Rolling Stone South Africa Rockstarter Final – ‘Last Band Standing’ (15 August 2013)
/Date of event: 15 August 2013
There’s nothing like a good old-fashioned ‘battle of the bands’ to bring out the best in burgeoning local talent, and the final round of the Rolling Stone South Africa Rockstarter search at Mercury Live on Thursday 15th August 2013 saw some fascinating performances from the last two gladiators left in the arena.
Cortina Whiplash
The first competitors were Cortina Whiplash, a Gauteng-based rock outfit that brought showmanship equally matched with substance. Donning Venetian masks and dousing lead singer & bassist Loandi Boersma in gold paint, the trio’s aggressive metal-tinged attack diverged with elusive reggae ramblings, backed by the elastic vocals of Boersma.
Opening with a slow-burning cover of Radiohead’s ‘Climbing Up The Walls’, Cortina Whiplash painted a set of more than just primary colours, experimenting with sounds and rhythms in fascinating fashion.
Ballistic Blues
The boys from the appropriately-named Ballistic Blues were next into the arena, and got off to a rollicking start, forging their blues-based salvos with an upbeat, rock ‘n roll rhythm.
The Cape Town-based band goes with two guitarists: Tyan Odendaal on lead and howling Nick Forbes on rhythm and vocals. Beneath that mountain of frizzy hair emanates a gravelly, nuanced voice that deftly carries hits like ‘No Harm’ and ‘Roll Along’ from their self-titled EP. Shuffle-blues is another potent weapon in the Blues’ arsenal, slowing down the tempo, but never sacrificing the intensity.
The Black Cat Bones
The dust had barely settled before the more senior headliners for the evening, The Black Cat Bones, took to the stage, whilst behind the scenes, representatives of Rolling Stone South Africa, The Kraken Rum, and VH Music & Publishing deliberated over the final decision.
This allowed for lead singer Kobus de Kock Jr. to hold court over the Mercury crowd, his throaty vocals smoking under the riff-based melting pot of blues rock, causing a delirious deluge of dancing. The Bones’ structures are tight and simple, but win one over by sheer force of will, as they delve deep into the heart of blues.
The Results
Midway through The Black Cat Bones’ barnstorming set, the four-month long nationwide search culminated with an unprecedented result: both groups would share the honours, and with it, a feature in Rolling Stone South Africa, an album recording at VH Music & Publishing, as well as the opportunity to serve as worthy ambassadors of The Kraken Rum for a year.
There was much to celebrate, and both bands joined the Bones onstage for an impromptu collaboration to cap off their hard-earned shared victory. Whilst lead singers Forbes and Boersma danced and sang alongside the irrepressible de Kock Jr., the young Odendal precociously duelled with Bones guitarist Andre Kriel during some rousing Zeppelin-esque stompers, capably keeping up with the powerful rhythm section.
Two gladiators entered the arena that night, and two left it victorious.
Tyan Odendal (lead guitarist of Ballistic Blues) plays alongside Andre Kriel (guitarist of The Black Cat Bones)