Shortstraw Begins with a Bam

As I said I would in last week’s blog post, I attended the concert of Shortstraw and Bam Bam Brown at Kirstenbosch Gardens on Sunday evening. The atmosphere was relaxed and positive, and this time the lawn was large and the picnics were plentiful.

…The air begins to cool and anticipation bubbles – cue Bam Bam Brown!

Bam Bam Brown was born in Cape Town and defines itself as a genderless and genre-less. It comprises of Kieron Brown, whose writing and singing is inspired by nature and groove. Sunday was Bam Bam’s first ever performance at Kirstenbosch Gardens. The musician has up until now performed mainly at music festivals such as Into The Wild. Although Bam Bam Brown is a one-member band, several others joined Kieron on stage: there were three back-up singers, two guitarists and one drummer that performed alongside him. Later into the performance the group were joined by Jules Terea, another Cape Town musician who used to sing with Kieron a few years ago before starting his career as a single artist.

The performers were incredibly enthusiastic. All three backup singers were dancing, the guitarists and the drummer were headbanging, and Kieron himself was doing an energetic combination of the two. Needless to say, there was a lot of hair involved. Another interesting thing about the performers was that each of them had a different paint pattern on their faces. Bam Bam Brown is recognised for the stripe smeared across his eyes, and I thought that this face paint was different and fun. The only downside was that the singing was very off-key, and that the harmonies did not sound great.

My mother tended to agree with me, but I can definitely see the appeal. In a festival environment, everyone is just in the mood to have a party. Kieron’s enthusiasm and energy would fit in far better with young and groovy people rather than in a family setting. I would definitely call Bam Bam Brown a performer of note – perhaps I am just too critical when it comes to vocals.

…The sun begins to set and the feet prepare to move – cue Shortstraw!

Shortstraw is already quite a well-recognised band throughout South Africa and was voted the Best Indie Band in 2013. I absolutely love this band and their jivy, good-feel music. From the moment Shortstraw took to the stage, the audience were up on their feet and dancing. They definitely didn’t display as much enthusiasm and energy as Bam Bam Brown had, but the vibe in the audience was magical and the band members interacted on a regular basis. Perhaps the most memorable part of the performance was when a shirtless fan with portraits of the lead singer, Alastair Thomas, pasted to his pecs came onto the scene. He climbed onto the shoulders of another and began chanting for the band to play their song titled Keanu Reeves. Eventually the whole audience was chanting, and Shortstraw had no choice but to oblige.

Since the request messed with the set, there was a slight technical difficulty getting back into the swing of things. During this time Alastair attempted to make small talk with the audience asking questions such as “how is work”, “how was your day” and commenting on the weather. This sparked great amusement throughout the crowd. Following this, Alistair encouraged everyone to sing happy birthday to the keyboardist, Gad De Combes.

The overall performance was incredibly enjoyable. The vocals were sharp, the instrumentals were groovy and the atmosphere was joyous. Once the set had finished, Shortstraw were called back by the crowd for an encore. I am proud to have been part of that call. When everything ended, I was lucky enough to meet the band members and snap a photo with them.

I found Sunday evening to be highly entertaining and an all-round positive experience. My next musical adventure takes place on Wednesday when I go to watch Ed Sheeran live in concert at the Cape Town Stadium! I am beyond excited, and so should you be to find out all about it right here next Wednesday!