feels like a cup of tea

i havent been to a gig in a while, so this is going to be a little different. was just thinking about this band last night, and thought i should pay them some kind of a attribute (as much as it pains me because i am NO ONE's fan!)

last year jamie and i packed a mad picnic, bottle of wine included (naturally!) and went to kirstenbosch to see aking. i had never seen this band before, let alone really heard of them. but when the sun is shining, and life is sweet, why not. this marked the beginning of a new era in our lives. it represented a significant part of the next stage in terms of music and in terms of life.

from that day, jamie and i were all about aking. and we used them to describe things that we were feeling but had no idea how to articulate. thank you hunter kennedy for your inspirational lyrics. i have no idea what the band will do without you now. but yes, the lyrics moved us, and motivated us. and with that, we found a connection with the band (sorry james, i am just including you in this. but i know your sentiments are the same. feel free to comment if im incorrect at any which point). i liked the beat, james was about the words, and together we were about that thing we called music. we learnt about visceral heights and malignant regret. we learnt to be scared of wolves, and to undress people with our eyes. and most importantly, we learnt not to lose speed, baby. in short, we became fans. yikes!

we didnt go to all their gigs and become groupies, we just enjoyed the music for what it was. and then we had the crazy oportunity to have them play at a party that was being thrown for us! what?! yes!! i know!!! nothing in the world could have prepared us for this moment, where we would finally meet the faces behind the words, and the hands behind the strum. and they didnt disappoint....really. basically we were treated like fans, and this only ruined the illusion we had created about the band. we renounced our vows to love aking forever, and that was that. never to be seen or heard again.

but as time has gone on, we have gotten over ourselves, and moved on. and there are times when i will hear an aking song and think back to good times and good feelings. at the end of the day, they were an integral part of our lives for those short few months, and personal feelings aside, we do love them. they offer a comfort and show how much we have grown. we got into a chat about this yesterday when i mentioned that i might go see them this week at lentelawaai, and that i was excited. she responded by telling me that she does miss them, and that they are like cup of tea. which i was in total agreement about. we laughed about the gigs we went to, and laughed about the words we took to heart. and appreciated all those moments, and more.

so now, i have decided that aking are still in fact one of my favourite SA bands. as full of shit as i am most of the time, i cant hate them. their music moved me at a particular point, and when i hear a song of theirs, i smile, and remember happy and interesting days. i am not a fan, but i do appreciate. hopefully i will see you all on wednesday to appreciate together!!

so, lets step into the night, and bring into it life

another man with a guitar

so tuesday night saw me heading back to studio 54 for some more good music, good people and most importantly, good wine. oh, this was where i had seen the marvellous muso, guy buttery.

this time it was to check out a man by the name of gary thomas. a name that sounded familiar to me, but as i said to the old chic sitting next to me, 'gary' and 'thomas' are both quite common names, so i probably just made something up in my head.

another incredible evening. once again, it was a man and his guitar, but this time with a different take on things. this was music that i had never heard before, and got very involved in. quite heavy at times with the intense chords,he put but very rich, like charly's brownies or a steak with blue cheese sauce. you love it, but cant have it all the time otherwise you will throw up (k, if i had thrown up, it would have been due to the wine cos my body and alcohol are currently at war).

he put an interesting groovy funk into his songs that i didnt expect, and consequently loved. i would say it was funky folk, with a irish twist (yes, i sit there and think of adjectives to describe what i am feeling and hearing). and the irish groove came through towards the end. i thought i was at a river dance party, but one that i could properly groove to. i found myself bopping my head to the beats he was creating on his stomper, and nothing makes me happier than an unexpected head bop.

and a great performer he was, constantly looking up to the heavens. i dont know if he was praying to the gods, adorning them with him melodic gifts, or praying to the music gods that his guitar string didnt finally give in. either way, it worked. he was at one with the music, and the music was at one with hi. brava! i rate if you get the chance, and enjoy some good, real music, check his album launch on 12 August at alliance francaise. i might do that myself (http://www.facebook.com/garythomassa?ref=search&v=wall)

and apparently he and guy buttery used to live together in a hippy home in kalk bay. i can totally imagine the musical competitiveness and genius that reverberated on the walls, and for that experience, i would have been very happy being a total groupie (this is the one and only time..until the next studio 54 perhaps).

brava!

a shark out of water

so this past weekend gave us the launch of the hardly anticipated debut album from The Plastics, 'SHARK'. i am sure everyone heard about this, there were posters everywhere, and if you were fortunate like me, you had a flyer stuck to your window after a rainy evening, leaving the damn print as a reminder.

as usual, i enjoyed holiday murray and captain stu. i always do. they feel like a cup of tea to me :) and then it was time for The Plastics. now, i have defended them in the past (there is a blog post somewhere), but this time, i dont think i have the energy, stamina or even the desire to defend them. and this isnt because they are a carbon copy of the arctic monkeys, which seems to be everyone's issue. its because i just found them....for lack of a better phrase...painfully boring.

granted every song did sound like an arctic monkeys cover, which is fine, but with that, every song sounded like the same arctic monkeys cover. i can listen to 'i bet you look good on the dancefloor' only so many times. and thats what really annoyed me. little variation or creativity was involved. i felt like i could have gone to the bathroom, come back, and nothing will have changed. in fact, that is exactly what one of my mates did and said. and he was right.

i just ended up leaving thoroughly annoyed that i didnt get a full musical experience. screw having gordon raphaely (of strokes fame) producing you. it really means nothing in the long run. i think these guys could have done better, but what do i know? but if you really do heart, 'i bet you look good on the dancefloor', then totally go get yourself the new album. if like me, you like a bit of creativy and exploration, save yourself the R100.

waiter, there is a guy in my butter

when i was about 10, i started taking guitar lessons. i lasted a year. and not because i am musically inept (i played the flute for 8 years), but because my teacher was insanely boring, and never at one point indicated that one could play the guitar the way i saw the guitar being played last night!

went to this insane gig last night, and possibly one of the best gigs i have ever been to. no, not possibly, it was. the performer was a man by the name of guy buttery, with a hippie air to him. just him, a guitar, some weird musical contraption that made crazy martian sounds (how i imagine martians to sound), and a saw, in a living room with red wine flowing and a fire blazing. can we say 'heaven'? HEAVEN

if you ever have a chance to see this musical genius, please do. i actually cant think of words to describe the music itself, because there are no words. and not because of the amazing technicality of the chords he chose, but because he wasnt playing music. he was playing a story. feelings. emotions. it all transcended musical barriers, and entered a space where you were lost in your own world, and he was providing the soundtrack to your thoughts.

he broke every musical rule i had learnt- timings, tempo, beat, variation in tone. threw a descrescendo in here. a mezzo forte in there. skipped from andante to adagio in a millisecond, and without thought or caution. like i said, it wasnt music. not in the classical, conventional sense. it was something i had never heard before.

just a man and his guitar.

perfect location. perfect people. perfect music.

Plan B - She Said

Miike Snow - Black and Blue

Corinne Bailey Rae - Closer