Miles – Moodphase 5ive

Steady On – Moodphase 5ive

When you put this song on, you immediately think that the ‘Miles’ in the title refers to Miles Davis as the intro is a relaxed and jazzy trumpet. But after a few seconds of this ploughing a lone furrow, it is joined by a chilled-out drums ‘n bass style beat and a few seconds later Ernestine Deane’s silky vocals slink into the song singing ‘I drove for miles’. So just what miles does the title of this superb Moodphase 5ive track refer to, the jazz trumpeter or the distance between here and music heaven?

Well, the trumpet, that continues to pop up throughout the song, certainly suggests a link to Miles Davis. On this track the horn of Africa comes courtesy of Douglas Armstrong (wonder if he ever went under the name Mielies Davis?) and keeps remind one that this is a kind of jazz track. This feel is accentuated when Ernestine starts singing skat style later in the song.

But the insistent beats are somewhat at odds with the jazzy sound, miles away from it, you could say. But in a strange way it works and works well. The relaxed feel of the song (which has a flute occasionally fluttering around in it) puts one in your favourite coffee shop on a lazy afternoon, sipping your brew and chilling while the world goes by. You go into a dreamy state and are miles away. So perhaps the ‘miles’ in the title refers to this state of mind

But none of that really matters. Quibbling over what the song title is about misses the point that this is a song to relax to and not spend time fretting over. There is a reason it spent 3 weeks at 1 on the SA Rockdigest charts.

Where to find it:
Steady On – Moodphase 5ive, (2000), African Dope, ADOPECD002

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Hoenderman – Kobus!

Kobus! – Kobus!

The word quirky sometimes comes to mind when I think of Kobus!. But not the sort of clean cut quirky of bands like Devo or early Talking Heads. Neither is it the obscure rock quirkiness of people like Frank Zappa or Captain Beefheart. There is a sort of sinister quirkiness to Kobus! They sit on the darker side of the quirky spectrum. Just have a look at the video for ‘Hoenderman’ (see below) and you will surely come away a little disturbed.

Not only are the images in the video a little nightmarish at times (although interspersed with girls dancing in various environments which reminds one of The Spice Girls’ video for ‘Say You’ll Be There’) but the different vocals also unsettle one. A sort of witchy voice has a conversation with the rough growl of a voice that has escaped from a Slipknot track and occasionally a goth growl also has a look in on this strange tale of an encounter with die hoenderman, a devilish character.

And then there’s the frenzied clucking of chickens against thudding industrial beats that pops into the song every now and then. One is not sure whether to laugh, cry or run away. ‘Hoederman’ does have a kind of car crash attraction to it. You know you shouldn’t stare, but you can’t help yourself slowing down to look. It’s bizarre, weird, enticing, scary and exciting all in one. There was nothing like it before and there has been nothing like it since.

The song made it to number 2 on the SA Rockdigest charts and spent a record 30 weeks on those charts. The album from which it came, simply entitled ‘Kobus!, made it to the top of the SA Rockdigest charts and was only beaten by Moodphase 5ive’s ‘Steady On’ for weeks on the charts (46 compared to 54). Listen to ‘Hoederman’ if you dare, it’s a song for those who are not chicken.

Where to find it:
Kobus! – Kobus! (2002), ENT Entertainment, CDENT001

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Steady On – Moodphase 5ive

Steady On – Moodphase 5ive

Back in 2001, record label African Dope were putting out some interesting music. Based in Observatory in Cape Town, they tapped into a chilled out hip hop groove that was happening in the Mother City. They brought us the likes of Felix LaBand and a rejuvenated Kalahari Surfers, but one of their early released garnered a lot of interest on the local music scene and that release was Moodphase 5ive’s album ‘Steady On’.

The album spent 5 weeks at the top of the SA Rockdigest charts and went on to spend 54 weeks in that publication’s top 20, the all time record for those charts. The title track also topped the singles charts, although it only spent 1 week at 1 and 4 weeks on the charts.

It’s a funky song, with a laid back rap and some soulful vocals courtesy of Ernestine (‘Ernie’)  Deane giving an overall feel not too dissimilar to The Fugees. It chugs along on a steady bassline with the rap being the driving pistons that keep the song moving while Ernestine supplies the scenery. And there’s something very Cape Town-y about it. Perhaps it’s the sunny but laid back feel to the song that captures the soul of the city and bottles it into just under 4 minutes of groove ‘n jazz funksoul.

The album spawned 5 SA Rockdigest hits, 3 of which topped the charts and it was clear then, that this was a special group. Sadly they only made one further album, but Ernie did go on to do some solo work and brought us the amazing ‘Praha Paradise’ as well as working with Mikanic. Listening to ‘Steady On’ may find you demanding more from this seminal band, but perhaps you need to obey the song title and just be grateful for what you’ve got.

Where to find it:
Steady On – Moodphase 5ive, (2000), African Dope, ADOPECD002

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Praha Paradise – Ernie (Ernestine Deane)

African Dope Vol 1

Praha, for those of you who don’t know is the local name for Prague, the Capital of the Czech Republic. Anyone who has visited this beautiful city with its magnificent cathedral and the stunning Charles Bridge across the Vltava River would immediately understand someone referring to a Praha paradise. Ernie’s (Ernestine Deane from Moodphase 5ive) idea of this paradise is a slightly seedy sounding dub laden tune which is coated by her breathy vocal in a layer of silk.

The song falls neatly into the trip-hop genre that acts such as Massive Attack and Tricky were the exponents of and there is no reason why this song could not sit comfortably at the table with anything offered by the aforementioned. It has tight production and great vocal performance and is a bubbling cauldron of bass and voice. Put simply this is the best trip-hop song to come from South of the equator.

‘Praha Paradise’ spent 15 weeks on the SA Rockdigest top 20 of which 1 was spent at the number 1 spot.

Where to find it:
African Dope Vol 1 – Various (2001), Sony Music, CDEPC 8193

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