Jeremy Loops opening for Xavier Rudd at Parklife Joburg.
It's been a wondrous year for Jeremy Loops so far. He opened for Australian musician Xavier Rudd in both Joburg and Cape Town, he nabbed the award for Best Solo Act at the MK Awards last Sunday and then, this week, he announced that he's off to tour the UK and the States in May. With every reason to be in a celebratory mood, Mr Loops decided to release his track, "Down South", for free. It was recorded live for Balcony TV in Joburg.
This one, he's going places alright.
Download "Down South" below.
Watch "Down South" being played live at on Balcony TV.
After watching the MK Awards from
my not-so-comfy couch at home last year, I was mighty chuffed to get the chance
to go this year's event which took place last night at the State Theatre in
Pretoria.
In case you missed it: the list of winners (and my two cents worth).
Bittereinder's Jaco van der Merwe
and Straatligkinders frontman Bouwer Bosch hosted the awards, and their witty
repartee was quite amusing to watch. Other presenters included last year's
host, Jack Parow as well as Toya Delazey and Shane Durrant. I find the last one
quite ironic, considering Desmond & The Tutus have been snubbed since their
inception, but the audience burst out laughing each time Shane dryly read off
the teleprompter, insuring that he quickly became not only a crowd favourite,
but a Twitter favourite too.
Performances:
Bittereinder kicked things off with
their performance of “Die Woud”, which featured Magdalene Minnaar’s chillingly
ethereal vocals. Iso emerged from beneath the stage to perform a medley of
sorts. It would simply be a crime not to mention the band’s meticulously styled
hair in this here blog post, so there it is. Living up to the hype that has
surrounded them, Afrikaans folk rock band, Spoegwolf, delivered a solid show.
Tailor wowed everyone with another one of her intense performances while Van
Coke Kartel once again proved why they are awards favourites. Jaco van der
Merwe and Bouwer Bosch performed “Kanker”, a tribute to a friend who
has just passed away from cancer. As winners of the Best Live Act category,
Black Cat Bones ended things off, confirming that they are a live act to beat.
Man, I’m so glad that these chaps have finally gotten the credit they deserve.
Although I'm not entirely convinced of the merits of a viewer-voting system for an awards show, this year's MK Awards was well put together and heaps of fun. The Tomato watches we got as gifts were pretty rad too.
The MK Awards are taking place on Sunday. In spirit of the rock star dress code, I've put a couple of outfits together. It's all about adding a splodge of masculinity to your look. It's about heavy leather and studs, only to be accessorized with ample attitude.
