MTV Alert Concert in Retrospect
You know Represent is all about the people – one of our readers, Donna, sent in her take on the MTV Alert concert – Thanks D – enjoy readers. We hope all our winners had a wonderful time, Editorista and her chomees certainly did! Big ups MTV for the give-away and a fab night. Black men can mosh… … and white men can jump, the audience proved two Saturdays ago at the MTV Mot… orola concert in New Town. The party was flavoured with an incredibly mixed crowd, a variety of different bands and crossover of music genres from the hard rock of the Springbok Nude Girls through to the hip sounds of Jozi and kwaito legend Zola. The tent venue on Mary Fitzgerald Square was split into a swanky MTV style VIP area with plush white couches and viewing balcony that I was enviously admiring from the ‘ordinary’ people’s area just in front of the stage. The VIP area was crammed with beautiful, important people but front of stage was where the action and atmosphere took shape and the crowd certainly made the party. And while so many elements of the concert were great – the fun-loving crowd; the well designed and decorated venue; the ever cool MTV brand; the fast, friendly and reasonably priced bar service; the staging, screens, lighting and firework effects were impressive and the line-up looked like a great overall representation of South Africa’s music scene – I couldn’t believe that the organisers did not understand the mixed nature of the audience and could get the running order so wrong and as a result lose the crowd. Knowing the MTV brand, I was expecting a slick, professional show with spicy variety oscillating between rock, kwaito and hip hop to keep the crowed hyped. The concert started quite late at around 23h30 with opening bands Jozi and 985 getting the crowd jumping with their short, high energy sets. The length of time then given to the rock bands Springbok Nude Girls, Prime Circle and Barney Simon ensured that by 2am over half the crowd had lost interest, energy, were tired and decided to go home. As for the performances, Jozi was very tight and slick and 985 put on a good show but unfortunately the same can not be said of the band that I was really excited to see perform, The Springbok Nude Girls. Their opening with 3 ‘unknown’ songs ensured that even the most hardcore Nudies fans were looking around and raising their eyebrows in confusion! It felt like an arrogant performance but the fans forgivingly started to jump around when the hits...
What is Levi’s Vintage up to NOW?
Levi’s Young Guns blast their way onto stage at the Labia Theatre on the 29th of September and they are three more raucous acts performing under the Levi’s Young Guns banner. Even though it’s taking place in Cape Town, this one’s for the Stellenbosch massive, so if you’re in the area then haul yourself down and get fired up by the fastest guns in the South. This is the fourth e… vent of its kind, and the first one in warmer weather, so expect the beats to be blistering and the vibe to get close to burning point. This is uncompromising music at its shameless best – fast, furious and fiery! First onto stage is the indefinable BLK JKS. Theirs is a mad voodoo sound that will rap itself around you and squeeze until you give in to the afro-jazzy alternative rock blend that they churn out with passion and pride. It’s a driving, hypnotic blend of mad rhythms and searing guitars all held in place by a soaring spirit that is at once infectious and rebellious. With a range of influences that traverse a massive musical universe and an attitude that’s firmly rooted in the future, this is a band that won’t take their audience sitting down. Soulja are next to step into the ring bringing with their own unique musical blender that mashes together a range of sounds from reggae to blues to pop, rock, jazz and ska. Add to this a social conscience that flows through the lyrics – urging self-awareness and promoting critical thought. and you have an original rebel crew intent on waking the audience from their sedation and injecting them with their blinding vision. Theirs is an energetic, highly-charged approach that burns with the power of a band that knows what it wants to say. Rounding off this manic night out are The Wild Eyes, a nightmare of noise and power that most others can only dream of. They feed off the industrial age, forging a sound out of screeching feedback and piercing panoramas. It’s a melting pot for everything that’s confrontational, energetic and filled with attitude. Plenty of heart, but not for the faint-hearted. These are the guys you want on stage when your booty wants to be shaken into a mad frenzy. And they’ll be more than happy to oblige. Hosted by Andy Lund, he of The Mission Men, this latest instalment of Young Guns is going to blaze some serious trails form South African music. Tickets are being sold at the Levi’s store at the Waterfront and at the door and cost a mere R20.00 each. Come feel the sounds...
Should the revolution be photographed???
Here’s a powerful piece sent to us by SowetoRocks.com – it talks of the new struggle for the youth – HIV and AIDS and how the youth need to, like their ancestors 30 years ago, take the situation into their own hands if it is to truly change. Today we were listening to a popular radio station and heard one of the female freedom fighters comparing the youth of ’76 with the youth… of today – we felt that her stance was an important one – Our take on what she was saying was that “The youth of ’76 had DISCIPLINE – they knew how to focus, how to get it together and how to move forward as one.” Question is, can our youth find the same discipline? Do they need an iconic image to remind them of this discipline? What do you think? Here it is: June 16th is a day set aside to celebrate the spirit and power of South African Youth. We proudly honour the sacrifices of the generation of children past; and there is no more powerful symbol of this than Sam Nzima’s famous photograph of our children bearing the bloodied body of Hector Pietersen. As you might expect, the world is a very different place for today’s youth. While they no longer face the oppressor’s bullets, boys and girls today face a far more insidious threat: the HIV virus. Society also sees today’s youth very differently, for our legal system rules the age of sexual consent is 16meaning it’s legally ok for a 16 year old to have sex with 49 year old if both consent. We do ask them to wait to 18 before they can elect a president, bear arms in our armed forces, drive to the club or consume alcohol. Somehow the responsibilities that go along with these rights are too much for 16 year olds. In our HIV and AIDS documentary UNZIPPED (sponsored by Levi’s Red 4 Life and run last year on SABC1), one of the most poignant moments is when a 17-year-old teen declared, “we need to realize that we are children playing adult games.” Clearly we need to ask ourselves when do today’s children become adults. (As an aside, when the parent protested that her daughter had no right to appear in our documentary without her consent, SABC required that the teen be visually distorted. Old enough to do it but not old enough to talk about it.) Generally accepted policy to prevent the spread of HIV amongst our youth is summarized as follows: A.) abstain B.) be faithful C.) condomize D.) delay having sex Given the...
Goats in Kampala
We have a beloved friend called Bob who now resides in Kampala in Uganda and regularly sends us the 411 on how he is doing and what he has been up to. This time around, we were blown away by what he told us and of course we must share it with you guys! Bob Wrote: “Did you know that in Uganda, we race goats (AKA embuzi)? Well if you didn’t, now you know! The event is fun fill… ed with all of Kampala’s celebs and fashionistas present. It’s a mixture of German School Beer fest and The Durban July. There is also loads of fun filled activities for the kids to get up to while their parents go from looking slick to sick! The main thing about the event is which hospitality tent(s) you are in, and trust me this is really important because it normally rains for an hour or two. The biggest one is always the Crane Bank tent but I must say it gets really crowded. This year, the tent that really rocked was the Kampala Casino tent which even had some tables in the corner for those who wanted to play games such as Russian roulette and black jack. All in all in was an amazing day!!! You can read some more about it on the link above (click on the photo) Cheers, Bob.” How cool is that? So if you guys are ever in Kampala, there’s one thing you can look into checking out! Sounds like quite a vibe! Thanks for the heads up...
Some Mothers Sons
When last did you visit the Market Theatre? Come come now, having a good time is not always about rock ‘n roll and pumping beats. If this is “not your scene”, I urge you to expand your horrizon and go check out this play by Mike van Graan and directed by Jay Pather at the Market Theatre. After a national tour that would have included five festivals and two theatres, as well as short seasons in Lo… ndon and The Hague, Some Mothers’ Sons by award-winning author, Mike van Graan (Green Man Flashing, Hostile Takeover, and Two to Tango) will be staged at the Market Theatre from 3 -29 October 2006. Some Mothers’ Sons is a play that confronts directly the moral and political challenges of violent crime afflicting contemporary South African society – was the Jury Runner-Up at the NLDTF/PANSA Festival of Reading of New Contemporary Writing (a national competition to encourage the development of new plays) held in November 2005. One of six finalists, Some Mothers’ Sons also won the Audience Award and earned Jerry Mofokeng the “Best Director” award. Story Line: The play features two characters, Vusi Mataboge and Braam Visser who meet in the mid-eighties when Vusi is being brutally assaulted in detention, and Braam is acting as his lawyer. They become close friends and eventually, partners in a leading human rights legal firm. Then, in 2004, Braam is a victim of a violent crime and he responds in a manner that leads to his arrest. The original roles are reversed. Braam is in custody, and Vusi is there to act as his lawyer. Two good men experience violence in an intensely personal way in very different circumstances twenty years apart. How do they react? And what are the consequences of their actions for those around them, and for themselves? “As one of the few practicing contemporary South African playwrights able to construct morally complex and dramatically layered scripts dealing with highly controversial socio-political topics, Mike van Graan’s latest play, Some Mothers’ Sons, is highly recommended.” – Brent Meersman, Mail and Guardian Some Mothers’ Sons features Wiseman Sithole and Gideon van Eeden. In the mould of Green Man Flashing, it is a play that will move audiences, but will also make them think about, and debate the issues raised in the play for some time afterwards. PRODUCTION INFORMATION: Author: Mike van Graan Director: Jay Pather Cast: Wiseman Sithole – playing Vusi Mataboge Gideon van Eeden – playing Braam Visser Season: 3 – 29 October Performance Times: Tues – Sat 20h15 and Sun 15h15 Venue: Laager Theatre Price: Tickets for all previews and Tuesday performances R30...
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