Wayne Habig

There have been a whole lot of hellraisers out there for some time now, but (have you) ever wondered why the old folks saw Bill Haley, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Buddy Holly and Little Richard’s rock ’n roll as the true coaxers of this so-called Devil’s Music?

The experience of your soul being one with the sound. The rhythm feeding the room’s bouncing heels, tapping in one coherent beat. Is someone performing or is everyone part of one big bluegrass evocation? To the outsider, or flat-screen viewer, it might seem a touch helter-skelter, but if you are there, you’re not there… you’re it.

It’s a combined musical incantation, with the Brackenfell folk-rocker at the helm. If he makes it big as a recorded artist it will be for different reasons to the ones credited here. This is not about talent, this is not about musical genius, this is not about passion or filling a media gap.

This is pure soul: something you rarely experience with recorded material. This is about that feeling of wholeness, being part of an experience; not hearing the rhythm but feeling the rhythm like you feel your heart beat. You are not in control. You are not making your heart ‘beat’. You are the possessed heartbeat.

You are the platform, you are the room, the bar, the liquor, the vibrating dust on the shivering stage, the sweat on the singer’s forehead. You are the Devil’s Music – the incarnation of soul. We are Joshua Grierson.

Let’s play again soon…

Experienced by Wayne Habig at Zula Bar 12 May 2011

The Revolution is over and the new Sovereignty has left the masses craving for more of the same… more Popshed

And no, before you go stab Bobby van Jaarsveld with a blunt wooden spoon, read on.

The last decade will always stand out in the South African music scene.. Whether it started with Karen Zoid, Fokofpolisiekar or, their precursors, like Just Jinjer, Springbok Nude Girls, Boo!, Wonderboom or Squeal.. No matter who, it was a bomb of creativity waiting for a fuse. And the full, nationwide, effect was certainly sparked as soon as Francois, Johnny, Wynand, Hunter and Snakehead plugged in.

Now we have The Parlotones, Jack Parow, Freshlyground, Civil Twilight, Locnville and Die Antwoord feeding the global imagination with rainbow kieffin tunes. Never mind if it’s a media hype, a fad or true genius. These guys are playing on the international stage and that opens doors to exposure… 

Exposure – This is where you and your band come in

Pop accountability… The biggest success stories are of bands that are not afraid to expose themselves. You don’t need a million bucks or a nerdy cousin anymore.. You have the web. Social networking profiles are everywhere and it’s just as easy to design your own website. 

Get your profile, a taste of your sound, a description of who you are and what’s-there-to-look-forward-to out there. I’m not gonna go looking for your sound – Cause let’s face it, there’s a million better bands out there right now – Your sound has to find me. And that means constant updating, constant campaigning. This is where it gets tricky, like those bands who invite you to their third cousin’s new photographic exhibition – Be careful not to overwhelm your audience with the offshoots of all your bands projects and family’s hobbies. People will mentally shut down to anything that band sends them in future. Don’t irritate people, but occasionally make them aware and make sure that everything is on your profile.

Don’t think you have to plot your steps according to the South African industry ladder.

There’s no reason your music shouldn’t be available to people in Reykjavik.

Music in South Africa has become something that even the layman understands, a method of relating. Even genre-groupies aren’t as prominent anymore like the old school rave and hippy scenes. 

People go check out the local Rock gig and afterwards head to the club for their Electro fix. Bands have seen this and incorporated it into their own style.. Die Heuwels Fantasties ft Mr X, Oorlog Frankenstein ft Haezer or Jack Parow and JNR. 

Racial, social, genre, instrumental and environmental integration is the norm of the day. Don’t block your own creativity just because of a genre standard. Go for the sound that inspires you but be open to anything.

The only expectation is that bands experiment, create and recreate… Continuous reinvention insures that we are searching for inspiration, honing our skills and thus moving forward. 

Shakespeare wrote plays where the comical antics entertained the masses, the story engulfed the middle class and the context of the nuance fixated the imagination of the upper class – Sounds like a lot of layered work.. Exactly. 

Artists should be accountable for their work. Whether you like feeding the souls of an intimate crowd or making music for millions.. 

The only way you’re not accountable is when you are only expressing yourself, when you don’t see your music as a business and with no concern as to whether anyone hears it or not. In that case, don’t blame the industry, people “with no taste for music” or me if you go hungry.

The audience feeds off the energy you release and that energy is Passion.