville Rock City Van Coke Cartel: The New Sun Rise Over Belville Rock City Inside The Machine: Music News Inside The Machine: Music News Lark - Invocation Age Dear Reader New Albums New Albums Game Reviews Venue Guide & Live Events Cover photo: LeAnn Mueller Venue Guide & Live Events
Published & Distributed by: Coalition : Tel: (021) 913 8423 | Fax: 086 544 1361 info@museonline.co.za | www.museonline.co.za Magazine Publishers: David McKinley, Thomas Whitebread Managing Editor: David McKinley - dave@museonline.co.za Music Editor: Dave Mac - dave@museonline.co.za Sales Director: Thomas Whitebread - thomas@museonline.co.za Contributors: Dave Mac, Thomas Whitebread, Terri Love, Mary Honeychild, Mickdotcom, Paul Blom, Alan Ratcliffe, Alistair Andrews, Kurt Slabbert, Damien Albetto, jezebel, James Rose-Mathew, Jonathan Pike, Greg Bester, Chantall Nortjé, Sergio Pereira, Nicolai Roos, Johann Smith, Eliza Day, David Chislett, Jenny Furness and Stu Shapiro.
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MUSE Magazine 2012
muse | three
EDITION 18 DEC’11 - MAR‘12
r... newslette Join ouermail the word : o.za
Simply @museonline.c ews in o ‘j ’ to n
Y
es I know it’s a bit of a cliché but what else do I talk about except... well its party season, festive season, the holidays (or is that holy daze?), Xmas or whatever you wish to call this time of the year. I love it; mainly since we take a break but also ‘cos there is always a sense of craziness in the air. Okay sure this often boils over into road rage and mass last minute shopping in malls and general hysteria over gifts, and way too much drunkenness but other than that... what a groovy time of the year December and January are. If you’re a gigging musician or in a band this should be a busy period for you or paradoxically it’s more the bigger bands and/or artists that play corporate gigs that are super busy I guess. For the up and comers still nurturing and developing a following, the gigs will no doubt remain few and far between. Interestingly enough John Boyd, guitarist/vocalist from The Black Hotels, interviewed on P14 makes the point that South African bands are not practiced enough to match the internationals. They’ve just come off a support gig to Kings of Leon, so I’m guessing this is where this stems from. But he has a point and it’s a valid one. You can only play Joburg, Durban and Cape Town a certain amount of times a year, add in an occasional East Coast tour, maybe, but that really is it! The point he makes is that in Europe you gig so much that your band will just be so much more practiced. A general lack of decent venues is always cited as the main problem but it’s not that simple. If there was a bigger demand there would be more Live venues, trust me. The one’s that do exist – the long standing ones – face their fair share of tough times to keep the place full on a regular basis, no mean feat considering the fickleness of the NOW! Generation. Actually this should be called the i generation and not just because some dude with the surname Jobs thought of it first. This really is the i generation – Smartphones, Facebook, Twitter, heck even the reality TV shows from Jersey Shore to Kardashians et al... it’s all i, i , i. Nu-skool media and entertainment may sell you the concept that it’s all about choice and about being able to decide for oneself but really it’s all just an indulgent ‘iFest.’ Good or bad? I dunno but it does seem that this generation of youth have way more options than ever before, but somehow have less since there is just a continued bombardment to the senses that nothing ever sticks around long enough to matter. Sorry, I don’t know where that all came from. My fingers have a mind of their own right now... the brain’s not even keeping up. Anyway we have lasted. 2012 will be our 4th year for Muse Magazine and we ain’t going anywhere in a hurry... except up, up and up. Look out for bigger, better things next year. We have plans hatching. Yes we do. Or is that ‘Yes we can!’ So guys & gals, you all have yourselves a spectacular festive season. Indulge, indulge, indulge. You deserve it. Just stay safe and use common sense. I won’t tell you not to get too ripped ‘cos then I’ll sound like your dad and that just won’t fly with me. Enjoy. Dave Mac PS. Next edition will only be out in April ‘12 so if you can’t find a copy after this one it’s not ‘cos we’ve gone away; we’re just hibernating.
Holy Daze EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTIONS: Feature Writers and Columnists Mickdotcom – Features Writer Strange he may be at times but that’s why we love him so. Mick has an extraordinary talent with words and an even more extraordinary taste in music. He brings a much needed eccentric edge to MUSE. jezebel Wordsmith and worldwide wanderer, jezebel now makes her home between the lines, writing for print and pixel. She enjoys dissecting the arts and their contribution to (sub)culture(s) as well as encouraging critical inquiry into everyday existence. www.wwwordup.blogspot.com / www.facebook.com/jezebellll
jezebel © Jonx Pillemer
muse | four
EDITOR’S NOTE
James Rose-Mathew Forever roving around UK and Europe, the restless James has an eye for a good story and an ear for good music. Whether he attends a massive electronic outdoor festival, or the heaviest of heavy metal shows, you can be sure James manages to somehow balance his mind between having the party of his life and actually getting the story. Hugely passionate and equally adept we always look forward to his next venture abroad as he give us the lows and highs of some of world’s best indie artists around today. Kurt Slabbert – Play Better Guitar Kurt completed his studies at the Guitar Institute in London in 2003, and moved back to SA to take up a teaching post at COPA. He also runs his own production company called Bluenoise productions that writes for radio and television. He currently plays for Sama nominated band, Jam, on Tuesdays and does various live sessions and studio work. Kurt endorses line 6 gear. Check out www.bluenoise.co.za and www.realguitar.co.za Alistair Andrews - Play Better Bass Alistair is a professional bass player, music technologist and producer. He specialises in 6 and 12 string bass (preferably fretless). He has performed with international greats such as Phil Driscol, Efrain Toro, Alvin Dyers, Winston Mankunku, Merton Barrow, Errol Dyers, Robbie Jansen, Harold Jephta and many more. He also lectures music technology with one of Africa's top Jazz and African music programs at The University of Cape Town. Alistair endorses WARWICK Basses and strings, MEC pickups, SWR amplification and DIGITECH effects. He also runs the high-tech & digital section at Paul Bothner Music. Http://www.alistair.co.za Jonathan Pike - Your Private Universe Jonathan currently works as an Audio engineer and instructor at Cape Audio College. He has also in the past managed a theatre and worked as a Lighting and Sound engineer at the University of Kwazulu Natal Pietermaritzburg. Alan Ratcliffe - Software Reviews & Tutorials Alan is the author of the Electric Guitar Handbook and is busy writing a book entitled Hotrod Your Electric Guitar. Find out more about him at www.ratcliffe.co.za or discuss all things guitar with him at www.guitarforum.co.za
muse | six
Better Red than Ded
COLUMNIST By Eliza Day Photo: Valentine Celliers
New York City: The Psychedelic Sno-Globe
I
n one of my favourite stories there is a quote from the White Queen which goes, “It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards”. What she was telling Alice was that using your imagination to anticipate the future is just as important as the memories you make and can recall. It’s all part of the process of experience and conjuring up themes and patterns without even noticing you are doing so, and can open tiny doors to a new dimension of fun. So, to get to the point, knowing that I would be off to New York City and to see Spindrift and The Black Angels gave me lots of day dream ammunition. I set about drenching each day leading up to the trip in Big Apple flavours by watching Chelsea Girls and Gossip Girl, looking at pictures of Audrey Hepburn and Bianca Jagger, reading books about little girls getting lost and listening to lots of Velvet Underground and Sonic Youth. With a pocket full of these kinds of big ideas, it doesn’t matter what you do and where you go because it’s all going to be big, bright and exciting no matter what. I’m proud to say that I spent the whole of that week in the world’s most electric city under the influence of many
NYC clichés, ghosts and dreams whilst gently yet consistently inebriated thanks to the free Moet and Godiva chocolate. New York is as one would imagine, the most inspiring man made environment a creative soul could wish to be swallowed up in. Being strung out on champagne and sugar always helps too. The night my brother and I went out into the bitter cold streets, black vampires huddled against the sides of skyscrapers under a glassy glaze of the city’s first snow. We were dressed to kill and ignorant enough to be killed yet we had a gig we were squeaking to see and a subway full of Halloween vamps and blithering tramps to conquer. The show was at the Williamsburg Music Hall in Brooklyn. We ran all the way from the underground turnstile to the entrance where musically spoilt teenagers were hanging around waiting to be let inside. Being young and wild in that city is a never ending joy ride of amazing party after party. Living there would give me a nose bleed. I have to admit. Spindrift are to sum it up, the soundtrack to a Western Tarantino film. It’s a psychedelic kick in the dust of empty Indian graves stained with lysergic acid diethylamide. Kirpatrick Thomas, vocalist and guitarist is a stand
The Black Angels and cowboys, vampires and fairy tales. Eliza Day goes to the Big City. up gentleman and his band put on a stand out show. And what were we saying earlier about synchronicity? Spindrift is one of the spin off bands behind the creative explosion that came out of the insanity that was The Brian Jonestown Massacre. So is Black Rebel Motor Cycle Club who confirmed their presence at Synergy during my flight home to SA. A great background story to that group of musicians to check out if ya’ll ever get the chance. The Black Angels put on a sensational show that sounded perfect as a performance and may I just say that being right on top of the speaker in the front row was a damn good choice. I also got to see Christian Bland do some of the sickest guitar work out there. The show resonated kaleidoscopic colour that pulled you down, down, down and my brother said at one point I fell asleep while standing up. What a trip in every sense of the word. That all being said, there’s no place like home as was so apparent to me the second I walked into a local gig recently. The day I see people actually dancing at a show and having a similar kind of hedonistic fun that they aspire to in all their idols, I’ll eat your ironic knitted beanie.
muse | eight
COVER FEATURE By Alt. Guy Photo: Jon Hill
Chickenfoot and the heavy stomp: a Supergroup unleashes air-guitar heaven
G
ood ol' fashioned RAWK.
What do Van Halen, The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Joe Satriani have in common? Chickenfoot, the stomp-laden new supergroup consisting of the Peppers' backbone, latterday Van Halen's vocal swagger, and Joe Satriani's seismic fretboard, answer that question with a better one - What do Van Halen, The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Joe Satriani have in combination? Thunderpummeling drums, arena-sized vocal chords, and skull frying guitar is what. In a world where music has become increasing nuanced and cross-pollinated, where journos need musicological degrees to properly dissect and appreciate the detailed musical genealogy involved in a given track, Chickenfoot take us back to refreshingly simpler times. Back to the days of molten riffs and sheer amplification and skull crushing guitar solos and triumphantly howled vocals. Take Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony of Van Halen, mix in a healthy dose of Chad Smith (Chili Peppers), and round off with otherworldly guitarist Joe Satriani, and things are bound to go monumental.
Super though they kinda inevitably are, the band dismiss being labeled as such. In fact, they started out just jamming together, and the chemistry took it from there. Recalls vocalist Sammy Hagar: “It started off with me, Michael and Chad jamming at my club - Cabo Wabo - in Mexico. Then people started asking us when we were going to tour, make a record etc. So I said if we’re going to do this properly then we’re going to have to get a guitarist, let’s talk to Joe [Satriani]. As far as I’m concerned he’s the best guitarist in the world.” Satriani, the guy who singlehandedly (or, rather, many-fingeredly) set the guitar world alight in the late 80's with the notion of solo, instrumental Rock guitar, has always seemed a bit too big, too vast, to fit into a group, so it took a special bunch to measure up. Now that such a band exists, it's super cool to hear Satchmo in the more organic environment of an actual Rock band. And this organic, live-entity feel is something he apparently very much enjoys, "We write and record all together. All of the recordings are done without click tracks or sequences. We're basically making live recordings and overdubbing on top of that. Chickenfoot is an organic thing, and
it's so important we make that a hallmark of the recordings. That chemistry is always a part of what people hear. As I was writing for the second record, I wanted to take advantage of that as much as I could and write things that make me meld into the drums and bass and be part of a bigger unit rather than just play big guitar riffs and tell the guys to play a straight rhythm behind me. I never wanted to do that! I thought Sam [Hagar] and I should get together on our parts so sometimes we're singing and playing the same thing." Peppers drummer Chad Smith has always been the rocking energy behind The Chili's funk, and secretly prefers everything louder and rockier, he compares the energy between the bands; "It's two completely different things. With the Chili Peppers, we write songs for a year and record for five months. With Chickenfoot, Joe [Satriani] sends demos around to people and Mike [Anthony] and I come up from L.A. and we just bang it out in a couple of weekends. It's real quick and just a different, real spontaneous energy thing that happens with the Chickenfoot thing. The Chili Peppers are like a long marriage - and then Chickenfoot is kind of like my mistress."
muse | nine
“...I said if we’re going to do this properly then we’re going to have to get a guitarist, let’s talk to Joe [Satriani]. As far as I’m concerned he’s the best guitarist in the world.”
Hanging heavy. Having been together for two years now, Satriani notes the increased tightness of the band, and the fact that they have become closer musically, making their new release, 'III', a more natural album than their debut; Hagar going as far as to call it "the best record I've ever made". No light claim! Bassist Michael Anthony sums up the energy that surrounded recording III, "...and Sammy was already singing and going ‘Yeah-yeah-yeah’ for the chorus I’ll be going ‘I don’t wanna go there’ and I was like going ‘oh my God, that was just blowing me away right there.’ It wasn’t long after that where Joe, he just started coming up with a bunch of ideas. Of course he put them down on rough demo form and sends them out to Chad, Sammy and myself and this is the kind of guy that Joe is, he’s all ‘well, you know, don’t be afraid to tell me that they all suck or you only like one or two of them or whatever.’ And I’m going, I’ve got like these six or seven songs, something like that. ‘First one, great, second one, oh yeah, that’s great, third one, oh that’s great’ (laughs)."
Even the band's name, in a goofy way, underscores their pleasantly tongue-in-cheek, laid back attitude. While the term 'chickenfoot' is a derogatory reference to hippies and hippydom (which they, slyly, embrace), a rip-off of the peace sign, it started out as a joke, an unlikely name for a band of such magnitude, so they decided to keep it, proving that Heavy can be Light too! Oh, and talking about tongues and cheeks, Mr. Hagar explains the enigma behind naming their 2nd album, III. "We're calling the album Chickenfoot III because it's so good, the songs are so tight, it's like we jumped right past having to make a second record. We've established a real trust, Joe and I, we truly bring out the best in one another, and that spreads to the whole band." Taking us back to the days when Rock was FUN, a head-banging soundtrack to long, crazy nights and howling at the moon, 'III' is a blast of fresh air. The rubber hits the tarmac squealing with opener Last Temptation, basically setting fire to the road. Satriani and Hagar own this album, and it's obvious they've got a musical connection going. From
COVER FEATURE
good ol' fashion stompers like Up Next (Satriani in 'you can pick up your jaw from the floor now', axe-slinging mode) and Big Foot (the latter already tearing it up on YouTube), to more searching ventures like Come Closer and Different Devil, Chickenfoot's formula is an emotional, rather than musical one. And it works. Check out samples of their new album on your Smartphone by scanning this tag or go to museonline.co.za on your PC, MAC or tablet.
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muse | twelve
FEATURE
By Sergio Pereira
Lucky Number 13: Merging the Past and Present
T
he masters of metal, Megadeth, are back with their thirteenth studio album titled – wait for it – TH1RT3EN. Despite the MXit spelling of the album title (it’s still a hundred times better than Loutallica’s pathetically named – and wrist-gnawingly boring – Lulu), this new sonic offering crushes with the same sort of venom as Megadeth releases of the past – maybe it’s also because TH1RT3EN consists of older material, which Dave Mustaine had written eons ago. Drummer Shawn Drover explains why the band decided to revisit the vault. “What happened with this was we were talking about ideas for the new record, and Dave [Mustaine] brought up the idea of “What do you think about us doing Millennium of the Blind and New World Order?”; they were recorded as demos years ago and were released on the Youthanasia remaster, just as a couple of bonus songs that were laying around in the vault somewhere. I really had to back for it because I think the songs kick ass and were never really recorded properly. I thought if we go in there and re-record the songs and make them sound killer, a
lot of fans will dig it, because – obviously they’re fans of our songs – but they’re really good songs as well. And I thought it was a unique idea for us to do something like that, as it’s not something we’ve really done a whole lot, to be honest. Those songs kick ass; that’s the long and short of it; we’d never try rerecord a couple of songs that suck, you know what I mean?”
Surprise! There’s no surprise! Indisputably, the Megadeth army will agree the band have never written songs that suck, but what about the new material? Did the band decide to surprise their fan base by doing something completely left-field? “I don’t think so. We’re not trying to reinvent the wheel here. I think we recorded another batch of metal tunes, knowing what our fans and ourselves ultimately want to hear,” Drover says. “There’s a mix on the record: there’s fast tunes, there’s some slower tunes, there’s mid-tempo tunes. It’s a good collection of heavy metal songs. That’s really it. We never really go into studio with any preconceived notions of what we’re trying to do; we just know we got to write a bunch of new metal songs, or, in this case, a couple of old metal songs [which] were included
on the record. I don’t think there’s anything on there really that is that musically different that fans are going to go, ‘Oh my God, why’d they record that kind of music?’ At the end of the day, they’re all metal songs.”
Unlucky 13 Mustaine has been very vocal about how the number 13 started appearing everywhere and the odd occurrences around the recording of the album, which included car problems, stuff disappearing and even an employee of his going to jail. Undoubtedly, this added to the mystique and allure of the album’s title being a traditionally unlucky number, but Drover says that nothing weird occurred until after he finished recording his drum parts, which were recorded first, prompting many to believe it could’ve all just been a publicity stunt instigated by Mustaine himself. “I had nothing but positive experiences with this record. It was an extremely fun record and seamless; just a real good time all along,” Drover says. “But after I left, Dave mentioned that 13 kept popping up in weird places and a couple things that happened in studio and whatever. But nothing bad happened to me. I’m also not superstitious at all.”
muse | thirteen
“Maybe the thirteenth time will be a charm …”
Om major label to independent? Megadeth might be sticking to what they know in terms of how they write their tunes, but they could likely be changing their business approach in the future, because TH1RT3EN is the band’s final album on their current record label, Roadrunner Records. Mustaine has been quoted as saying that the band might be going the independent route, but Drover insists that the future is uncertain. “No, we haven’t sat down at all about that. We’re in the “now” right now. We’re focused on this record, and the subsequent world tour that we’re going to do way into 2012 – and God knows how long we’re gonna be on tour for this record – we usually go out for about a year-and-a-half for any record we do, so we haven’t really sat down and thought about anything beyond this tour that’s coming up.” Drover also dives into the controversial issue of piracy, and how it will likely shape the band’s final decision. “Who knows what can happen two years from now? Maybe some kind of new format will come out, or they’ll resolve this whole crazy issue of definitive piracy, which is continuing to cripple the industry. The problem is that too many
people are stealing the music that it has affected every facet of the industry: recording budget, touring budget, bands getting dropped because they’ve only sold x amounts of records…With that said, some bands are taking it upon themselves to release it on their own. Whether we’ll do that or not, I have no idea, to be honest with you.”
Megadeth in South Africa? Albums aside, Drover is excited that the band will be on the road for a year-and-ahalf, which will also see them headline the returning Gigantour in 2012 and a subsequent world tour. “For me, it’s always fun to go somewhere new. We’ve never been down to South Africa, have we?” Nope, Shawn, we don’t recall Megadeth ever having played in South Africa. “Right. Obviously it would be great to come down and see where you guys are at, but that’s something I have no control over. That’s part of the business aspect of it with promoters down in South Africa and that whole kind of thing – that’s something I’m not even involved in. Ultimately, I think that would be a great thing if we could go down there, but we’ll just have to see what happens. But that’s always the fun thing
FEATURE
for me just to explore and go to different, new countries we haven’t been to before. Hopefully that’ll happen with you guys as well.” Who knows, maybe the thirteenth time will be a charm for the local audiences to see the thrashers live and kicking. It’s about bloody time that Mustaine and his merry men get down here! For more information on Megadeth, go to www.megadeth.com. Checkout their latest video here; Scan this tag on your Smartphone or go to www.museonline.co.za
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muse | fourteen
FEATURE
By Sergio Pereira
“Good songs will get you respect, recognition and an audience …”
The Black Hotels: We’re not up to International Standards!
W
hile some bands take 5 years to recover from their first big hangover, J o h a n n e s b u r g alternative rockers The Black Hotels have taken the last half-decade to establish themselves as a credible force in the South African music industry, touring the country up and down, having their singles chart on national radio stations, and even being compared to the likes of Arcade Fire, REM and Interpol.
Gaining the plaudits Just recently, they opened up for US sloshers (oops, I meant to say rockers. Or did I?) Kings of Leon on their South African tour. In fact, some even said that the local band seemed to capture the imagination of the crowds more than the international headliners. “It’s a huge compliment,” frontman John Boyd says. “If that’s the way people feel, that’s a good thing. I sometimes feel that South African bands aren’t always up to the standard of international acts. I think we try make out we’re a lot better than what we actually are. As soon as you’re on a circuit with top international bands, you realise why they’re where they are, [because] they rehearse, they’re tight, their songs are together, their musicianship is together... so, if people are saying that, it’s a great compliment… [but] I say that about ourselves, as well, I often don’t think The Black Hotels are up to scratch i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y, o r t o c o m p e t e internationally.”
Not quite up to scratch At this moment, I’m left slightly flabbergasted by John’s brutal honesty. I mean, really, a South African musician who doesn’t have his head up his own ass and thinks his band is beyond cool, due to every Cape Town blogger professing their love for their “amazballs” music in a badly written post? This surprises me. John explains in a winded conversation how he has seen bands like The Beats and New Model Army perform live, and how they just have a powerful presence on stage, and he isn’t sure that many South African bands measure up to that. Undoubtedly, I decide to probe, and ask him why he thinks The Black Hotels aren’t at that level and what he thinks they need to do to reach it. “I think we need to write better songs. We need to be a lot tighter when we perform. We need to play more,” John says. “When you’re in America or Europe, you have a massive circuit. You can be busy all the time as a band. You can be playing and playing and playing. Whereas in South Africa, our circuit is very small. You basically have Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town; you got a couple of things in between – but how many times are you going to play in Jo’burg a year? 15? 20? It’s too many times [for one city], I think. We don’t play enough. We’re not busy enough. If bands are really serious about their music [and want to make a living off of it] – especially if you’re an alternative band – you’ll need to make an effort to move to England or America, and find an agent, book
shows, get on the road, playing and playing and building up a following.”
Local love Whilst John is obviously looking for The Black Hotels to improve, the local folks already seem to be digging the band’s latest offering, Honey Badger, which has been described as an all-round great effort – even if it was a departure from the sound of their debut album, Films for the Next Century. “It was a natural progression. Matthew [Fink] played a more prominent role on this album; as it was a lot more synth-driven. But we’re also influenced by many different kinds of music - anything from soul to reggae to punk to alternative ‘80s - so, the idea is that you don’t really want to make the same record over and over; you want to try new things. So, with that, we just thought let’s see what happens if we push the synthesiser a bit more and that’s what came out,” explains John. In closing, I ask him what the key things are that he learnt from the Kings of Leon experience, as they prepare to write a new album in 2012. “Good songs will get you respect, recognition and an audience. The Black Hotels do this [perform and write], first and foremost, because we love playing music, but we always want to improve.” For more info on The Black Hotels, please visit www.blackhotels.co.za.
jezebel’s VPL
muse | sixteen
COLUMNIST words © jezebel photo © jezebel
S
he lives on the wrong side of the fence, this wayward child, with a nest of hair and insolent eyes. She drags her speakers around the house like legs on a dead thing and shoots at will…with orange plastic bullets, admittedly. This little birdy is more trickster than bandit, believe me. On stage you’re forced to take Roxy Robin seriously – her absolute ease, infectious charm and yogic voice leave shivers and grins in her midst. Her fledgling band, The Red Robins, produces trotting amber song lines and crispy, swinging disco folk. She dabbles in trouble on the side with the freak folk act, Johannine. And we know trouble cannot be quantified, but can be analysed and definitely adored. That’s why Roxy’s sitting on the carpet in front of me, armed with uncovered legs and a naked smile.
Is our history influencing music in Cape Town today? Well, I think the music industry is taking other peoples’ history from other people’s cultures and using it as inspiration; Europe, America… What about us? Our history is ours, but.... You only know about your peoples’ music. Apartheid legacy. Do we have a chance at cross pollination now that it’s legal to be yourself? Blending sounds from different settings in South Africa, I mean? It’s hard; I can only speak for myself, as a young artist. All I’ve heard coming from here is commercial music Freshlyground, The Parlotones - and the independent rock scene. Our folk music is Afrikaans boere musiek, and that’s not the music I want to be making.
Blues bop, baby!
Watch out, Suburbia. The girl next door is no more.
jezebel: Who are we listening to? Roxy: Alex, from Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. Truth? Yeah. I dare you to decode VPL. Jezebel is a Very Pretty Lady. [Grins] You’re a very pretty lady. You lie. I lie and you tell the truth? Tell me the truth about love, then. Oh god. Love is everything. Music is love. [now she’s on the bench] That’s kinda twee. I don’t care. But you care about Johannine. Tell me? At the moment it’s a project with me, Jonathan Velthuysen (Stepdog) and Beitel van der Merwe (Zinkplaat). Um.
All the songs are written by Jon, and I came into the project after it had been going for about a year. For now I’m backing singer and occasional melodica player. But we’re going to be working together a lot in the future. I like that he’s taking me under his wing. I’ve learnt more working with him than I ever have. He is one of the more able contemporary musicians. Why are you holding a gun? I like guns. [shoots an orange. Point blank] You should get a katty. Like scout. In To Kill A Mockingbird. [kicks the orange]. If I were to have a daughter, I’d name her Scout. But I doubt I’ll have a daughter. [aims at herself in the mirror. Shoots. Russian Roulette. Sighs.] Any other heroes? Jezebel! Doesn’t count. My grandmother. She’s the most amazing woman I know. She’s had cancer about five times and written a book – a very, very big book about our history.
What is? Music from the soul. Currently, there’s a strong blues element in your material. Which is American? Which is African? Explain? I was born listening to the blues. My family is the Blues Broers. Ah, Albert et al. Did you take singing lessons? Ever? No. I want to. No. I don’t. Um. [aims gun under her chin. Fires. Saved again.] Roxy, what will save us from love? We don’t need to be saved from love. But you sing about it a lot. I don’t sing about love. I sing about lust. I sing through love. You’re so brilliant. Am I. * Hey there, Mister (or sister), The Red Robins have a Face, and I recommend you Google Johannine, too. Two Ns.
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muse | twenty
FEATURE
THE RESCU
By Eliza Day
Everybody wants to live in Hollywood...
C
hatting to the boys from The Rescu was certainly one of the more refreshing band interactions I’ve ever had. While I may have hidden a smile when vocalist, Mike dropped ‘BS’ into a sentence instead of actually cursing, it was quite cool to not be dowsed in cynical, achingly hip conflicted ranting for once. Perhaps it’s because these guys are a little older or because they aren’t desperately trying to live up to their American and European rock star idols, which as a South African musician, let’s face it, is not gonna happen. Probably cos, you know, you’re not from there. In fact band members, Mike, Graham and Rusti actually echoed a lot of my own thoughts on the South African music scene: It’s great at looking the part and talking the talk but no one actually makes it as a rock star with a backdrop of the Hollywood Hills. There is a lack of spirit in the young adult generation in South Africa as a collective. The wild, artistic antics of the real rock stars from the past and the current guts and glass gutzpa across the water takes balls and pride. Instead of slagging off The Parlotones who actually sell records, The Rescu is chuffed for them and has big plans of their own. Whereas most of South Africa has the weird concept that consuming American culture from the comfort of our
couches is going to make us famous, The Rescu are not similarly disillusioned. They’re actually doing something about being a band instead of ripping V’s into their T-shirts and having wet-look photo shoots before they’ve pressed an album. You know who I’m talking about. The Rescu have done a spectacular amount of work since their beginnings in 2010 to include an album, decent national radio play, a video on MK and a growing audience that has no trouble filling up Grand West. Gathered around a table at Marshall Music where we talked shop, literally as this is where they all work, Mike Vaughan - guitarist and vocalist - is perfectly at ease in his surroundings as he tells me how the band all came together; “It was when Rusti, our drummer, stepped in to help us out last minute on a gig that we realised that this thing could actually work. Something special happened. We kind of looked at each other after the show and decided maybe we shouldn’t pack it all in and to keep going.” This had never been the intention but they saw this as their chance and took it. Mike and Graham reminisce about how they used to see all the dudes coming into Marshall to jam in the studio that Rusti built and wondered when it would be their turn. Rusti tells how they took a Zeppelin-like turn into De Doorns to record, “We set up our gear, wrote songs and hung out.” Mike chimes in, “Lots of male bonding, running around naked and braaing boerewors. You know.”
An awkward silence ensues as the other two look at him shiftily and I notice a slight blush from the vocalist before we move on laughing. Dragging my eyes around all the pretty instruments in the room I ask them about at what level of gear heads they are. Their eyes glitter as a rock n roll junky’s should. “I have the coolest gear by far,” jokes Mike trying to make a comeback from his earlier fall from grace. Then he and Graham get serious as they go on to explain, “We’ve been playing for a number of years so we pretty much have the best gear in the world.” I laugh and he tells me it really is the bee’s knees. Cute! Graham mentions how they all are avid collectors of instruments whilst Mike gets wistful talking about the smell of a Les Paul. Says Graham, “Mike and I are always scouting for great deals and checking out who’s got what... I play a Gibson, Mike a Gibson too and a Fender and Rusti’s got DW Collectors Series drums and we’ve a got a few other nice things.” Vaughan agrees and tells us about vintage guitars and a rare peddle from the 80’s called the Akai Deep Impact which he waited for three and a half years to nab on EBay. In one short year these dudes have already managed to put together a debut album which is self-titled and came out in August. For them, as Vaughan explains, it was an organic process, “We wanted to put out some good music because we didn’t wanna die without having put out a decent album.” Aw, I like that.
muse | twenty one
FEATURE
Graham goes on to explain how they took their time on the project so as to keep a neutral viewpoint and produced it themselves without some record label breathing down their necks. They got their act together all on their own steam which they say carries some weight around here. Especially since the festival season is upon us and I imagine it’s great to have an audience who are acquainted with whom the foggiest your band is. I think how ridiculous it is when bands whisper that they want to stay underground in South Africa. Um, you actually have to have an underground for that to happen and we aren’t quite there. Let’s hear it for being heard first maybe? We come to the end of our chat when I ask them what South African bands they appreciate at the moment. Graham mentions the Duke Royals and Mike talks about Prime Circle, one of the most successful South African bands around and how he has a lot of respect for them and that it’s a privilege to share a stage with them. He’s right when he says we need to change our attitude around here. “Europeans love making rock stars out of their own bands but it doesn’t happen here,” he stresses.
While the commercial nature of what gets you groupies in South Africa does not exactly appeal to me, The Rescu really have a point. This city has got it all, the wild palms, the glamour and the talent, probably more than what we anticipate LA and CA to have anyway. Make a movie, make music just make something and play the hell out of it. Follow The Rescu on Facebook – you’ll find them at /therescuband Watch the video to their single; I Did It For You by scanning this TAG (Smartphones) or go to museonline.co.za
Get the free mobile app for your phone
http:/ / gettag.mobi
muse | twenty two
FEATURE
By Sergio Pereira
Setting South Africa on Fire
I
n Flames are dead. Finished. Buried. That’s what the critics said after founding member Jesper Strömblad departed in 2010 and the less-thanmemorable impression that 2008’s A Sense of Purpose left on the metal world.
Rising from the ashes However, the Swedish metallers didn’t quite tap out. Rather than throw in the towel or say to their fans, “Adios! It’s been real, yo!”, they locked themselves in the studio, channelled their inner Nigel Tufnel – turning up the dial to 11 – and dropped a scorcher of an album, titled Sounds of a Playground Fading (2011). Despite not being able to call on Strömblad, who was a primary songwriter on their previous studio albums, guitarist Björn Gelotte stepped up to the plate and found an opportunity to prove his worth. "There's a huge difference in how the songs were written this time. Jesper quit, so I wrote all the music. It was very strange not having him around, but at the same time we had the opportunity to do things a little bit differently as well. It was a good challenge for me,” Gelotte says. Adding his two cents, vocalist Anders Fridén admits that he’s actually surprised the band is still around today. “This is number ten… album number ten! That we’ve even made it this far – that is amazing. Then, to deliver the album of our career, that is something else.” Maybe Fridén is being a bit presumptuous by
proclaiming SOAPF as the album of their career, but it certainly proved to be the required injection to kick-start the Jester wheel. Realising that they needed to replace Strömblad, in order to continue delivering the dual harmonic guitar attack that they’re famed for, the group rang up an old friend, Niclas Engelin, who had been in and out of In Flames over the years, to take over the guitar duties left vacant by Strömblad – and, as they say, the rest is history.
Prepare for the inferno pit South African music fans always whine that bands visit our shores long after their prime and we see more pensioners than titans. Also, proving that complaining is our national sport, we bitch that the bands who come out here just aren’t “metal” enough. Yet, when RAMfest announced that In Flames would be rocking the festival in 2012, there was a unanimous “f**k yeah!” shouted across the country (bar the 2 trolls who complained that “in flamez iznt rel metal!!! ur ghey!! brng anal blast n skullfuxxers!!!”), as local metal fans did a little dance of joy at the thought of an inferno pit to the sounds of Only For The Weak, Deliver Us or Cloud Connected. Inevitably, fans want to hear all their favourite songs at a concert, and the forums have been raging with what sort of set list we can expect from the band. Well, no-one can really give you that answer, except the band (and they normally stay tight-lipped about setlists) – but, when discussing Sounds of a Playground
“Expect riffs, sweat and beers so tasty…” Fading, Gelotte was quoted as saying, “I always like having dynamics in a song, on an album, in the setlist. That’s what keeps things interesting. Your ears and your mind will only take so much of the same thing before tuning it out completely.” Take from that what you will…
Open the Jester’s door to a world of metal Touted as one of the pioneers of Gothenburg sound, which is now more commonly referred to as melodic death metal, In Flames have inspired a generation of musicians and music fans. So, it goes without saying that the announcement of their impending arrival has single-handedly ensured that RAMfest 2012 is one of the hottest and most anticipated events of the forthcoming year – but if you still have any doubts about the potential awesomeness of In Flames at this event, just read what the band recently said about their live shows: “Expect riffs, sweat and beers so tasty that [you’ll be] ready to give up everything and move to Gothenburg – just to have another fix…” Well, better brush up on your Swedish and get your passports ready over the next few months, boys and girls, because you might be moving to Sweden after RAMfest. Tack för er uppmärksammhet! For more information on In Flames, visit www.inflames.com. For more information on RAMfest, visit www.ramfest.co.za.
muse | twenty four
"What is this article about? I'm not a legend."
LEGENDS OF SA MUSIC By Mickdotcom
Carlo Mombelli prisoner of strange
C
arlo Mombelli is not well known. He knows this better than those who do know him: "What is this article about? I'm not a legend." But those who do know his music go quiet when someone mentions his name; they raise an eyebrow; their senses zoom in. Most of them regard Mombelli and band The Prisoners of Strange one of SA's most vital, arresting live performers. They consider him an important composer of New Music. Their eyes glaze over when you ask them what his last gig was like. Mombelli is not a household name. Carlo Mombelli is not 7de Laan. This fits him like a glove. Performing his flexing, polymorphous compositions to a packed arena of 40 000 is not going to happen. He wouldn't have it. All the noise. It would be 40 000 trespassers, brawling and howling and slipping on his gifted music; disturbing the flow of The Prisoners of Strange's intensive flows. Mind you, when I ask him about his favourite live experiences, he mentions The Prisoners of Strange's 2010 performance at the acclaimed Moers Festival in Germany. The Prisoners were a hit - one review singling them and Bill Frisell out as the festival's highlights (this from amongst many of the most acclaimed Experimental and Jazz artists in the world.) The band sold more than a hundred copies of their latest album Theory after their set.
I stared into my head. I was first captured by Mombelli's music around a decade ago, listening to the live German recording Bats in the Belfry. The
music was... Incredible. The opening track consisted of around a minute of expanding silence. Then it became - the silence gently ruptured by the sonic slivers of performers settling around their instruments, discreetly readying themselves for performance. A scraping of shoe here; diagnostic puffs into a trombone or trumpet there; a tentative key; a muffled voice. By the time opener My Friends and I unfurled I was mesmerized. The journey Bats in the Belfry takes you on is breathtaking - graceful, kinetic, cerebral, playful, intense. The musos so effortlessly tight it sounds as if they've been breathing the music for years. I was hooked. His subsequent albums immersed me ever deeper.
Abstractions. Mombelli has long been walking with music. At 8 he experienced the ballet Swan Lake and was drawn into its world, swiftly taking up classical piano. At 16 Mombelli's instrument-of-choice shifted to electric bass, after hearing the virtuoso snaking of Jaco Pastorius' Bass-redefining work with Weather Report. The future was aligning. Being invited by guitar great Johnny Fourie to join his band was a watershed event in your life. You were also thrown into the deep end, so to speak, what with it being a 6 nights/week gig. Was this your public debut? What did you learn from it? Mombelli: "My public debut was doing a cabaret show singing Michael Jackson tunes in my Dad's restaurant at the age of 11, six nights a week. The gig with Johnny was my university of music.�
Major musical influences on your composition? "ECM artists like Eberhard Weber, Bill Frisell, Paul Motion and Egberto Gismonti." What contemporary artists excite you? "Paul Motian at the age of 80, Arvo Part, Avisha Cohen and Radiohead.�
Theory. Following a residency teaching music in Germany, where he recorded several albums with then-band Abstractions, Mombelli returned in the late Nineties. The Prisoners of Strange, whose seed was planted in Germany in 1996, became a shifting collective of musicians manifesting the right shapes and densities to communicate his challenging compositions. By 2002 The Prisoners had settled around the glowing core of Johnny Fourie (guitar), Siya Makuzeni (vocals and flugelhorn), Marcus Wyatt (trumpet), Sidney Mnisi (sax) and Lloyd Martin (drums). Excepting occasional guests, the tragic passing of Fourie, and Martin's recent replacement with Justin Badenhorst, the core remained. The kinetic empathy (perhaps telepathy is more accurate), and sympathetic imagination of The Prisoners make for gigs that are simultaneously electrifying and sublime. And then there is The Bass. Elastic beyond belief, sinuous and robust, Mombelli's bass-playing is a wonder unto itself. It blends into the unknown - drawing you into its worlds. For more info on gigs and albums, climb into www.carlomombelli.com.
muse | twenty six
FEATURE
VAN COKE KARTEL THE NEW SUN RISE OVER BELVILLE ROCK CITY
F
rancois Van Coke is dead – if that was the reality in 2007, Christians would say because God was angry, and some would draw a comparison to Kurt Cobain. Whatever belief, myth or legend anyone accepts, there would only be one truth: we would mourn the loss of an icon who spoke for a generation. Forever and fondly, we’ll recall the history of Fokofpolisiekar, and to their own spite, certain critics will always note that Francois was the intoxicated teenager who couldn’t sing, and the one who never wrote the words. 2009 saw the formation of Van Coke Kartel, his own personal outlet. In the first song he didn’t sing, he screamed. The critics sat up, fans said hell yes, and everyone moshed. But the second album’s sales indicated not everyone cared as much. The third received mixed reviews, and ultimately caused confusion. And for the first time, the future seemed uncertain. 18:48, 2 Nov ‘11, VCK exclusive listening party, Sgt Pepper Long Street. The media is enjoying pizza courtesy of the
By Johann M Smith VCK tab. The Vanfokoftasties family are on the balcony. Francois sits next to an open chair, I ask if I can join, very brotherly he nods, but I get a feeling he’s treating me with indifference. Eventually he breaks the ice: “Why did you tune me in Muse Magazine?” “I am just a fan boy who had the power to remind where you come from. That’s all,” I answer wryly. He places his arm around me. We agree an interview is long overdue. 12:08, 3 Nov ‘11, my Editor calls. “Would you like to do a story about Van Coke?” I confirm time and date with Francois. 10:00, 4 Nov ‘11, Francois calls. “You’re up early, aren’t rock stars suppose to wake up at eleven?” “Nee bra” he says matter of a fact, “everyday up at six. Can you come around to the Shack at four, I want to give you the new album.” 16:00, Shack, Francois sits at a wooden bench. I laugh, “finally, it’s happened, rock stars wait for me.” He smiles and hands me a disc. “Look after it. I worked hard on that.” “How do you feel about the start of a new
decade and that we’re undoubtedly going into something new?” “I just hope I can release my one great work. Listen, I have to go, Wynand is getting married tomorrow, I spent the whole day at Canal Walk looking for shoes, and I want to spend time with my fiancé. Sorry bra.” 5 – 9 Nov, research and first listen of unmastered album. My notes read: VCK seems like the doubtful brother in the Vanfokkingtaskies family; during interviews, journalists can never nail ‘it’, when compared to bassist Wynand, Francois always says the least; and unlike most rock stars, he cares what the media says. I scribble in capitals: the album is fucking good (if you’re reading Francois, I hope you’re smiling, knowing, honesty is what I always loved about VCK). 19:00, 9 Nov, Aandklas, post sound check, the interview starts. Tonight, is the start of an untitled mini-acoustic tour – a momentary occupation of François and guitarist Jedd Kessow, while Wynand is on honeymoon and drummer Jason Oosthuizen is busy. They buy the first round, conversation starts with Rugby.
muse | twenty seven
FEATURE
“Politics and crime are the same thing. Finance the gun, politics the trigger.”
“What did you think of the season?” “I’ve been too busy, I even missed the last game.” “We lost.” He smiles, “I know.” “Didn’t you once say that you wanted to join a team?” “Yeah, I was serious for a while about being ‘n Scrum-back.” He looks down and wipes his forehead, “but that’s all blown over for me.” “How do you feel about the new album?” “Proud. Yeah, proud...” “So, how did you write the songs?” Music journalism’s most irritating question, has never seemed more applicable. “Generally the music comes first. We sit at my home around a computer, record and I’ll scribble lyrics. And we’ll go: that’s cool that’s kak. The way it comes about is pretty random.” Jedd chuckles, “just don’t leave your coffee cup lying around.” Francois smiles, “yeah I’ve become quite a neat freak, I don’t know how, all these years I’ve never been able to. Anyway, I ‘skeem’, this album has a theme. A kind of piss take on ‘drink this and take that’. But in the world, there is this general fear. A feeling that an end is coming. The world was supposed to end twice in the last three years. People fuck off, and people are scared.” Francois doubts that the essence of VCK is the frustration in his lyrics, but agrees that VCK lives in the shadow of Fokof. “Yeah... I don’t know. Having been in a band with a fucking phenomenal lyricist it was difficult writing lyrics. They’re always going to be compared. The first VCK albums were a struggle and a test.” I add my twenty cents: “Whereas aKing is kinda academic, and Heuwels poppy,
it leaves you with few options of subject matter. And it’s the frustration that makes it what it is. Even, on the second album, if I can refer to it, knowing, to you it’s a naughty swear word” he laughs, “you apologise in ‘Wat Het Van Ons Geword?’ and explain you have something to say, but can’t put your finger on it.” He laughs, “fuck, you know better than me” and doesn’t elaborate further. “Why do you feel you have to release a great album?” “Ag, fuck dude. I don’t know. I speak for everyone, and Jedd would agree, you just want to make good songs, it satisfies you. I’m happy and proud of this album. Maybe I’ll feel more worthy now. I feel proud of Fokof. But VCK is my own. And unlike before, we didn’t make it for ourselves. We definitely thought about it and didn’t just kak it out.” Jedd adds, “not anybody can write a great song. It just comes. When it does, you go fuck, we wrote a great song.” Francois apologises that he’s a bit tired to fully engage me. “Why is it that you never make yourself vulnerable in interviews?” I ask. “That’s why a song is there, for me.” “And do you feel heard by the people that matter? Those who have the power to change things?” I press on. “No. I don’t think my opinion is important enough.” “I think it is.” “I think it’s more important for me to make the people around me think about shit. We once played a show in support of the DA, it was a cheese-fest. Afterwards, these budding young politicians came up, I don’t even know how the fuck you get into that shit.” Jedd interjects with a quote from The
Godfather: “Politics and crime are the same thing. Finance the gun, politics the trigger.” “First and foremost, music is for us and our friends,” explains Francois. “I refuse to take responsibility. I am interested in making something and the way someone accepts it, is up to them.” “And what will prove to you that this album is a great album?” says I. “I don’t know. Maybe album sales. But ripping means those days are over.” he concludes solemnly and enigmatically. Perhaps momentarily forgetting, he makes music for friends and family. Earlier this year. Somewhere remote, the sun is setting. Francois, and future fiancée Lauren are putting luggage down in their suite. Francois, tired and unable to conjure affectionate words, gets down on his knees. “Will you marry me?” “Yes.” During the days that follow. Francois writes track 6, Tot Die Son Opkom. “As die wereld om ons vergaan/En niemand verstaan my naam... Ek het net nou vir jou oor/Om die gedagtes uit te hou/Kom ons wag tot die son opkom...as dit klank is waarna jy soek/Dink ek jy’s op die regte plek.” Whatever importance Francois assumes as symbolic, or anything, two things are certain: he defines himself in song, and never tries to be anyone but himself. In the new album he does both best. Wie’s Bang? might just be VCK’s finest moment, yet. Read Johann’s album review on Page 36.
muse | twenty eight
MUSIC NEWS
I
Inside
nside The Machine always goes in last, right before another issue goes to bed. After I click send, we print, and Muse goes on holiday. Which means we do the same: music – just with more partying. We’ll be back in 2012 with some changes and surprises. What makes any of this, and the excitement that follows next year, possible, are the people who are currently building an industry with only a dream. So, thanks to everybody I have worked with this year. But most of all, a very special thanks to Dane van Zyl. You taught me the value of music, even though the lesson came after you passed away. Rest in peace. I love you all. Thank you.
Terminatryx is launching their anticipated Remyx v1.0 on Ten December, at the Sound On Screen music festival – which featured amazing movies and documentaries like God Bless Ozzy Osbourne and Real Punks Get Checked. “It will be the finale to the explosive 2011 festival,” says co-founder Paul Blom. The album, which features remixes from the UK, Austria, Greece, USA and locally, will be launched live and over the internet. Paul adds, “there will be an on-line video streaming event from the White Room at Sound and Motion Studios [CT], reaching the entire world. The intimate setting will have selected guests and press, with everyone else able to watch it on-line, no matter where they are.” Also included will be “a special guitar give-away” courtesy of Paul Bothner Music and to celebrate the launch even more, all Terminatryx releases will be available at a special reduced price at oneworld.co.za. For more updates, and on time-zones for the on-line broadcast, check terminatryx.com.
The Plastics are releasing a reprise version of Stereo Kids to radio. “The new version captures a lot of what we're trying to do as a band at the moment. It shows the dance element of our band. Nothing makes us happier than when we play to a crowd and everyone is moving and grooving!” says Plastics. After playing their first acoustic set last December, the band decided to reinvent some of their songs. Stereo Kids was one of the tracks which stood out, and they’ve transformed it from its original dark, ominous form into a more ambient dance track. Their Caroline music video reached number five on the MK Top 10 Music Videos Chart and is still charting. Plastics were recently chosen as one of the bands to take part in a Woolworths campaign entitled Roll with the Band, and will be The Plastics performing at Synergy, as well as opening for Seether at Cape Town Stadium in December. Currently, they’re recording at Dreamspace Recording Studios as part of the production of their second album, set for release in 2012. plasticsband.com Africa's biggest rock 'n roll tour, Die MK Avontoer, will be enchanting and destroying coastal towns from west to east this holiday. The press release reads: “In the spirit of a travelling carnival, Die MK Avontoer mobilises a host of musicians, photographers, troubadours, magicians, pirates, fans and wild cards into a travelling party of unmatched magnitude. With over a 130 creative creatures concentrated on two buses, a travelling tent town of their own and nothing other than a having a good time as their modus operandi. Avontoer alumni include representatives from the whole South African Diaspora sharing boundary breaking, genrebending and mind melting adventures up and down the coast.” The line-up features Van Coke, Mr Cat & The Jackal, Jack Parow, Die Heuwels Fantasties, New Holland, new indie favourite Holiday Murray, and “a surprise guest act – to be announced...”.
Avontoer is also inviting you to become a ‘seerower’ (pirate in Afrikaans – aka Avontoer roadies) on the bus. If you’re keen, email seerowers@dpk.co.za, and visit www.seerowers.co.za to see how you can win a ‘seerower’ space on the bus. The lucky winners will be announced on MK Studio 1, Thursday 15 December at 19:30. Tickets will be sold at Computicket and at the gates cash-only. Dates: 21 Dec - Bazzuki Restaurant (The Terrace) @ Club Mykonos, Langbaan 23 Dec - Cheers Pub, Struisbaai 27 Dec - Sandbaaisaal, Hermanus 29 Dec - Pirates Bar @ Diaz Strand Hotel, Mosselbaai 31 Dec - GrootGeesRockFees VI, Stilbaai
dpk.co.za/avontoer
the machine Overheard
muse | twenty nine
MUSIC NEWS with Johann M Smith
“I fucking hate tweeting it’s for dicks. It’s rubbish.” - Liam Gallaghar, NME interview regarding his new album and an Oasis reunion.
“I think such a dark day deserves some serious production of Dark Beats.” - Chris Aiden Darkow, DJ and underground metal celebrity, has the final comment on Black Tuesday.
“We got fairly pissed drunk afterward for a few hours.” - Not just pissed angry, Roger Waters comments on the first, and last, Pink Floyd reunion gig.
“Die ANC se ma se ” , rocker and ex-Assembly soundman.
Titbits Taxi Violence front man George van Der Spuy wants you to know his rehearsal studio, Kill City Blues, has a fourth room and is available.
should be available by the time you read this. “I want to give people something to laugh about. SA has so much kak for people to worry about, so when they listen to my CD they can laugh a bit.” Did you also read it in a kakkish Afrikaans accent like I did?
Leonard Cohen is set to release a new album - Old Ideas – the ten track album is his first collection in ten years, and his 12th studio album since 1967. He’s made the song Show Me The Place, available on leonardcohen.com as an instant download for those who preorder the album.
Elvis Blue and Die Tuindwergies will be entertaining the whole family on 30 December at Drostdy-Hof during the ‘Somer in Stilbaai Piekniek’.
officially split up as some people had alluded to recently].
Jack Parow ’s Windows Paint designed sophomore album Eksie Ou, that also features David Kramer,
The Dirty Skirts are taking a break, in case you wonder why you won’t see them this summer. [they have not
Dead Prez is coming to South Africa, and it’s not through Big Concerts. More on that later...
BIG BLUES MUSIC FESTIVAL:
Jack Parow
The Blues Broers feat. Albert Fros
2 & 3 MARCH 2012 Kleinmond's Big Blues Music Festival returns in 2012 ‘defying naysayers by mounting a near-flawless event with arguably the strongest line-up of blues artists ever to be assembled on one stage.’ Says event organiser Louise Fick, “Our focus is to provide excellent genre-specific music, [blues] combined with a clean and safe festival environment, and excellent local cuisine and wine." The festival is unique in that it promotes our beautiful coast - even more so for the 2012 event as it has found a new home in the spectacularly upgraded Kleinmond Harbour – I doubt there is any other festival that will bring you as close to the sea.” The 20 artists featured on the line-up include music legends such as Vusi Mahlasela, Piet Botha and The Blues Broers (featuring Albert Frost). The festival certainly prides itself in offering stage time to up-and-coming young blues bands and will this year include acts such as the Hellfire Blues Club, Sixgun Gospel and Crimson House Blues – most of them voted in to the line-up by Facebook fans. The ladies play a predominant role with Charlie King, In The Deepend and Natasha Meister on stage amongst others. Old favourites such as Fender endorsee Dan Patlansky, popular Boulevard Blues Band, and the ever evolving Gerald Clark are also among the performers. The full list of artists, with performance times, and festival ticket prices (Range R 150 – R 250 pp) are available from the website
www.bigblues.co.za.
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muse | thirty two
FEATURE
by James Rose-Mathew Photo: Marcello Maffeis
The band is something like a “Vitamin B-complex - slow-release, high-energy...”
T
Invocation Age
here is something undoubtedly elemental at work in the aural concoctions that flow from the band, LARK. For the better part of a decade they have siphoned from the ether sonic potions capable of rendering vast throngs by turn both mute and manic. And, after a hiatus necessitated by producer Paul Ressel's decision to relocate to London, they're dabbling again. Crafting new magick to unleash upon the status quo. Wrestling a rare beauty into being. You will hear it early in the Year of the Dragon. It is, at this moment in time, dubbed Gong is Struck. Inge Beckmann, vocalist, songwriter and enchantress, says of the title, “it was the final instruction in a ritual I was reading and it felt really powerful.” Simon Ratcliffe, long-time bassist and sound engineer for the group, adds that it's apt insofar as they have come to consider this recording a sort of ultimatum, 'the final push' toward creating the necessary wave of momentum that will carry them to the next level. LARK's trajectory has been, by Inge's estimation, 'weird.' They've been met with critical acclaim every step of the way, their début album receiving one of the most prestigious awards on offer in our fair country. Time and again the press heralded the band as the most striking gem on the circuit and any punter worth their salt knows that to be attendant in the crowd at a LARK gig is to witness a seismic event. Yet the necessary critical mass that ought to propel the group to the interstellar heights they certainly deserve
has been elusive. To the point that they kinda called it quits a few years ago. It took RAMfest begging the group to perform at their annual hoe-down back in 2009 to get them firing all cylinders again and, since then, we've seen a slow but certain reconstitution happening. Inge offers that the band is something like a “Vitamin B-complex - slow-release, highenergy sort of thing.” From the ambition of successfully staging their Dagger and a Feather concert to the scorching set at Oppikoppi this year; supporting The Used on their recent tour, to showing the Isle of Wight a trick or two at Bestival, LARK are summoning energies untold and pouring it all into Gong is Struck and whatever mayhem follows upon its release. Inge and Paul began work on the record over a year ago, swapping demos and ideas through cyberspace, a process Inge says “was creatively invigorating, as we'd only send each other the very best material.” Sean Ou Tim, LARK's drummer, has also enjoyed the process, saying that the remote collaboration “is allowing us to throw things at each other that perhaps wouldn't arise if we were in the same room together.” Paul has also had the good fortune of being able to learn from and, he intimates, “to work with some of the best producers and mixers in the world. For this reason, the new LARK album is very focused and mature.” They road-tested a few new numbers on their recent tour and the crowd response was feral - a great omen for what's to come. Also in the works is a video for upcoming track Stole the Moon. Inge says it started out as a showcase for an
upcoming production company. They asked Inge to star and planned to simply license relevant music, until Inge suggested perhaps making use of their new material. The director “was blown away”, she says, and agreed to it being repurposed as a Lark music video. As with most things affiliated with the band, it's an ambitious project replete with an attempt to send a camera into space. So, before the world obliterates in late 2012, we will have the luxury of again being spellbound by one of the finest acts to emerge from our shores. Paul insists that upon release of Gong is Struck LARK will be “touring as much as possible.” See you in the pit, people. Check out LARK’S new sounds by following their Soundcloud page: http://soundcloud.com/lark-1 SCAN THIS TAG TO VIEW ON YOUR SMARTPHONE:
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muse | thirty four
FEATURE
"I write songs when I feel restless, frustrated or confused. It’s usually the negative emotions.”
by Jenny Furwood Photo: Marcus Maschwitz
DEAR
H
er voice gives you goosebumps, and she sings about the things you don't talk about. You wouldn’t speak those thoughts - not to mere acquaintances. This intimacy is what makes Dear Reader so special. It is an essence that hasn't been lost through the tumult of the last two years. If you were at the WITS Great Hall that night you will understand. Remember the soft lights and origami sounds she made? If you were at the Church in the District, you'll recall those heartbreakingly dear, homemade paper lanterns. The light shone through coloured cellophane taped over animal-shaped holes, changing our faces to blue and grey. Stringing her voice like tendrils of electric spider webs, she disarmed us. Dear Reader is essentially Cherilyn MacNeil, the earnest human who wears her heart firmly pinned to her sleeve. Berlin has been her home for the last few years. Since she and co-founder Darryl Torr amicably parted ways, she has developed the sound we have come to expect from Dear Reader. It is still the same enchanting melodies, but now there's something a little darker, perhaps lonelier, about it. Based in Neuköln, and desperately avoiding hitting dog turds and old ladies with her bicycle, Cheri
loves her life in Germany. “When I left, it was an unsettling time for me. Everywhere seemed too small, too suffocating, and I needed a change. I also left because of my work”. The move has proved to be a smart one. It has given her exposure to a range of artists who are unique in their diversity, which has in turn allowed her to experiment more with her sound. “There's just a lot more that I can do here, and it makes more sense for me to be here but I feel like it's been too long since I’ve been home. I’m looking forward to playing in South Africa again.” Her most recent album, Idealistic Animals, was recorded in Germany and Portland under the City Slang record label. It was produced by Brent Knopf, and mixed by John Askew, who made The Dodos’ Visitor record. "It's denser than the last two albums, more lo-fi," says MacNeil, “It's a bit of a Trojan horse. The music is pretty poppy too, but more grown up. When you listen to the words they're a lot darker than you'd expect. I guess they come as a surprise.” Idealistic Animals is rich with melodrama. It has a harder edge than previous albums but it still remains naive and sweet. W h i l e i n Po r t l a n d , C h e r i l y n discovered and fell in love with shapenote singing. "It's the oldest American musical tradition. It’s ancient church music, sung in four parts. People get together just to sing for singing's sake.
They sing really loud, through their noses. It's like Marmite - you either love it or hate it. You can hear the shape-note singers in a few of the songs like Camel, Whale and Kite". MacNeil likens songwriting to gestation. "I write songs when I feel restless, frustrated or confused. It’s usually the negative emotions.” She says music is just a boat that she uses to carry words in. “Music has never really been what drives me to make music. When I feel sick from all the shit going on inside, I need to puke it out. I get a feeling. A few days before a song will come, I know that soon one will be born. Usually it emerges quite whole, with music and words together.” This unique musician will be weaving her words in South Africa at the end of the year. Cherilyn will be touring with Durbanbased Thomas Krane and will be accompanied by some “dear friends” on various instruments. “The SA shows are going to be the stripped down Dear Reader. Expect more naked, intimate versions of the songs,” she says. Expect to be entranced by her peculiar mix of fragility and catharsis. It has been a long time coming. For more info on Dear Reader or to check out her SA tour dates in December & January go to: dearreadermusic.com
muse | thirty six
DM – Dave Mac | MD – Mickdotcom | DA – Damien Albetto | JS - Johann M Smith | AG – Alt Guy | PB – Paul Blom 1 = Weak | 2 = Okay | 3 = Pretty Cool | 4 = Rocking | 5 = Demi-God!
ALBUM REVIEWS 1. VAN COKE KARTEL – WIE’S BANG
I assume if you’re reading this, you’ve read my article on VCK, and expect only praise. In 2009, I said the second, and unsuccessful, album was the best release that year. Fortunately, I haven’t been wrong much since, thanks to experience. Wie’s Bang comes in two phases of enjoyment: the first is an f-you rock noise experience. The second comes when you’ve managed to resist the first, and listen to the lyrics. But unlike any VCK or Fokof album, it’s got balance. Not too much of anything, only when it needs to. Overall, the sound comes across as a whole. Production is smooth, levels are inverted between vocals and guitar, especially when Jedd let’s slip a bit of sweep picking – producer Theo Crous’ metal guitar roots have clearly come in handy. Several guitars were used, and we can safely assume Jedd probably rummaged through Theo’s collection. Don’t think it’s a guitar album though. Jason has ‘flavourised’ the token kadoef beat, and through various accents added soul – during Jack Parow’s collaborative duo, he exchanges 4-to-the-floor for an irregular trip-hop beat, suggestive of Wu-Tang Clan but still very much VCK. Any criticism? Yes, Wynand’s chewy bass twang is missing. The album is currently being mastered in UK, the launch date remains uncertain, because quality takes time. The boys aren’t messing around – so be patient.
4/5|JS
3. BJORK – BIOPHILIA <EDITORS CHOICE> Joyous, naughty, beautiful, conniving, brave, restless. That's just her eyes. Bjork is also immensely, ridiculously gifted - perhaps her only quality to outshine her brilliance is her appetite for Fun. Following the over-the-top abstractions of 2004's voxperiment Medulla, and the mild slump of 2007's pan-cultural Volta, Biophilia sees her back at the dazzling heights of 1997's Homogenic and 2001's Vespertine. The album is Bjork's take on the universe. All of it. From Viruses sweetly cooing mating calls, to Blackholes throbbing, to the Origin of Man (it involves shiny, black eggs..) In keeping with her technophiliac glint, Bjork has decided not just to bring out a hugely satisfying release, but to simultaneously launch history's debut App-album. Fans equipped with iPads can interact with (remix, make videos for, make friends with) every song on the album. Oh, and one of the Apps features David Attenborough, yes him of the "and here comes the lioness now, her cubs close to her side, as..." doing a BBC-style introduction to the album and explaining its relationship to life on earth. Why? Because Bjork is bonkers. And we love her for it.
2. DEAR READER - IDEALISTIC ANIMALS Well, seeing as we already have Pop philosophy, it makes sense to see some Philosophy Pop. At least, that's what a quaint, punny reference to controversial French thinker Jacques Derrida in your band's name - along with a huggably academic album title - seem to announce. Thankfully, the album's shiny, playful interiors dispel any kind of cynicism regarding the waving of flags and eagerly raised hands in the lecture hall. Cherilyn MacNeil's bright, companionable voice guides us through a friendly menagerie of songs concocted around imaginary animals, with lyrical and melodic free associations bounced off their cartoony hides. Welcome echoes of Sufjan Stevens' heroic preciousness and chirpy, rhythmic optimism are flecked through 'Idealistic Animals' instrumentation, but Dear Reader seem exactly aware of their sound, and where they want it to take us. Lazily hip-wagging, smiley stuff.
3/5|AG
4. TOM WAITS - BAD AS ME Waits just gets better. Age becomes him. The roughening of rasp; slow ripening of facial crags; the drying of leather; the cough of ancience. The decade inaugurating the 21st century had been Waits' brilliant best: There were the junkyard skronks and grimy alley grunge of 1999's Mule Variations and 2004's Real Gone; the lush melancholia and ominous, growled mythologies of 2002's respective Alice and Blood Money. Then there was 2006's triple-disc behemoth Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards, the third disc occupying his kaleidoscopically eccentric tales and fibs and oddball facts. He topped his reigning decade off with 2009's riotously majestic live album Glitter & Doom. Two years later and Bad As Me kicks off like he never stopped, with opener Chicago's frantic hornchugged locomotive implying that the new album is misspelt. And Bad-ass it is throughout its 14 tracks. All swagger and swoon and roar. On Satisfied he even takes on The Stones, smugly informing: "Noww Mr. Jagger/ and Mr. Richards/ I will scratch/ Where I've been itchin’..' The entirety of Waits' motley vocal entourage is at play here - the brawlers, the bawlers, the bastards, and then some. Satisfaction all round.
5/5|MD
5. CHICKENFOOT – III AC/DC meets ZZ Top-styled supergroup Chickenfoot's 2nd album is two steps in the right direction (as implied in the title). Kicking off - roaring off - with the lurching Southern Rock of Last Temptation, the band is clearly more connected with each other's abilities and musical natures than was the case on 2009's self-titled debut. So-called 'supergroups' have often collapsed simply because they were studio wet-dreams, were not organically formed. Chickenfoot was born out of a chemistry discovered during jamming, and on III this chemistry is making itself known. Anthony and Smith's rhythm section is both tight and thump-straightahead, anchored in Rock's propellant heart, but are more than able to mix things up with some Rhythm & Blues and Soul elements. Really this is Hagar and Satriani's show. Satriani is all over the place - without stepping on any toes - casually juggling various tropes of the Rock, Metal and Funk canons with intense, economic riffs and typically blistering and fun solos, while Hagar delights in having new, stimulating music off of which to riff his legendary vocal chords.
3/5|AS
4/5|MD
6. CHRIS LETCHER – SPECTROSCOPE Chris Letcher - perhaps best known to local audiences for his wonderful partnership with Matthew Van Der Want in the late Nineties, resulting in cult albums Low Riding and Bignity - has been stealthily building a songwriting career in London. It is telling that he is also involved in film composition (he scored Claire Angelique's My Black Little Heart, had some songs in the recent Bang Bang Club, and is currently completing BBC Film and Television productions) - his music is too complex and nuanced for Pop, but have the narrative reach of the cinematic. Spectroscope is named after the album's deliberately eclectic spread of songs - each a genre or stylistic atmosphere of its own. Following the dark, moody, acclaimed Frieze (2007) (which entered the Top 20 of US College Radio charts), Spectroscope is like stepping into a psychotropically lit forest - sensuous details humming and leaping. The album’s canvas oozes in rich orchestrations, from digital to Classical. Somehow reminiscent of David Byrne in its surrender to the All of emotional scapes and musical possibilities, this is parallel-universe Pop, Pop that celebrates and explores the entirety of the human range.
3/5|MD
8. GIL HOCKMAN - TOO EARLY IN THE JOURNEY Hockman's debut solo album is blanched in misery. And it's good. The album unveils as a kind of demented songbook - three originals are carelessly (carefully?) sprinkled between 11 covers. Said covers range from All-American Folk hero Woody Guthrie, to Bob Marley, to Kerkorrel, James Phillips and The Handsome Family to The Lemonheads and, wait for it, Snoop Doggy Dogg. Readers intimate with the SA underground (no pun intended) will immediately recognize Gil Hockman as one of the founding members of discerningly celebrated outfit The Buckfever Underground. Hockman exited the group in 2009, to strum his way into, well, this. And it is a songbook, one made peculiarly his. From the defeated lament instilled into Snoop's lyric "I got my mind on my money/ And my money on my mind", to Seffrican geography slipped into Guthrie's Americana classic, to Marley's Concrete Jungle re-cast as epitome of post-Y2K losthood, Hockman makes these classics his own sad creatures. Elsewhere, as on Kristen Hersch's Your Ghost, his droll, near-morose arrangements focus one's attention on newly painful lyrics. What Hockman succeeds in is capturing the loss of centre, the ghost of self, of our current, cruddy, space in Time.
3/5|MD
muse | thirty seven
ALBUM REVIEWS
7. DEREK GRIPPER - THE SOUND OF WATER Derek Gripper is known for his in-depth studies and re-imaginings of both salient and obscure Capecentric folk musics, from Vastrap and Ghoema to more hybrid regional dialects and pidgin musics. He is also known as an advocate of understatement, his musical phrases often couched in, highlighted by, or else just enjoying the company of, silence. Silences of various persuasion. Gripper understands silence. I won't be surprised if he has several personal words referring to its various shades and moods, like the Ennuit have for snow. 2011's The Sound Of Water is more of a departure, or a step to the side, than its title implies. For one, Gripper's music is less pensive than before, there is a shimmering rhythm behind even the placid cuts. It also draws on a new stylistic palette, alternating original compositions with reworkings of compositions by Brazilian master Egberto Gismonti. But it is the SOUND above all that is new; it is fullsome, voluminous compared to his usual timbres. Good stuff - the sound of Derek Gripper letting his hair down.
3/5|MD
9. THE SUBWAYS - MONEY AND CELEBRITY The Subways are an English trio although you wouldn’t think so on first listen should you not know the band. Paying homage to a sound made famous in the 80’s by New York bands such as The Ramones, Money and Celebrity is a 12 song collection of upbeat postgrunge, rock ‘n roll that does not take itself too seriously and is aimed squarely at the carefree young 18 to 20something adult. Song names are a clear indication as to the subject matter such as It’s a Party, We Don’t Need Money To Have A Good Time, I Wanna Dance With You, Like I Love You, amongst others. This is a straight up party indie rock album. Big, phat guitar riffs accompanied by the catchiest of choruses, the boy-girl vocal dynamic of guitarist Billy Lunn and bassist Charlotte Cooper makes for a very poppy, singalong combination; one that will certainly have you humming along in a party mood. If this review does not seem to be in-depth enough for you, well that’s because neither is the music. With no track longer than 3 and a half minutes this is quick, spontaneous easily forgettable pop-rock but herein is its charm. The Subways are purely out to have fun and take you with them on that ride. Something they do pretty well.
2/5|DA
10. PINK FLOYD – A FOOT IN THE DOOR (THE BEST OF PINK FLOYD) | JETHRO TULL – AQUALUNG: 40TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL EDITION Just in time for the festive season and all that manic Xmas spending arrives two packages from legendary bands from yesteryear. First up is a Pink Floyd, best of compilation and to be honest when I first looked at this I couldn’t help sighing with the thought of label execs milking yet another back catalogue from a famous band. Of course the story behind this is that ‘A Foot in the Door’ is actually a part of the ‘Why Pink Floyd’ 2011-12 remastering campaign and this disc is aimed at those slightly less obsessive fans not quite ready to buy their entire release collection, albeit remastered, happy to settle for a ‘best of.’ Truth is this 16 tracker is a reminder of just how damn good PF were and is a thoroughly engrossing listen. Perfect for fans, ideal as a Xmas gift and a great buy if you’re too young to know their music but old enough to want to discover the legend that is Pink Floyd. Another legendary band who has in fact toured here several times is Ian Anderson’s Jethro Tull. Aqualung was their 4th studio album and proved to be the bands breakthrough release in 1971. Another smart label execs marketing move this; I just hope Anderson is receiving royalties from the repackaged 40 Anniversary edition. Anyway cynicism aside this two-disc release includes the original album remastered and a second disc containing 14 additional songs recorded in 1970 and 1971. Relistening to the original songs (now in stereo) reminds one why it was such a definitive album, but to be honest CD2’s ‘out-takes’ are just that; out-takes that were not really worthy of release and although there are some good moments amongst these 14 songs they do not compare to the album that was Aqualung. Devoted fans will no doubt love it.
4/5|DM
muse | thirty eight
GAME REVIEWS
For more gaming reviews, check out www.flamedrop.com
by Paul Blom
GO VACATION (Wii) [4/5] If you've got Wii Sports Resort, then Go Vacation will ring a familiar bell. With some of us lucky to live in areas where these activities can be accessed, if you're not, Go Vacation is not exactly the next best thing, but certainly a fun substitute. Select your Mii character avatar (you've by now certainly created), and head on out to explore Kawawii island, with its Marine, City, Snow and Mountain resort areas, packing in over four dozen summer and winter related sports and activities, or you can simply explore the island. Up to four players can enjoy tennis, horseback riding, golf, quad bikes, water-gun or light saber fights, arcade style games, jet skis, scuba diving, white water rafting, surfing, skiing, skydiving, car racing and loads more. As you progress, you get to claim your own island villa and decorate it according to your taste. There's communication with other characters, and while this may all seem like a bit of The Sims, it is not as in-depth as that alternate world and focuses on the fun activities. Most peripheral controls get incorporated via the extensive game options, from the balance board to steering wheel. Don't expect full-on realism, but rather a fun cartoon-style experience the whole family can enjoy. What would be a shame is if you are in fact on vacation by the seaside and you crash indoors playing this! Save it for when the sun is down or when you're back home.
TETRIS (NINTENDO DS) [5/5] My first encounter with Tetris was in the '80s / '90s cross-over, as one of the handful of games on my dad's DOS word processor. While the graphics, various gaming modes, music and themes have been adapted and updated over the decades, it still boils down to the same basic addictive concept, whichever way you dress it up. For those moored in RPGs, or engulfed by first-personshooters or football games, and unaware of Tetris - it's a Russian designed puzzle game from the mid'80s where the player has to arrange various falling block shapes, fitting them to fill up levels which is eliminated, avoiding it piling up to the top, resulting in a loss. Here Nintendo gives the enduring Tetris the portable 3D treatment. Advantage: it looks pretty cool. Disadvantage: the hypnotizing nature of Tetris will have you playing for eternity (if you didn't need to eat, drink, and fulfil other essential functions of life), which can seriously mess with your eyesight in 3D mode so after a few minutes, pull the 3D slide down to 2D. Gaming options expand the basics to include up to 8 wi-fi linked multiple players (with a single game cartridge), and varied modes covering Marathon, Fever, Computer Battle and Survival, each giving the game a different angle (plus 9 Party Modes and on-line battle modes). But the most exciting is the Augmented Reality option where you get to play 3D Tetris within your own environment!
DEAD RISING 2 Off The Record (Ps3) [4/5] Fortune City. Frank West returns to kick some zombie ass. Having fallen from grace, the photojournalist turned zombie killing hero has to claw his way back, and kick-starts this by taking part in the popular, super bloody pro wrestling style zombie-killing show, Terror Is Real. Expect a lot of splatter! But, on the periphery issues like Zombie rights loom, and the antidote for those infected, Zombrex. Having been bitten, Frank is on this drug. It has to be taken every 24 hours. In this adult fun park where vice is rife, after his regrettable zombie showdown, the wise-ass Frank finds himself in a similar situation as the zombie outbreak where he was trapped and hailed a hero in the first instalment. With a few survivors they have to stay alive, but Frank also has to find Zombrex. With a lot of zombie destroying ahead of you, and a mystery to unravel, Frank gets to use his camera, but also partake in some anti-social behaviour like smashing slot machines and ATMs for the money! People can drop in any time if you're on-line for a co-op game (via transceiver calls), and you can go on a zombie slaying trip with a friend as you explore Fortune City. This is brought to you by Capcom (who can be considered zombie and survival horror experts with their brilliant Resident Evil series), so you can expect some high quality carnage. With Halloween not far behind us, this is one for the adults with an 18 restriction.
UNCHARTED 3 Drake's Deception (Ps3) [4/5] Exclusive to PS3, the adventurous exploits of Nathan Drake hits the third chapter. Covering 8 locations (incl. London, France, Syria, Yemen, and a Colombian flashback) with almost two dozen chapters, what can be seen as a male version of Tomb Raider delivers a sprawling 3rd person action-adventure loaded with a variety of exciting situations for tense moments and thrills wrapped around the storyline of the Campaign mode. It involves the treasure hunt for a valuable item and the lost city Iram of the Pillars. Other modes include Multi-Player (online or LAN connected, incl. a buddy system) and Co-op (on-line or split screen with another PS Network friend). Previous characters like Drake's partner Sullivan returns (and you get to find out how they connected), as well as Elena and Chloe. Clues and artefacts lead them on an exciting journey to many parts of the world, with ancient orders and villainous rivals standing in their way, dangerous situations in their quest leading to hand to hand combat, gun fights, perilous climbing & swinging, and the use of stealth when action is not called for. From rooftops and deserts, to ships and airplanes, this should keep many quite occupied over the holidays. The game is also 3D compatible for those who've jacked up their gear in anticipation of this addition to the gaming realm.
muse | forty
GIG GUIDE NATIONAL EVENTS..... Every Tue | Acoustic Sessions | CPT @ Zula Sound Bar | Every Tues is Acoustic Sessions where Cape Town's new songwriters can express themselves and perform next to some of SA's greatest established and experienced performers | 20h00 | Free Entrance | vusa@zulabar.co.za Every Thurs | Sunset Fireflies Jam Session | CPT @ Trinity Super Club | Trinity hosts a Cape Town Songwriters open mic jam session | 20h00 | R30 | info@trinitycapetown.co.za Every Fri | Live Acoustic Rock | CPT @ Obviouzly Armchair | Features: Live Acoustic Rock | info@obviouzlyarmchair.com Every Sat | Open Mic Afternoon | DBN @ The Winston Pub | Come and get a feel for the vibe, bring your instruments and get into it! | 15h00 | 072 198 9521 Every Sun | Sundays Unplugged | CPT @ Aandklas - Stellenbosch | Features: Come check out all the new and established acoustic artists that will blow your mind! | 19h00 | donya@patriotproductions.co.za Thurs 1 Dec | Van Coke Kartel Album Launch | Krugersdorp @ Fashion TV Lounge - Silverstar Casino | Van Coke Kartel | R80-R100 | 19h30 | www.ftvsilverstar.co.za Fri 2 Dec | Dave Ferguson | CPT @ Airstream Trailer Park - Granddaddy Hotel | Dave Ferguson |18h00 | R30 | www.facebook.com/lonesomedaveferguson Fri 2 Dec | Margaret's Daughter | CPT @ Villa Pascal Theatre | Margaret's Daughter | 19h00 | R80 | www.computicket.com Fri 2 Dec | The Parlotones | PTA @ SA State Theatre Opera | The Parlotones | 20h00 | R150R220 | www.computicket.com Fri 2 Dec | Van Coke Kartel & Springbok Nude Girls | PTA @ Arcade Empire | Van Coke Kartel & Springbok Nude Girls | R80 presale/ R100 @ the door | 20h00 | www.nudegirls.co.za Sat 3 Dec | Deep South Collective | CPT @ Barnyard - Steenberg Road, Tokai | Dave Ferguson, Long Time Citizen, Tombstone Pete | Features: Outdoor venue | 14h00 | R40 | www.facebook.com/lonesomedaveferguson Sat 3 Dec | Vans Off The Wall Music Night | CPT @ The Assembly | Dj’s & International Act to be announced, Sabretooth, Bilderberg Motel, Juggernaught (JHB), The Great Apes | Vans off the wall music night takes place in over 26 countries across the globe - this is the first time the event takes place in South Africa! | 20h00 | R50 | info@yourfriends.co.za Sat 3 Dec | Van Coke Kartel & Springbok Nude Girls | JHB @ Tanz Cafe | Van Coke Kartel & Springbok Nude Girls | R120-R150 | 20h00 | garrick@tanzcafe.co.za
Sun 4 Dec | Dave Ferguson | CPT @ La Vie, Beach Road, Sea Point | Dave Ferguson | 16h00 | Sun 4 Dec | Die Heuwels Fantasties | Plett @ VIP Vegas Super club - Plettenberg Bay | Die Heuwels Fantasties & The Kiffness Band | R100–R120 | www.plettrage.co.za Mon 5 Dec | Dave Ferguson | CPT @ Waiting Room, Long Street | Dave Ferguson & Machieneri | 20h00 | R40 | www.facebook.com/lonesomedaveferguson Fri 9 Dec | Festival of Light | CPT @ Spier Wineland | Dave Ferguson | 18h00 | www.spier.co.za Fri 9 Dec | Fokofpolisiekar | DBN @ Burn Nightclub | Fokofpolisiekar, Habit To, Grynd Rodd Muse | 20h00 | burn@wbs.co.za Sat 10 Dec | Cape Town Folk n Acoustic Music Festival | CPT @ CTICC | Ard Matthews, Farryl Purkiss, Guy Buttery, Rory Eliot, Steve Newman, Brian Finch, Natasha Meister, Machineri and more | 19h30 | R180-R200 | www.webtickets.co.za Sat 10 Dec | Prime Circle Unplugged | CPT @ Paul Cluver Forest Amphitheatre | Prime Circle | 19h00 | R120-R325 | www.computicket.com Sat 10 Dec | Van Coke Kartel & aKING | CPT @ Buckley's - Edward Street Bellville | Van Coke Kartel & aKING | R50 | Door open @ 19h00 & First band up @ 22h00 | 021 910 4458 Tues 13 Dec | Chris Chameleon | W.Cape @ Kalahari Restaurant & Theatre - George | Chris Chameleon | 20h00 | R100 | www.copmuticket.com
Sat 17 Dec | One HOWL of a party | N.Cape | Host: Awewolf Event Management | @ The Bohemian, Richmond | Old Brown & The Sherries, SliffyMcDisko, Sick Cindy, No Yellow Line Driving | 17:00 | Guys-R40 & Girls-R30 | 084 514 6062/awewolf.exe@gmail.com Tues 20 Dec | Boney M Christmas Special | CPT @ Grand Arena - Grand West | Boney M | 20h00 | R200-R520 | www.computicket.com Fri 23 Dec | Knysna Rocks Music Festival | W.Cape @ Knysna Sports Ground | Johnny Clegg, Heuwels Fantasties, Evolver One, Elvis Blue, Holiday Murray | 14h00 | R160-R265 | www.computicket.com Wed 28 Dec | Boo! Featuring Chris Chameleon | W.Cape @ Kalahari Restaurant & Theatre George | Boo! & Chris Chameleon | 20h00 | R100 | www.computicket.com Wed 28 Dec | The Parlotones | E.Cape @ Port Alfred High School | The Parlotones | 15h00 | R165 | www.computicket.com Wed 28 Dec | Van Coke Kartel | Plett @ Zanzibar Plettenberg Bay | Van Coke Kartel | R50 | Doors open 20h00 & Van Coke Kartel on stage at 22h00 | 072 626 1111 Fri 30 Dec | Summer in Still Bay Picnic Concert | W.Cape @ Field Next To Stables – Still Bay | Elvis Blue & Die Tuindwergies | Features: Picnic baskets welcome | Doors open @ 16h00 & Show starts @ 18h30 | R90-R100 | www.computicket.com Fri 30 Dec | Van Coke Kartel & Die Tuin Dwergies | J.Bay @ Cafe Havana - Times Square Jeffreys Bay | Van Coke Kartel & Die Tuin Dwergies | R60-R80 | Doors open @ 18h00 | 084 606 0371 or corrie@jbay.co.za
Thurs 15 Dec | Fokofpolisiekar | Langebaan @ Flamingos | Fokofpolisiekar | 20h00 | Sat 31 Dec'11-2 Jan'12 | Rock the River SA www.fokofpolisiekar.co.za NYE Festival | CPT @ Cape Town Ostrich Ranch | Fokofpolisiekar, Hog Hoggidy Hog, Half Price, Fri 16-18 Dec | Cape Town Bike Festival | CPT Boombox Troopers, Reburn, Stone Collar, The @ Cape Town Stadium | Peechy Keen, Greame Great Apes, Junkyard Lipstick, CY.STR, Thought Watkins Project, Tidal Waves, The Plastics, Taxi Police, Witness to Wolves, Dutch Phobia, Violence, Good Luck, Zebra + Giraffe, Mark Cannon, Smugg Juggler, Jackal & Wolf, My Haze, Locnville, Seether, Haddaway | 11h00Flawless Ending, Gritt (PE), Impalement Theory, a 22h00 Daily | R85/R230 | www.computicket.com Cash Bar & Food Stalls | 09h00 | R150-R300 | www.computicket.com Fri 16 Dec | Boney M Christmas Special | North West @ Sun City Superbowl | Boney M | Sat 31 Dec | New Years with Fokofpolisiekar | 20h00 | R150-R520 | www.computicket.com JHB @ Cool Runnings - Fourways | Fokofpolisiekar, The Narrow & Newtown Knife Sat 17 Dec | Boney M Christmas Special | JHB Gang | 17h00 | R130 | www.coolrunnings.co.za @ Big Top Arena - Carnival City | Boney M | 20h00 | R200-R520 | www.computicket.com Sat 31 Dec | Prime Circle NYE concert | CPT @ Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden | Prime Circle & Sat 17 Dec | Jan Blohm + Bacchus Nel | Elvis Blue | Gates open @ 19h00 & concert starts W.Cape @ Kalahari Restaurant & Theatre | Jan @ 20h30 | R250 | Seating is unreserved | Blohm + Bacchus Nel | 21h00 | R110 | www.webtickets.co.za www.computicket.com Sat 31 Dec | Rockabilly New Year’s Eve | Sat 17 Dec | Hog Hoggidy Hog and The Barrydale @ Barrydale Hotel | Them Tornados | Rudimentals | CPT @ Cape Farmhouse 21h00 | Pre-sold: R100 & R150 @ The Door | Restaurant | Hog Hoggidy Hog & The theo@barrydalekaroohotel.co.za Rudimentals | 15h30 | R50-R60 | info@capefarmhouse.co.za
The Ultimate brought to you
TO GET LISTED FOR FREE EMAIL: admin@museonline.co.za Thurs 2-5 Feb | Up The Creek 2012 Music Festival | W.Cape @ Swellendam | aKing, Akkedis, The Black Cat Bones, Blues Broers, The City Bowl Mizers, Holiday Murray, Hot Water, Taxi Violence, Wrestlerish, No One’s Arc, Fox Comet, The Great Apes, Andra, Jeremy Loops & Machineri | Thurs & Fri @ 16h00 | R150-R620 | www.ticketbreak.co.za Sat 4 Feb | Freshlyground Unplugged | CPT @ Paul Cluver Forest Amphitheatre | Freshlyground | 19h00 | R120-R325 | www.computicket.com Fri 10 Feb | Tallest Man on Earth | CPT @ CTICC | The Tallest Man on Earth (Swedish singer-songwriter Kristian Matsson) | 20h00 | R250-R395 | www.yourfriends.co.za Sat 11 Feb | Tallest Man on Earth | JHB @ Joburg Theatre | The Tallest Man on Earth (Swedish singer-songwriter Kristian Matsson) | 20h00 | R250-R395 | www.yourfriends.co.za Sat 18 Feb | Elvis Blue Unplugged | CPT @ Paul Cluver Forest Amphitheatre | Elvis Blue | 19h00 | R120-R200 | www.computicket.com Fri 24 Feb | Freshlyground | PTA @ Carousel, Cheyenne Saloon | Freshlyground | 21h00 | R100 | www.computicket.com Sat 25 Feb | Watershed Unplugged | CPT @ Paul Cluver Forest Amphitheatre | Watershed | 19h00 | R120-R325 | www.computicket.com Backsberg Picnic Concert Series: www.ticketbreak.co.za Tickets: Presale: R85 / Gate: R100 Sun 4 Dec | Koos Kombuis Sun 11 Dec | Dan Patlansky Sun 18 Dec | Rory Eliot Sun 22 Jan | Robin Auld Sun 29 Jan | Die Tuin Dwergies Sun 5 Feb | Blues Broers Sun 12 Feb | Laurie Levine Sun 19 Feb | Francois van Coke Burn Nightclub Durban: burn@wbs.co.za Fri 2 Dec | 11th hour, Conclave and Darkest Age | R30 Fri 9 Dec | Fokofpolisiekar, Habit to and Grynd Rodd Muse | R60 Sat 10 Dec | Deity’s Muse, Conclave | R30 Sat 17 Dec | Nightmare before Christmas Party Sat 31 Dec | New Year’s Eve Bash Die Boer Restaurant Theatre: (021) 979 1911, 083 406 0111 or www.dieboer.com Thurs 1 Dec | Brooklyn Babalaas met Jak de Priester & Koos Kombuis | R130 Fri 2 Dec | Blues Broers | R100 Sat 3 Dec | Tribute to Cliff Richard & The Shadows | R80 Wed 7 Dec | Die Broers | R110 Thurs 8 Dec | Hugo Niewoudt | R80 | Fri 9-11 Dec | Jan Blohm | R110 Sun 11 Dec | Chris Chameleon | R130 Tues 13 Dec | Zak van Niekerk | R80 Wed 14 Dec | Pieter Smit | R100 Fri 16-18 Dec | Navi Redd | R120 Wed 21 Dec | Southern Gypsey Queen | R80 Fri 23 Dec | Black Cat Bones | R80 Tues 27-28 Dec | Dozi & Jannie Moolman | R130 Thurs 29 Dec | Andriette Norman | R90
Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden: Tickets: www.sanbi.org & www.webtickets.co.za Sundays @ 17h30 Sun 4 Dec | Lira | R75-R100 Sun 11 Dec | The Parlotones | R95-R125 Thurs 15 Dec | Carols by Candlelight | R50 Fri 16-18 Dec | Carols by Candlelight Rotary | R60 Mon 26 Dec | Zebra & Giraffe | R75-R100 Sat 31 Dec | Prime Circle / Elvis Blue | R250 Sun 1 Jan | Mango Groove | R75-R100 Sun 8 Jan | Plush / The Graeme Watkins Project | R55-R80 Sun 15 Jan | Johnny Clegg | R75-R100 Sun 22 Jan | Dan Patlansky / Natasha Meister | R55-R80 Sun 29 Jan | Zahara / Claire Phillips | R75-R100 Sun 5 Feb | Flash Republic / Foto Na Dans | R55-R80 Sun 12 Feb | Going Back to the Crossroad / Natasha Meister | R75-R100 Sun 19 Feb | Taxi Violence / Machineri | R55-R80 Sun 4 Mar | The Blues Broers feat Albert Frost | R55-R80 Sun 11 Mar | Goldfish | R75-R100 Sun 18 Mar | Freshlyground | R75-R100 Sun 25 Mar | Hugh Masekela | R75-R100 Sun 1 Apr | Hot Water / Wrestlerish | R55-R80 KONGOS: SA Tour - In support of their new album ‘Lunatic’, www.ticketbreak.co.za Fri 9 Dec| The Alexander Theatre - JHB Sun 11 Dec | Park Acoustics - PTA Sat 17 Dec | The Assembly - CPT Fri 23 Dec | Unit 11 - DBN Sat 31 Dec | Avontoer NYE show - Still Bay Sat 14 Jan | A Word Of Art - CPT Fri 20 Jan | Tanz Cafe - JHB Sat 21 Jan | Arcade Empire - PTA Sat 4 Feb | Up The Creek Festival - Swellendam Mercury Live Lounge: mercury@mweb.co.za or www.mercuryl.co.za Fri 2 Dec | Wolftown, Them Tornados Thurs 8 Dec | BluesTown Sessions Fri 9 Dec | Stereo Zen, Lyderkane, Witness to Wolves Wed 14 Dec | Hip hop party Thurs 15 Dec | Bicycle Thief Sat 17 Dec | Shadowclub and The Plastics Wed 21 Dec | Crash Car Burn and When Karma Sleeps Thurs 22 Dec | BluesTown Sessions Fri 23 Dec | Back to the 80’s party Thurs 29 Dec | BOO! With support band Longtime Citizens Fri 6 Jan | Sublime Tribute show Thurs 12 Jan | BluesTown Sessions Fri 13 Jan | Hog Hoggidy Hog & Friends Thurs 26 Jan | BluesTown Sessions Fri 27 Jan | Mark Haze and 12th Avenue Sat 28 Jan | Kill City Blues Studio Event Thurs 9 Feb | BluesTown Sessions Thurs 23 Feb | BluesTown Sessions MK 6de Avontoer: www.dpk.co.za/avontoer Van Coke Kartel, Die Tuindwergies, Zinkplaat, New Holland, No One’s Arc, Holiday Murray, Friendly Lemons, The December Streets, Loveglove & Pyrotechnics Wed 21 Dec | Bazzuki Restaurant - Club Mykonos Langebaan Fri 23 Dec | Cheers Pub - Struisbaai Tues 27 Dec | Sandbaaisaal - Hermanus
Gig Guide by
www.webtickets.co.za | 0861 2255 98
muse | forty one
GIG GUIDE
Thurs 29 Dec | Pirates Bar - Diaz Strand Hotel Mosselbaai Sat 31 Dec | GrootGeesRockFees VI - Stilbaai
RAMfest: www.ticketbreak.co.za Fri 2 Mar | Detroit Motor Spirit - P.E | 20h00 | R50 Sat 3 Mar | Kovsies Rag Farm - Bloemfontein | 19h00 | R50 Fri 9 Mar | Origin Night Club - DBN | 20h00 | R120 Sat 10 Mar | Riversands Farm Fourways - JHB | 11h00 | R350 Sun 11 Mar | Cape Town Ostrich Ranch - CPT | 11h00 | R350 Rhebokskloof Wine Estate: www.rhebokskloof.co.za Thurs 15 Dec | Romanz & Nianell | 19h00 | R130 Fri 27 Jan | Idols Top 3 Concert | 19h00 | R130 Fri 24 Feb | Die Heuwels Fantasties | 19h00 | R120 Fri 23 Mar | Louise Carver | 19h00 | R130 Zula Sound Bar: www.zulabar.co.za Sat 3 Dec | Taxi Violence, The Plastics, Peachy Keen, Beach Party Mon 5 Dec | Comedy On Long Tues 6 Dec | Too Broke to party | R20 Wed 7 Dec | 20h30-22h00 Back to Roots Thurs 8 Dec | Nomfusi and the Lucky charms, The Wild Eyes & Yes To Everything Sat 10 Dec | Pro Helvetia Party Mon 12 Dec | Comedy on Long Tues 13 Dec | Too Broke to party | R20 Wed 14 Dec | 20h30-22h00 Back to Roots Fri 16 Dec | Last train to Nashville feat: The Pits, Mr Cat and the Jackal, Them Tornadoes & Batleur Mon 19 Dec | Comedy on Long Tues 20 Dec | Too Broke to party | R20 Wed 21 Dec | 20h30-22h00 Back to Roots Fri 23 Dec | Butterbox Presents Sat 24 Dec | Jampara & The Batalion, The Sons of Selassie Mon 26 Dec | Comedy On Long Wed 28 Dec | 20h30-22h00 Back to Roots Thurs 29 Dec | Don’t Party Present Fri 30 Dec | Hotwater, Trenton and the Free Radicals