The Sound of South African House

“It was played in shebeens and taverns and clubs like Razzmattaz in Hillbrow and Gemini in Pretoria,” explained South African house and kwaito legend Oskido to Maria McCloy who runs the informative Rage website in Jo’Burg and wrote the liner notes to this well timed release. From its humble roots in the late 80s when the house scene revolved around a few small clubs and imported vinyl, house music has grown to eclipse its close cousin kwaito, becoming a huge industry and a viable career choice for thousands of aspiring DJs and producers. “From copying international house beats and mixing them with Shangan, Zulu or Xhosa township raps in early kwaito it has now gone full circle,” explains Georg Milz from Munich label Outhere. “It turned into a local culture that combines a love for long lost African sounds, urban township culture and the latest international trends.” ‘Ayoba’ a township term for cool has become the rallying cry for a whole new generation of post apartheid youth and this compilation captures the vibrancy of the new urban culture.

While the European and American dance market faded in the 90s, in South Africa compilations (the dominant format here) regularly sell over 100,000 copies. A recent trip to Jo’burg revealed the extent of house music’s grip on the youth, with daytime radio stations such as YFM blasting out house music day and night, and stars like DJ Fresh advertising mobile phones on primetime TV. “House is a culture and a lifestyle here,” confirms DJ Cleo who offers the immensely catchy ‘Nisho Njalo’ from his 190,000 selling Eskhaleni series. “Aside from being heard in clubs and parties it’s all over radio, on TV shows, you’ll hear it at churches and weddings, at election campaigns and government functions and at the airport and train stations and blazing out of mini bus taxis.” The Jo’burg based Cleo is one of the many producers who has straddled the often blurred line between kwaito and house which is where we find a lot of the tracks on this excellent CD. L'vovo Derango is a one of a growing number of Durban based producers (like Bricks and Big Nuz) who are bridging that gap and creating a distinctly raw and infectious sound that is grabbing the nation’s youth. The opening track here ‘Resista’ is in the words of LV “a mix of kwaito and house with Zulu lyrics”, a bumpy electro ride similar in scope to that of ‘Bayakhuluma’ by fellow Durban producer DJ Bongz, a dedication to other hometown legends like DJ Tira and Fisherman. Trust me this sound is large in South Africa right now.

Mujava - Mugwanti/Sgejegweje

Another town creating its own sound is Pretoria where Mujava’s House Therapy label holds sway. This troubled producer broke through with the prescient ‘Township Funk’, which got a worldwide release on Warp after an incredibly funky video appeared on YouTube. “Out in Jo’Burg they mostly listen to deep house,” explains Mujava. “In Pretoria we listen to more tribal music, more drums.” And that nicely describes the pounding ‘Mugwanti/Sgejegweje’ off this compilation. While the local scene continues to grow, South African house is drawing in a big following on dancefloors overseas. To date it’s been the deeper soulful sound of Culoe De Song and Black Coffee that’s translated best to dancefloors such as Libation in New York and Dance Culture in Paris. That deep sound is wonderfully captured here by Shana’s ‘Iyo’Londaba’ a beautiful slice of Afro soul that features the immense talent that is Black Coffee. DJ Fresca, meanwhile, is just one of the growing number of women coming through on the scene. The xhosa lyrics on the killer ‘Int’engekhoyo’ revolve around a woman who is tired of her lover’s “careless antics” and it offers a nice contrast to the many clichéd videos that accompany house and kwaito tracks. With websites like Afrodesia, where young producers can upload their own tracks for sale, and increasing access to cheap technology and the web, it remains to be seen just how far the South Africa house scene can grow. “Ayobaness” indeed.

Ayobaness! - The Sound of South African House is out now on Outhere Records.

www.myspace.com/ayobaness

Andy Thomas

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