Hot Box Studios

 I was fortunate enough to see a great concert in Pretoria this past Friday. The venue was Hotbox Studios, a run-of-the-mill house only a few blocks from where I live, that has been transformed into one of Pretoria's hippest venues. The house/venue is lived in and operated by six or seven guys around my age, and I give them all the credit for providing an awesome space. The vast backyard is where the action takes place, as the stage is constructed backing into the house (so backstage is their living room), with picnic tables and a rudimentary but highly functional bar towards the back. There were hundreds of people there, and from what the people I was rolling with said, it was a smaller crowd. The two bands hailed from Pretoria, so it was nice to see local talent represented (as Jo'burg and Cape Town have a reputation for being more on the artistic cutting-edge).

The first band that played was Fulka ( their facebook page), blurrily pictured above. They are a self-proclaimed "folktronica" band with catchy songs and an affable indie tone. Four versatile musicians shared the duties of playing the violin, banjo, keyboard, and guitar while being backed by a laptop maestro pumping out electo beats. The result was quite fun. Check out their video:

The second band, Bittereinder, was comprised of three guys all with prior established musical credentials. They have joined forces to make an album, and actually this was their first live show! The group consists of two producers (who  also do back-up vocals) and an MC. The lyrics were all in Afrikaans, so I could not understand what was being said. But all indications pointed to it being pretty deep. My hunch was corroborated by people I talked to afterwords, who said it the verses "were like poetry." The crowd ate it up and it was fun to experience hip hop in a different language (I am gearing up for a whopping entry on South African hip hop, where multilingualism  will be further discussed). I chatted with the MC for a quick minute after the show and he was a kind, humble dude.

Here is an interview done with them


Here is their first video:

They had a guest MC come oon for a few songs. His name is Tumi Molekwane. That brings me to my next point...