I love South African music. There’s something unique about the South African music industry, the culture behind the bands and the unique dedication and passion with which musicians and industry folks go about things. I’ve been listening to some really excellent South African bands lately and the other way, while in the car, it occurred to me that the band I was listening to released the album almost 6 years ago. Despite having released subsequent albums and having grown astoundingly as a band, the album I had on still sounded amazing. This notion lead me to the topic of this blog post- bands I’ll most likely still be listening to in 10 years time and why.

A few months ago, I posed the question of “is it the bands or the musicians?“- this question repeats itself here. It is said that a song, when played in a particular context, can trigger memories and feelings from a point in your history. Below is a list of several South African bands, what they do and what they mean to me. These are just some of the bands that have fueled my love for South African music. If you haven’t heard of several of them, I recommend you try and check them out (well, those that are still around). Let’s kick things off, shall we? In no particular order… Continue reading →

Following on from my first list, I’ve continued by compiling a list of a few more awesome South African bands, past and present.

We have so many amazingly talented bands and musicians in South Africa, it’s not easy to keep this list short. Here are a few South African bands that I’ve enjoyed listening to.

Rambling Bones

This acoustic project, staring Jay Bones (front man of Jo’burg ska/punk legends, Fuzigish) and Kustom Kev on congas, percussion and glokenspiel, these layed back tunes are perfect for a fun evening out or a relaxed evening at home by the fire. Elements of Bones’ ska/punk roots are audible in several tracks.

Check out Rambling Bones at: http://www.ramblingbones.com

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How often have you heard that your favourite band is “in studio recording their upcoming album”? How many interviews have you read, heard or watched where the band has mentioned that they’re in studio recording an album? This phrase seems to be extremely common among bands in general, which begs the question; “Who is actually releasing their albums and is finished with the recording and production?”. This is who.

Below are several South African bands’ albums to keep an eye and ear out for in 2009. These guys have all been hard at work on their albums for the last year or so, at least. Having followed each of these bands for almost a decade now, I can assure you that they have each pulled out all the stops with their upcoming albums.
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There has been a lot of excitement recently over the band line-up for the 2009 Coca Cola Zero Fest, happening in April, both in Johannesburg and in Cape Town. Having run for several years now, organised by Big Concerts in association with 5FM, the festival  has become widely known for importing big name international recording artists and placing them on stage. side by side with top of the line South African bands. According to Musical Mover and MyCoke, this year’s bill is set to include Oasis, Snow Patrol, PANIC! At The Disco and Bullet for my Valentine, as well as South African bands, Zebra and Giraffe and The Dirty Skirts.
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This past Saturday, I had the pleasure of taking a drive out to Scarbourgh (aka. ska’bra) to visit the Cape Farmhouse. One of my favourite South African bands, The Rudimentals, were performing there that afternoon as a part of the “Farmhouse Rocks” summer concerts series. Having seen many Rudimentals concerts over the last almost-decade (since about 2001 or so) I have seen the band grow (in numbers) and evolve in ways I could only imagine. This concert was set to be nothing short of incredible.

After the long (and beautiful) drive out to the Farmhouse, I arrived to see a steady stream of families and friends arriving at the venue. Set in the beautiful surroundings of Scarbourgh, I felt instantly relaxed and rejuvenated. I saw friends, both old & new, and was glad to be able to sit down at a beautiful venue such as this.

The concert, as expected, was amazing. It was in fact better than amazing. The crowd was alive and enjoying the music, the venue was bustling with activity and the performance was in true Rudimental form- top class.

If you missed the concert, below is a video of The Rudimentals performing “Love Riddim” (to be released on their upcoming album) as well as a few links for more info and photographs. There will be plenty more concerts this year. I hope to see you at the next few.

The Rudimentals on Zoopy
The Rudimentals on Twitter
The Rudimentals on Myspace 

Were you at the concert? How did you find it? Share in the comments.