A bookworm's guide to finding rare reads

One of my favourite things to do is shop for second-hand books. I love the thrill of scouring dusty shelves for rare gems that end up costing a fraction of their original price because they once belonged to someone else. I've put together a little guide of the best places to go second-hand bookshopping in Pretoria. Each shop has been rated out of five based on the variety, price, organisation and condition of books.  

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New video: Shadowclub | Melanielectriclove

Shadowclub have released a music video for "Melanielectriclove", the first single off their new album, Goodbye Wild Child. It's a short, quick song that packs in a lot of energy making this live performance setup directed by Mark Middlewick perfect.

Julia Geiser's surreal collages

Swiss artist Julia Geiser creates surreal collages with modern and vintage motifs. Sourcing the pictures she uses on the internet, Geiser's work is purely digital and on her website she warns that it is not made for print as it will lose its quality. Geiser also explains that her work oscillates between legal and aesthetic boundaries and that this "online voyeurism is an inspiration."

New Music: Bye Beneco | Overwhelm EP

                                                                                                                                                             PHOTO: Christelle Duvenage

Bye Beneco has released their first EP after signing with independent label Just Music. Overwhelm is an enchanting five track bouquet of blues-infused gypsy jazz that was recorded live when the band performed at the last Just Music Sessions. Overwhelm will be available for purchase on iTunes soon but you can enjoy listening to it on Soundcloud in the meantime.




Bye Beneco have also released an EPK for their new EP. Watch it below. 

MK Awards 2014: who should win, who will win & who got snubbed

MK may be off air but that doesn't mean the MK Awards are no longer. With the nominations announced today, it looks as if MK is doing things a bit differently this year. Categories like Best Group, Best Solo, Best SFX/Animation, Best Dance, Best Rock and Best Indie have been scrapped, while new categories like Album of the Year, Best Music Video Under R15k, and Best Afrikaans Group have been added. I'm happy about the inclusion of Album of the Year but I'm afraid that without the genre categories, some really great musicians will get looked over.

Below is a list of the nominees as well as who I think should win, will win and who got snubbed in each category.

Best Live Act: 

Bittereinder
Van Coke Kartel
Zebra & Giraffe
Desmond & The Tutus
Jeremy Loops
PH Fat

Who should win: It's a tough one. Bittereinder pay an enormous amount of detail to their live shows with spellbounding visuals and Peach and Louis always sporting fun masks. On the other hand, Jeremy Loops has developed a following that makes every one of his performances super special as the crowd sings and dances along. If either of them win, I'll be happy.

Who will win: Van Coke Kartel. They've taken the award home twice before and they have a throng of dedicated fans that will make sure they get enough votes to win.

Who got snubbed: As last year's Best Newcomer, Gangs of Ballet have developed a phenomenal live show. Brad Klynsmith is also an incredibly charismatic front man.

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Album of the Year: 

Gangs of Ballet- Yes/No/Grey
Shortstraw- Good Morning, Sunshine
The Plastics- Pyramid
Bittereinder- Die Dinkdansmasjien
Taxi Violence- Soul Shake

Who should win: Bittereinder. Die Dinkdansmasjien is magical.

Who will win: With their popular appeal, I think Shortstraw will take this one.

Who got snubbed: Nakhane Toure. His debut album, Brave Confusion, is one of my favourite of the year.

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Best Newcomer:

Al Bairre
Matthew Mole
Michael Lowman
Die Skynmaagde
Bye Beneco
Monark

Who should win: Matthew Mole.

Who will win: Matthew Mole. It's a no-brainer. Although I wouldn't mind if Al Bairre takes it too. [Side note: keep an eye out for Bye Beneco in 2014. I predict great things from them.]

Who got snubbed: Nakhane Toure. I'm a fan. Can you tell?

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Best Festival:

Up The Creek
Ramfest
Oppikoppi
Rocking The Daisies
Synergy

Who should win: It's tricky to say because I didn't go to all these festivals. I'm guessing Oppikoppi, though.

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Best Music Video:

Van Coke Kartel ft. Jack Parow- Chaos
Bicycle Thief- Goodbye Ian Curtis
Haezer ft Tumi- Troublemaker
The Plastics- Best Pretenders
PH Fat- House of Clashes
Wrestlerish- Battleground
Shortstraw- Waterworks
Bittereinder- Kwaad Naas

Who should win: I love the animation used in The Plastics's Best Pretenders but for me, Haezer and Tumi's Troublemaker is the most memorable.

Who will win: Everything Van Coke Kartel touches turns to gold. Add Jack Parow to the mix and I'd be surprised if anybody else stands a chance.

Who got snubbed: I think MK has it covered.

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Best music video under R15 000:

Al Bairre- We Move On
Bye Beneco- On The Line
Moving House- Tongue in Cheek
The Plastics- Occasional Lies
Desmond & The Tutus- The Future

Who should win: Bye Beneco. On The Line is a splendidly trippy video.

Who will win: Al Bairre. Have you seen how many YouTube hits We Move On has gotten?

Who got snubbed: Nakhane Toure's video for Fog. It's like a piece of performance art.

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Best Afrikaans Group:

Van Coke Kartel
Jack Parow
Die Skynmaagde
Spoegwolf
Dans Dans Lisa
Die Heuwels Fantasties

Who should win: I'm a bit confused by this category. It's not as if Afrikaans bands aren't allowed to be nominated in the other categories, so I'm not quite sure why they need one of their own. Van Coke Kartel are the most deserving, I rate.

Who will win: Jack Parow. His fans are formidable.

Who got snubbed: Bittereinder

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The awards will take place on 15 February at the State Theatre in Pretoria.The public has from 9 December till 20 January to vote on MK's website or their Facebook page.

Mana Morimoto's paper embroidery

Mana Morimoto's self-portrait. 

Mana Morimoto is a Japanese artist who combines black and white photographs with colourful thread embroideries. In an interview with Artchipel, Morimoto, who is also known as MNMRMT, spoke about her creative process and how she developed her aesthetic:

"I like the idea of using both digital and analog tool in my work; it can be a vintage photo, an image that I found on Google or a profile picture that I steal from my friend’s Facebook. I used to embroider on colour images at first but realise that the embroidered threads go better on a black and white image. The colour compositions become more three-dimension and vivid. So I decide to systematically change the colour picture into black and white. I print it out on a thick paper and make a bunch of holes using a needle before stitching. I complete the process by scanning and uploading the final work on my Tumblr."

Morimoto also says that the stitching and weaving process is therapeutic for her and always makes her feel better about things in her life.

New album: The Brother Moves On | A New Myth

                                                                                                                                                         PHOTO: Christelle Duvenage

The Brother Moves On have a had a tough time after founder Nkululeko Mthembu passed away last month. Despite this, they released their debut full length album, A New Myth, a compelling concoction of trippy African folk.

Anyone who has seen The Brother Moves On will agree that the real beauty lies in their theatrical live performances which force you to reassess everything you think you know about presenting music to an audience. The band describes it best in an interview with Okay Africa, where they talk about the place they think The Brother Moves On occupies in South African music culture. 

 "Our style changes with the individual characters that we play with, with the influx and movement of people coming in and coming out; and we love that.It’s a weird thing because that’s what the country’s about. We’ve always played the diversity card, however we haven’t in our culture fully accepted diversity. And that’s the big thing we do, we kind of open that up a lot. The character of this collective is based on individuals who all have their influences. The theatrical side is me standing for the fact that I won’t simply play in a band. I want to do something that engages; I want to do something different. So there is that space to bring what you are, wherever you’re from and we all agree to what each other wants to do."

Listen to A New Myth below. It is also available to download on Bandcamp.