Six Strings of Tension

This week we return to Durban to speak with the passionate (and productive!) Mandy James. Any Durbanites who are into the alternative scene will know Mandy from the many stages upon which she performs, the musical videos on her Instagram page, and the incredible energy and enthusiasm she brings to any instrument she wields.

In the interview we discuss how her current bands, Saturn Return and Sons of Shem, are musical expressions of empowerment, both personally and socially. Given that Saturn Return have erupted to the fore of the Durban scene, we take the time to talk about their position as a female-fronted band championing women's empowerment, and their subsequent experiences both negative (in the form of sexist sound guys and patronising comments) and positive (the huge reception and resonance they have tapped into with their audience, whilst providing visibility of the LGBTQI community in rock and roll circles in South Africa).

We also chat about the current state of guitar-based music in Durban, which (forgive the horrendous cliché) is in the throes of rising like a phoenix from the ashes of its recent collapse (most significantly symbolised by the closure of the Winston Pub), and the emergence of new venues such as the Westville Warehouse, Ace's Pizza, and the semi-rogue Alive Events filling the long-stagnant void of Durban's once vibrant music scene. Mandy, and both her bands Saturn Return and Sons of Shem are currently key players this new wave of original Durban music, as many of the veteran artists, performers and bands have moved on to Cape Town and Gauteng in pursuit of new opportunities. 

The discussion also broaches more personal topics, such as Mandy's experience of falling into the misconception that in order to create "good" art, one must be in a place of suffering, at the expense of personal and mental health. While music may be an incredible way to work through emotional difficulties, this is certainly a darker narrative that I have seen all too many talented musicians fall into.

But the conversation covers all kinds of weird and wonderful other stuff too - parody folk, Backstreet Boys covers, unfortunate electrical capers with American-made guitars, house fires, slamming too many tequilas and falling on stage in Amanzimtoti... The joys of rock and roll, baby.

So take the time to give the episode a listen, and hear some six-stringed tales directly from one of Durban's most exciting players.

I never would have dreamed that by episode 5 I would be interviewing quite possibly my favourite guitar player currently tickling the strings, but here we are. For this episode I had the privilege of having a lengthy, and incredibly enjoyable conversation with the reputationally enigmatic, yet remarkably warm, Ben Chasny - the psych-folk, and at times, noisy musical adventurer of Six Organs of Admittance, Rangda, New Bums, Comets on Fire, and a plethora of other projects.

I'd suggest you just hit play on the interview right now, but in summary, we cover Ben's origins as an acoustic guitar wielding hermit after his dad introduced him to the breathtaking playing of Nick Drake, leading to the early days of Six Organs, which has blossomed into the sprawling, genre-defying catalogue of music the project has come to be known for today. 

We chat about guitars (it's a guitar podcast, after all) and specifically about Ben's somewhat limited guitar collection - across the entirety of his career he's only had three (!) acoustic guitars. Along the way, he mentions that the bad action on his first acoustic was a probable contributing factor to the adoption of open tunings, which ultimately became a defining characteristic of Six Organs' music. We also get a little nerdy and celebrate the "even-ness" of tone which nickel strings provide - seriously, if you are an acoustic player and you haven't tried them yet, get on the nickel string train!

As the conversation progresses, secrets are revealed! There's a lot in the pipeline, including a number of new albums, and some Hexadic developments, but most exciting (for me, anyway) is that Ben recorded an entire album with British guitar maestro, Rick Tomlinson (Voice of the Seven Woods, etc.) back in 2016, which is pending the final master before (a hopefully soon) release. Basically, Ben is a very busy man, gifting our ears with his remarkable and prolific output. Aside from his own music, Ben also takes a moment to turn me onto the incredible guitarist James Blackshaw, and that's been on heavy rotation ever since.

Those are a few highlights, but we speak about a whole bunch of other things (shredding, Mr Bungle, "spiritual" music, Leo Kottke, the piezo "tone of death", Fripp's League of Crafty Guitarists, etc.), and honestly, this was one of the most enjoyable conversations I've had in a very long time. I cannot thank Ben enough for taking the time to come on the show and talk guitar, and I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed the conversation.

Ah yes, episode four, and we're getting into some meaty deep conversations now. This time with the noise-making, guitar-smashing, all-round swell fella, Evan van Zyl.

This one is really interesting, because, as discussed in the episode with Cameron Lofstrand, Evan is one of the most unique and distinctive guitarists in the Durban music scene. He is a very tall man who plays a rather small guitar, which he hunches over and absolutely pummels into noisy oblivion, whilst storming into the guts of unsuspecting audiences, head butting and wreaking absolute chaos in his wake - and it is an electrifying experience to behold. Undoubtedly, Taekwondo Sleepover are my favourite band to watch live. They are a blessing to us in these dark and torrid times, as they bestow unto us even darker, more torrid music (also, they recently dropped a brand new single called Sapling, so I suggest you go and listen to that before listening to the podcast).

As the above insinuates, Evan is the guitarist of Taekwondo Sleepover, but he also wields six strings (as well as percussion, bass and various other objects) in Temple of - a band which is almost the total opposite of Taekwondo Sleepover, consisting of acoustic, indie and folk musings bordering on pop music. Worth mentioning that Temple of is a duo between Evan and Damon Miles of the legendary Durban psych band MOUSE. Two noisy giants (although really, only one of them is giant in stature) collide and create some of the most beautiful, tear-inducing acoustic ballads to come out of the sweaty streets of Durban. I sincerely hope to be hearing a lot more music from them in the coming months and years.

But anyway, this conversation covers Evan's beginnings as the drummer of The Myths, his love of Lars Von Trier and David Lynch films (and how cinema influences his music), the pros and cons of music meme culture, a brutal review of the new Batman movie, why Silent Hill 2 is Evan's favourite game ever (mine is Dark Souls, a game which Evan sort of "mentored" me through on my first playthrough), the horrors of sexual assault in international music scenes, and a juicy update on some mainstream musical beefs (i.e. the conversation gets horribly derailed, and much like a highway car crash, it is impossible to look away).

Let the darkness envelop you, as we dive into what was one of the most enjoyable conversations I've had on this show yet.

Who better for episode 3 than that beautiful man, Cam? Cameron Lofstrand is primarily known as the screaming demon and guitar abusing front man of Black Math, but can be found littered across stages and recordings all over the country, playing in bands such as Return to Worm Mountain, Taekwondo Sleepover, The Sisters, Hadeda, Feast of Famine, and most recently, Slump (along with heaps of other bands - forgive me, I am too lazy to name them all). 

In this conversation we discuss his musical beginnings, starting when he saw a cartoon band on TV as a child (very appropriate, given Cam's career in illustration and design - check out his Instagram page to see some of his incredible work), to "borrowing" sound equipment from a local church during the formation of Black Math, and eventually flourishing as a multi-instrumentalist and recording engineer in the contemporary "alternative" music scenes of Durban, and South Africa more broadly. 

We speak about our shared love for King Crimson, making music in disparate genres, experimenting with sound and recording, and open tunings. Cam delves into the secrets of his songwriting craft as a means to purge and cleanse himself of uncomfortable emotions like anger, sadness, rage and frustration, and the joys of writing both collaboratively and alone. Basically, there are some remarkable insights about Cam's process and approach to creating music in this discussion.

I'm also very pleased to say that I managed to unlock Cam's inner guitar nerd sensibilities, as our discussion veers into his love of effects and favourite pedal configurations (if anyone from Electro-Harmonix reads this, please can y'all start making the Ring Thing again), as well as starry eyed fawning over the magnificence of Fender amps (specifically Hot Rods, which Cam explicitly states are the greatest amps ever). We also attempt (and fail dismally) to talk about guitar tonewoods.

But anyway... Here's a conversation with a dear friend and one of the greatest musicians South Africa has ever produced.

Second episode baby! This time with the refined and magnificent songwriter that is Barron Harley. 

Personally, I believe his one man project, Ugly Boyfriend, features some of the best songwriting happening in the world today in terms of catchy, emotive and heartfelt outsider pop, with just a shimmer of punk leanings. He is, however probably most well-known for his punky, yet simultaneously understated and complex band, Hated Related. Anyway, this is a guy who wields the guitar as a tool to conjure up songs to comfort and caress in the tear-soaked sheets and on the cocaine-dusted streets.

We speak about how a David Bowie DVD he saw when he was 12 kicked off his musical journey, his love for twangy Fender Telecasters, jangly Vox amps, and get deep into discussions around the Durban music scene specifically - the clubs, the people, the open mics, the beefs, etc.

The conversation ranges across discussion topics from the craft and joy of two and a half minute long songs, Oscar Pistorius putting South Africa on the map, and the outsider magic of Daniel Johnston.

Anyway, allow me to invite you to listen to an in-depth and unguarded conversation with one of Durban's finest songwriters.

The first episode of Six Strings of Tension is out! Our first guest is the enigmatic William Graham Randles of Seven Rivers of Fire, Rise Up, Dead Man and Dr Haphazard's Magic Factory.

In our conversation we discuss his roots as a hip hop fan and lo-fi bedroom producer as Dr Haphazard's Magic Factory, and thereafter reconnecting with acoustic, "traditional" roots music, triggering his move back to playing acoustic guitar and ultimately spawning the projects Seven Rivers of Fire and Rise Up, Dead Man.

The discussion also covers philosophical understandings and approaches to music as a spiritual expression of love and transcendentalism, the many names of God, being spiritually informed by growing up in the cultural melting pot of Durban, the limitations of language, the glory of old spiritual songs, and littering the Hermit Hut inbox with unsolicited bandcamp download codes (apologies to Ben Chasny of Six Organs of Admittance).

Nonetheless, please enjoy this conversation with a remarkable, enigmatic, and above all, unique guitar player, spawned from the green streets of Durban, South Africa.