LIVE 8 – bit of a damp squib let’s face it
CLICK HERE FOR IMAGES OF LIVE 8 IN JOBURG The great thing about a BLOG is that you can be honest in your writing without fearing editorial slap-backs or getting fired. I feel it is our responsibility to report on the Johannesburg LIVE 8 concert for what it was rather than just going along with the “hype”. This is our o…pinion. Do share yours with us. We went to the Johannesburg Live 8 concert. My first comment is that I think that a lot of people at the Johannesburg concert were there for one main reason – they heard the concert was free and it was featuring some great local names. We like to party here and this was a free party. Many people were drinking or getting high (Surrepticiously of course due to the large Police presence) and enjoying the free music. As one does at a concert. Another big drawcard of course was Dr Nelson Mandela – Madiba as we call him – we won’t go into the overkill of his image on every bit of media at the event. That’s a highly sensitive topic here in “Africa” but obviously no-one told Bob Geldof. Our bet is that if you had to ask the majority of people what the concert was all about, they wouldn’t have had a clear-cut answer. And I think that that about sums up what we felt too – a little mixed up, confused and not too sure what the whole event was about or who they were talking to. But what is for sure, as we stood there staring at pre-packaged images of dark swollen and starving African babies, was that there was something vaguely patronising and irritating about this event. Are these pre-packaged visuals, speeches and celeb-filled campaigns not just perpetuating a clichýd view of Africa– of hopelessness and neglect? As my friend so succinctly said – are we not affirming the world’s perception of us as a “begging bowl?” Yet again? Yes, we have our issues and anyone that lives here lives with them everyday – they are real issues, that are constantly all around us and many of us do what we can to try and address and alleviate them, but what about the good things about Africa? How come the billions of people watching around the world never got to see that? What about the tenacity, the innovation, the courage, the success stories, the development, the progress, the magic of Africa?? How come none of this was shown? Only the heart-string pulling tragedy. The concert felt like a big branding exercise misrepresenting an entire continent. And that’s another...
OPPIKOPPI WIRED -Update – it really is rocking!
Now Represent has been to Oppikoppi – not once, not twice… but THREE Times so it truly does come from the mouths of babes when we say to all music lovers and lovers of getting down and dirty camping and jolling – GET THERE! It’s really close to Joburg – There’s even a theatre and comedy stage this year! Here’s an update on the dates and the bands – WOW – they’ve really lined ’em up! STRONG For the real jollers = you know this is your stage – 206!!! How we miss those days. The 206 stage at Oppikoppi Since 1997 the 206 presence at OppiKoppi has been a late and glorious event. Here we go again. On an all-new Bushveld inspired Sipho Gumede stage, we are proud to announce more live acts and jazz artists sharing the stage with innumerable itchy dj”s. As every previous year, the 206 stage grows in size and stature this year. A unanimous decision to move the Jazz acts from the original (Gito Baloi) stage to the second koppie was greeted with whoops of delight, and the stage now boasts more of a live element than ever before, interspersed with the best dj’s on the planet, of course! The Dj sets are booked until 6am each morning, but what happens after that is anyone’s educated guess. The live acts run from early on in the day, and it is envisaged that the revelry will commence by approximately 11am in the morning, unless of course the previous night’s activities spill over, in which case the party will just carry on 24 hours a day! Never mind that the sound system has been vastly upgraded, a brand new beer garden and better food- serving facilities add to the allure of this legendary party stage. Come and experience (at least) 47 mind- altering sets of music over three days and nights, including: 25 to 1 Manifesto, A Blunted Stuntman, Afrowhitie, Bradley Bionic, Bubhessi, Dj Bob, Dj Fuck and MC Totally Rad, Dj Monde, Dj T!, Elektrik ZA, FiFi, Fletcher (Krushed & Sorted), Gordon’s Suitcase, Kenzhero, Kid Fonque, Kwani Experience, Lark, Lebo Mashile, Mr Bong, Ngwenya, Prokid, Proverb, Rawkiss, Real Estate Agents, Redwood, Remington Steele, Sisanda (5th Floor), SKID, Strings & Skins, The Boogieman, Think Funk, Voice, Zamajobe, Zubz. *************************************** 21 June 2005 OPPIKOPPI WIRED Saturday the 6th of August- Monday the 8th of August With the OppiKoppi festival once again firmly rooted in its bushveld setting over the last two years, it has become possible for the organisers to start erecting more permanent fixtures. This process was started in 2004 with the erection of two...
Make us famous, dude – GARAGE BANDS NEEDED
Brace yourself for Mark Gillman‘s search to find the perfect garage band. 5FM’s The Mark Gillman Breakfast Show, we are told, are on a mission to find a band that dares to challenge conventions.The spunky band must wild, wacky and be game to do outrageous acts in the name of fame. So, if you are willing to play on the side of a highway in morning traffic-can’t… put anything past Gillman, can you? tune into the Mark Gillman Breakfast show weekdays between 6 and 9am for the 411 on how you can become famous. If you think you have the guts… To impress, e-mail Mark at markg@5fm.co.za. Other than a shot at being famous, the band will also get the opportunity to play live at SA’s premier music festival, Oppikoppi....
FREEDOM FIGHTER liberates TSWANE!!
Catch this hip new talented band in Tswane…in the words of the muso’s themselves: “if you could imagine leonard cohen rapping to a dub beat or screaming jay hawkins jamming with the velvet underground it’s DEADLY! completely original… a bit like the first time you drank Handy Andy – washes everything else away – leaves you SHINING” Fresh from their two performances at the N…ational Arts festival in Grahamstown that were described by critic Anton Krueger as “magical”, FREEDOM FIGHTER now tackle Tshwane. VENUE: University of Pretoria, Kapel (Chapel) Theatre, Lynnwood Road, Tshwane TIMES: Tuesday 19 July – 20:00 Friday 22 July – 15:30 Saturday 23 July – 17:00 for more information contact Jaqui 082 880...
Review: Heineken Global DJ, Bassment Jaxx etc
Our girl Panda held on tight at a very windy Heineken Thirst DJ’ing final and was delighted to meet the man in the picture, her hero Felix from Bassment Jaxx – Looks like we missed out – here’s her take: The Heineken Music Thirst team has been very busy since 2002 scouring the globe for the finest DJ talent. The global final at Cape Town’s castle was a culmination of a series of… elimination rounds. On Saturday 7 January 2006 the best upcoming DJ talent in the world was put to the test with a challenging twenty minute set in front big names in music who would determine the champion. Amongst these brave young men (unfortunately there were no women in the finals) was South Africa’s own DJ Budda – aka Sibusiso Mnyandu from Durban. The proudly South African crowd cheered loudly when his name was read out. He was to go first. Other regional finalists were from Indonesia, Denmark, Morocco and Mexico. Probably the most prominent guest at the castle that night was a rather violent South Easter which was blowing drinks off tables and tearing at our hair. The cloud was thick on Table Mountain. It must have been intimidating playing the opening set with the crowd cold and mostly sober. Budda opened smoothly. Just as the music was picking up momentum, the ungracious wind lifted the vinyl off the turntables and the set came to a rather abrupt cacophonous end. Fortunately almost all the other DJs were playing strictly off CDJs (except Basement Jaxx who were somewhat concerned about the possibility of the same happening to them) and the competition continued regardless. Next up was DJ Adhe from Indonesia. I was picturing him playing to large young audiences who hit the backpacking trail to “Indo” for great beaches and surf and with ideals of finding themselves. They’d be lucky to find themselves sweating on a dance floor played by Adhe. He is good at what he does. Enter Hak’X from Morroco. He started with dramatic sirens and picked up the pace, track through track, faster and faster harder techno. The crowd loved him. Then Ronin from Denmark stepped in, keeping up the pace although his style was different entirely but mixed it over seamlessly. He had a marked electro influence which I had never heard before in a house music environment. Thankfully, music is always evolving. I realised in hindsight it would be natural for house music to pick up on the recent surge in popularity of electro music and the eighties revivalist scene. The result is fabulous. This innovation, his natural interaction with the crowd...
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