By Mariam Mohamed
The Namibian desert, a perfect place for safaris and tours or, if you’re South African electro band GoodLuck, recording an album. After the record-breaking success of their début album the trio bid a short farewell to their well-equipped Cape Town studio and took to the desert to take advantage of the rhythm of the zebras, the ocean and the Fish River Canyon for their second album – Creatures of the Night. Together with the album, the band has created a 90 minute film – This Might Sound Crazy- documenting their adventure as well as a moving social campaign – #WhatWouldWeBe – to better engage with their fans. Represent chats to GoodLuck to find out the details, and the stories, surrounding these campaigns.
What exactly led you to recording in the desert without the comfort of your high-tech studio and your homes?
We always knew that following up our debut album that did incredibly well (with nine radio singles, five number ones) was going to be a tough challenge, and when the time came for us to think about recording a follow up album we consciously knew that we had to be super creative and really strive towards a concept that was relevant and profound. It was Ben who came up with the ‘lightbulb’ moment one day when he approached the band and said, “I think this might sound crazy, but why don’t we record our new album outside in the Namibian Desert!”
This idea was based upon the assumption that it is possible to recreate the silent aesthetic of a studio environment, especially on the Etosha Pan and at Deadvlei in the right weather conditions. We thought would be able to channel the beauty of the Namibian landscape into our writing and recording process if we put the singers and musicians in an environment that inspiring! Who wants to be stuck in an air-conditioned studio for weeks on end anyway? We’re from Cape Town!
What, from the desert as well as from your other journeys and experiences, inspired the music on this album?
There’s a saying that says an artist is the product of their cumulative experiences and we definitely conform to that. We have been very lucky to tour Europe and Africa every year and travelling gives us a great perspective of how we see the world, and eventually that comes out into our music. We are all also big fans of the outdoors and nature, and so you will find that there is an ‘organic’ element in every GoodLuck song. People often say that our music is best for road trips, well to be honest they’re 100% right because half our songs are either written travelling around in a car or showering after a nice downhill mountain bike!
How did it feel to be on this journey together and did it teach you anything new about each other?
We travelled to Namibia with a crew of ten which included the band as well as a film crew to document the whole process. Needless to say, logistically it was a crazy trip – we woke up at the crack of dawn, we travelled hundred of kilometers every day, filming and recording until midnight. Of course things went wrong, but in those instances we managed to pull together as a team and find a solution every single challenge. You learn a lot about someone when they’re pushed to their limits, but we were very lucky to have an absolutely stellar group of professionals working with us. Needless to say, it also felt like a great big adventure – at times we felt as we’ve been transported to the most beautiful place on earth and together we were getting to enjoy it.
Are there any interesting stories to share from this adventure?
Well, to be honest you’ll have to watch the documentary [free with every Creatures of the Night Album] THIS MIGHT SOUND CRAZY yourselves to find out! Needless to say if you think trying to capture the sound of ghosts in Kolmanskop, a herd of Zebra stampeding through the veld or the sound of the world’s second biggest canyon is interesting then you’ll definitely enjoy watching our process!
Will This Might Sound Crazy share your personal stories from the time in Namibia or is it just about the recording and the music?
THIS MIGHT SOUND CRAZY centers around the creation of the album that were developed prior and during the trip to Namibia, however for the first time introduces you into the inner workings of our minds and how we react every day to situations that we are presented with. There is definitely a great personal aspect to the story, and you’ll get to know us all a lot better after watching it for sure. We also did a heap of amazing activities in between recording so if you are a travel fan and want to learn more about what to do in Namibia you will also LOVE watching this story!
#WhatWouldWeBe is the social campaign launched hand-in-hand with your single What Would We Be. Tell us more about the single and how it has inspired the campaign?
What Would Be is an uplifting and energetic dance pop track with elements of house and soul in it featuring the wonderful voice of Lisa Kekuala (Basement Jaxx, Bloody Beetroots, The Bellrays) – as it turns out the lead melodic hook in the song is actually a sample of a Zebra [recorded in Namibia] singing along. Seriously. The concept of the song is ‘happiness is only real when it is shared’ and that you can overcome any obstacle in the world through the power of love, and therefore we have to ask ourselves ‘what would we be without each other’. What would we be without our parents, siblings, family, teachers, mentors and role models etc…? We want to create a platform where people feel that they can take the time to say ‘Thank You’ to someone in their lives who has made an impact but to whom they have never shared their feelings of gratitude. Our aim is that this will catch on and that more and more people will be encouraged to pay it forward and create a wave of gratitude and positivity.
How will #WhatWouldWeBe work?
1. Think of someone or something without which your life would not be the same without
2. Create a video and show the world how grateful you are – even better if you can tell them in person.
3. Nominate a friend or family member to take the challenge upon themselves and spread a wave of goodness throughout our society.
4. Upload to Facebook, Twitter, Youtube or Instagram and tag your friends in it. Make sure to use the #whatwouldwebe
Since the #WWWB campaign is all about gratitude what are you most grateful for from each other?
Jules: What would I be without Ben? Well, I had chosen to work in the advertising field until I started working with Ben on music. He really helped me develop myself as a musician and to take the jump into music. I wouldn’t be in GoodLuck if it weren’t for him and so I am grateful.
Ben: What would I be without Jules and Raiven? I’m not sure where I would be but I am really grateful to these two for listening to my wild ideas [like recording outside] and taking them on and believing in them as much as I do. Jules is an incredible song writer and Raiven is a very talented multi-instrumentalist so I am privileged to be able to have them on my team!
Who else to have to thank for your success over the years?
We are hugely grateful to everyone in the GoodLuck family who makes this dream of ours happen on a daily basis. We are also so grateful to our fans without whom we would be nothing and of course family and friends who are always supporting us even though we spend too much time away from home.
What can your fans expect from the rest of the album?
Our goal is always to write amazing SONGS, not tracks or tunes. So on Creatures of the Night our fans can expect a selection of the finest songs that we’ve written over the last 3 years backed by top-level production. Fans have already heard “Trickery” (drum and bass) and “Figure of 8” (Deep House) on radio stations, we like to experiment with multiple genres so on this album you’ll find them all!
What other tracks are you excited about?
We’re excited about “The Universe” and “All The Colours” both featuring Mathew Gold who sang on our breakthrough single “Taking It Easy”. Furthermore there are a couple of REALLY different songs on the album that we don’t often get to play live but are both very dear to us – “Creatures of the Night” is the most unconventional yet very pop song we’ve ever written and “Lost In Translation” is a beautiful reggae power ballad that has the sounds of Namibian rocks as its melodic hook. The beauty of Namibia definitely comes through in the opening bars of both these songs.
Are there any upcoming events and performances that we can look forward to?
We are about to head to Europe for a 8 week tour and then we will be back with a vengeance for the South African summer season! here are our Europe Tour dates:
Saturday 12th July: Extrema Outdoor Festival, Netherlands
Saturday 19th July: Holi One Festival, Plymouth, U.K
Saturday 2nd August: Solar Festival Mainstage, Netherlands
Saturday 2nd August: Holi One Festival, London U.K
Thursday 7th August: Halfmoon Putney, London U.K
Saturday 9th August: Holi One Festival, Leeds U.K
Saturday 9th August: Holi One Festival, Nottingham U.K
Friday 15th August: Haarlem Jazz Festival, Netherlands
Friday 15th August: Haarlem Jazz Festival Afterparty, Netherlands
Saturday 16th August: Holi One Festival, Dublin, Ireland
Saturday 23 August: Holi One Festival, Glasgow, Scotland
We wish GoodLuck all the best for the rest of their journey.
