Comments on: Sesling: Southern Thing

By: old fart

old fart — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 13:06:23 +0000

I remember student radio back in the mid-’80s. Very few DJs played music from the punk era onwards. Those who did were considered freaks and the one or two who aired the likes of Wire or Sonic Youth were held in the lowest esteem – that’s in the rarified world of student radio, so imagine the climate in a broader South Africa.

Punk as a social penomenon largely bypassed South Africa. We were too busy wrestling other more obvious demons to spare energy for an aesthetic shift in pop culture that demanded such a fundamental change in mindset. Our collective awareness only started to catch up in the early ’90s when Nirvana made it big and grunge offered a punk hybrid that had been spliced with more vintage-flavoured blues-rock. So it could argued that “classic” rock has never really departed from our aesthetic check-list – as a society we don’t really know what it’s like to live without it?

I expect that some may disgaree and would be interested to hear why. A couple of other things – Roger, I would tend to agree more with your corrective statement if you removed the ‘EGLISH’ bit. I would suggest that the original blues-rock still carries a much stronger influence amongst the Afrikaans rock bands than the English ones in South Africa. Moose, if someone is on the verge of IMmigration they are about to move to South Africa – in that case the opinion is more justified?

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By: Moose

Moose — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 14:25:33 +0000

@onthevergeofimmigration
You are very opinionated about what south african’s should do given your closeness to immigration…
Is that a winning or whining strategy?

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By: Roger Young

Roger Young — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:27:16 +0000

That statement becomes irrefutable if you add this to it.

But can anyone flatly deny that there is an enduring obsession with American blues-based music in THE WHITE ENGLISH ROCK OF South Africa as a signifier of what is considered legitimate and authentic?

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By: on the verge of emigration

on the verge of emigration — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:22:01 +0000

Right, would you lot like to shower your opinions on the relevance of specific bands in your neighbourhoods rather than take me to task for stimulating a li’l discourse over here? As Wodger says, might be useful to hear them bands – I’d be far happier reading comments where people refute my observations based on a first hand appreciation of what they are producing. But can anyone flatly deny that there is an enduring obsession with American blues-based music in South Africa as a signifier of what is considered legitimate and authentic? Can anyone refute that much of this is based on decades of cultural isolation and a lesser ability to keep up with international trends since this music enjoyed its heyday in the ’60s?

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By: Don

Don — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:53:59 +0000

Id like to see MORE internet-cocks waved around plz.

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By: Roger Young

Roger Young — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:23:53 +0000

I like that he called Brett, Mr White.

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By: Baden

Baden — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:25:09 +0000

I like how stranger # 1 is on the very of emigration over a misconstrued interpretation of someone else’s opinion but is still trying to tell people off on what should and shouldn’t be done. I hope you have luck ‘developing a sound of your own’ once you’ve emigrated elsewhere.
Are bands in South Africa who find similarities with more refined aspects of underground movements, take these influences and fuse them with immediately identifiable local cultural characteristics, and create a new and fresh response… seriously getting heat? In THIS country? Where musical originality is about as rare as hearing a decent song on mainstream radio…
How was the view from the soap-box, buddy? Hope you felt like you resolved something- selling your damned if you do, damned if you don’t attitude.

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By: Kevin

Kevin — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:44:16 +0000

so…..how did a sweet litte article make its way to a no-name taking his paternal frustrations out on anything and everything white south africa?

jesus christ seriously? You don’t see this much frustration at a nun camp.

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By: Francis Frankie Franken

Francis Frankie Franken — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:43:24 +0000

I love you Brett… Your name shall be worn with pride on my skin. Oh… and your article rocks too

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By: Roger Young

Roger Young — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 10:56:46 +0000

No. I was not saying that it had anything to do with the similarities. Not at all, I’m saying that all music is influenced by other music and other cultural factors. You cannot choose to like something or choose to be influenced by something. And trying to and basing those attempts on the notion that we need to “create” a “south african sound” is just counter productive. Some people like some stuff and they let it influence them, then they bring in their own stuff on top of that, it’s how any new art or music is made. To studiously ignore anything from outside South Africa is not joining the rest of the planet.

Here’s a thought. Listen to the band first before you assume that they merely copy the deep south sound.

Also, learn to distinguish between the writer and the subject.

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