Monday, 8 April 2013

The countdown gets closer.

All to their own.

When it comes to Hardcore, the songwriting has more emphasis on rhythm rather than melody. Which is a reason why Ndonsa thinks Light Hour  could work. Trying to combine melodies of Kwaito and melodies of Hardcore would just sound chaotic. Vocalists in the hardcore genre usually scream, chant, and use spoken word; another reason why these two genres could work together harmoniously. The majority of the time, Kwaito has spoken-word lyrical styles. An example Ndonsa gave me is a band called Me Without You. He says the artist's style is similar to what Light Hour  would like to pull off. Storytelling, through use of metaphors, rather than pitch perfect melodies and harmonies will be reminiscent of Light Hour. They'll still have vocals and melodies, but it won't be the main focus. In order for these two genres to work, they need to have a compromise.


Saturday, 6 April 2013

The Hardcore side of things


Hardcore punk originated in the late 1970s. It's usually faster and heavier than regular punk rock. It spanned the straight edge movement and its associated submovements, hardline and youth crew.

http://punkmusic.about.com/od/punktionary/g/straightedge.htm
http://www.dictionaryupdate.com/Hardline
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Youth_crew


Hardcore influenced other music genres like alternative rock, alternative metal, metal core  thrash metal, emo, and post-hardcore. It started in the underground scenes across the US in the early 1980s. The most popular places being Washington, California, New York, New Jersey, Boston, Canada and the UK. Traditional hardcore has never reached mainstream commercial success, but an exception would have to be Black Flag's album Damaged: it was included in Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003. 


Return to that One-ness

Ndonsa was in a hardcore band for over 2 years. It's funny that somebody with such a traditional Zulu background has an interest in the hardcore scene. I've gathered much from what Ndonsa has told me about the genre itself, but there is something deeper with this genre that drives him forward and always makes him "discover things about himself when performing hardcore that he never knew before." Ndonsa tells me other people see it as loud, abrasive music, but to him it's a channel through which he can transport his alter ego and "feel the one-ness we all felt when we were still children." From a young age Ndonsa would play on his teacher's piano at school whenever he got the chance. He never had the money to buy his own, so he would beg his teacher to let him stay in after school. Ndonsa taught himself how to play and he says he was happiest when his teacher would leave him in this classroom after everybody was let out for recess. He was at peace knowing that he could play whatever he wanted and experiment in whatever way he chose because there was nobody around to criticize him like his parents would. His parents never wanted him to become a musician. They said to him, "Art is a hobby. It isn't a breadwinner. Wake up and make good money. You're not going to make money playing your silly piano." That cut Ndonsa, but he knew what made him feel closer to the rhythms of life: playing keys to sick drum beats.

Wednesday, 3 April 2013

Genre and style

The fashion industry has boomed all over the country of SA with urban apparel designers as a result of this Kwaito craze. Designers such as Stoned Cherrie, Loxion Kulca, and Sun Goddess to name a few.

http://lesaniblog.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/stoned-cherrie2.jpg




https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrKTm9VMzOEHcv78oGfVKSFa5BE7fBQjboDNnx8IwSr-jgeULJBXW_F6kJ40BACB5BjLMHzUxfY9ZT8L_lRDebDUZK4gWigfNuBa0QoDGY3XThaOAIVc8Ga4lYD6sSkS8gTiK7ab9lyO8/s1600/_MG_0922.jpg

http://www.represent.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2007/02/sun-goddess-compressed.jpg

Bringing back Brenda

So, the iconic Afro-Pop singer Brenda Fassie will be performing again. Say what?
The deceased singer will make a come back with the use of a holographic projector at a concert. Flashback from the movie Simone. It's amazing what science and technology can do. 

Sound evolution

The unmistakable Kwaito sound originally came from using European instruments that Black African laborers had at their disposal after gold was found in the city of Johannesburg. A common characteristic of the Kwaito sound is the dialogue between a man and a woman with the woman mostly repeating the man's lines. It's usually distinguished as dance music with light subject matter and not really sung. It's more of a rhythmic speech. Kwaito usually engages with its audience by encouraging them to interact through a call-and-response manner. The artist really tries to engage its listeners.

So, what's the point? 

Well, ironically, not only does Kwaito resist a sense of Western-based oppression by remaining apolitical, but it also resists trends and constant presence of western influence in and of itself via its mode of production. Mhlambi  affirms it has remained the music of the SA youth after the struggle who wish to pursue rest and relaxation as opposed to dwelling in the past. The term "Kwaito" is also a very clear sign that oppression isn't something to be, or that will ever be forgotten. The danceability and poetry inherent to Kwaito, however, does show a reversion to better times-to cultural integrity.

Through Kwaito music, artists and youths collaborate to create, through music and dance, a realm where the struggle no longer exists.