The Answer To What?

When people mention South Africa what do you think of? For me its Johnty Rhodes, Springboks, Nelson Mandella and years of Aphartheid. That and the adorable Afrikaans accent. I most certainly do not think of 'next-level' rave and hip-hop until now.

Im probably a little slow on the uptake as they've been around for a while, but with the Big Day Out announcement and me having been overseas I've only recently discovered the sonic power of Die Antwoord.



Promoting the development of Zef (from what I can gather, the mixing of somewhat old-school sounding rave music with hip hop and bass production through the roof) its hard to tell whether or not these guys are serious. Just like that stupid bitch Lily Allen they found their niche and primary fanbase through the internet. It feels like a throwback to a time long ago when you look at that video above, suburbia and childhood friends, whether or not its the truth is hard to tell. A grown man that looks like he wouldnt be out of place at Mt Druitt station, a relatively cute/tough-slut looking chick who.. well.. also wouldnt be out of place in Mt Druitt and a DJ that seems to look different in every single clip you look at. Who would've thought they'd take the world by storm..? Well to be honest I think you'll find its more 'good business' than pure luck.

Ninja as he likes to call himself actually goes by the name of Watkin Tudor Jones - a South African rapper who has been going since the 90s and developed a considerable amount of credibility on the local scene. With a list of aliases and groups that he is in and a couple of albums under his belt it seems pretty obvious that he came into this project with a business plan, and could it have worked more amazingly? International sensation all thanks to a retro sound and enhancing the interwebs. They've been playing gigs and festivals all over the world - and how many artists do you know that have obtained that kind of success from South Africa?



After releasing their material themselves last year, mixed with the international wonders of the internet, they guys have received distribution deals in all the major markets, and Australia too! Is the album itself any good? Ive got it and I havent taken it out of my car yet. Thats on its own doesnt make it a positive review but I will say this - the beats are absolutely fantastic, a throwback to when I actually used to go out to clubs, get on a few disco biscuits and dance the night away, and the rap works well over the top. The contrast between male 'gangstar' and female vocals ranging from pop to sleaze works well too. One of the things I personally enjoy about these guys is the fact that they still do a considerable amount of their rap and singing in Afrikaans. I dont know how to speak it but being half Dutch and having just spent time in Holland it.. sounds familiar. Not only that, in some ways it still makes me feel like I'm on holiday. I also enjoy the fact that, even with my shit sound system, my boot still makes that fully-sick vibrating sound when I listen to these guys. Hektik.

Die Antwoord are coming to Australia in January for the Big Day Out and apart from Rammstein they'd have to be the act I'm most excited about. I don't even know if they'll be good but its definitely worth a look isnt it? I think a good summary of what attracts me to these guys can be found in a definition of 'Zef' from Yo-landi Vi$$er:

"It's associated with people who soup their cars up and rock gold and shit. Zef is, you're poor but you're fancy. You're poor but you're sexy, you've got style."

Coming from Western Sydney, as the majority of the WBDF crew does, I can relate to their desire. The more I think about it the more I stand corrected. Nancy has that whole 'Im from Melbourne' pretense, Chris has that whole 'Im an accountant and earn billions of dollars' pretense, Dean has the whole 'I grew up in the west but now I live in Newtown' pretense and Clint has that whole 'Im gorgeous, I dont belong here' pretense. Maybe Pix and I are the only ones left in the target demographic. Maybe Pix has got a pretense I dont know about. Either way, you won't find any of the other guys jamming in the back of a Taxi.


I equated these guys to people from Mt Druitt before (for you Melbourne people I'm assuming its like Frankston) but the more I think about it, the more of an insult that is. When Mt Druitt can turn its wasted bogan residents into productive musical artists (and GOOD ones at that) then maybe it'll be an apt description. Either way I'll be Zeffin' it up at the Big Day Out, I suggest you get your Pink Floyd Bermuda shorts and do the same.