Local independent afro-rock band, Jackal and the Wind. PHOTO: Jackal and the Wind Facebook page.
Independent afro-rock band, Jackal and the Wind, are howling once again after a brief break whilst drummer, Johan Pretorius, toured Europe.
Pretorius touched down last week Wednesday and the band kicked off the end of their month-long hiatus with a festive, music-filled weekend.
Jackal and the Wind smashed out a groovy gig at one of their favourite live music venues, Café Roux Sessions, in Noordhoek, Cape Town on Friday (23 August) before Bergfest in Paarl on Saturday (24 August).
Jackal and the Wind at Cafe Roux Sessions in Noordhoek, Cape Town on Friday, 23 August. A happy coincidence in the form of two cut-outs of Wolftrap’s logo, aptly crooning on the wall, frames the stage. Left to right: Callum Dokkodo on guitar, Chris Kruger lead vocals and guitar, Johan Pretorius on drums and Alex Mayers on bass. PHOTO: Catherine Del Monte
Third-year student of viticulture at Stellenbosch University, Christopher Kruger (lead vocalist and guitarist) started the band 6 years ago in 2013 with his older brother as a fun experiment in their garage.
“Before they [current band members] joined the band, it was just me and my brother and we never thought anything of the band. We just made music in our garage and that was it. It was a fucking mess actually,” chuckles Kruger.
“Our philosophy was that we’re going to do this because we like it and we’re going to have fun.”
The way the current mix of members came together is your classic “small-world” story.
After their first drummer sadly passed away from a genetic disease, Johan Pretorius (full-time musician), with whom Kruger attended Paarl Boys High, came into the mix.
Later, their original bassist quit and Alex Mayers – also a full-time musician – assumed the position.
Mayers was the bass guitar lecturer at a music school in Cape Town when Pretorius pulled him onto the stage as a “stand-in” at Dizzy’s in Camps Bay and Splashy Fen in Kwazulu Natal.
Alex Mayers, commander of the six-string bass guitar, on stage during the band’s first set at Cafe Roux Sessions on Friday, 23 August. PHOTO: Gavin Willmers.
Kruger’s brother was the last to leave and Callum Dokkodo became the latest addition to the band family.
Mayers met Dokkodo while studying music at UCT. When the gap for a guitarist opened up, Dokkodo was the first person Mayers thought of.
Mayers and Dokkodo also play in Cape Town-based soul-hop band called Androgenius.
Life experiences, love, death and film are but some of the lyric inspirations, laid on a bed of guitar riffs influenced by late Zimbabwean afro-jazz legend, Oliver “Tuku” Mtukudzi, as well as the late afro-pop giant, Johnny Clegg.
While talking about the music-making process, Mayers adds that “it’s not as mystical and enigmatic as it seems. There’s actually a process. You find material that works well together harmonically. It’s a matter of taste combined with a collective decision and then you come up with something that everyone can agree they like enough. It’s always a compromise,” Dokkodo adds.
“I think the thing I really like about playing with these guys is, I come from a background of a trained musician where I try and keep my skills up so I can experiment and improvise whilst they [the band] play things that they have decided are parts of the song. If something is conflicting, they won’t tell me immediately, they’ll trust that I’ll hear that and move into something else,” comments Mayers.
With strings warmed up and Pretorius’s hair let down, the band slipped into a groovy energy. PHOTO: Gavin Willmers
“What I really like about playing shows with this band is that every show I’ve played, there has always been a very cool audience – lots of different people which I don’t see at other shows when I play for other bands. Audiences who are there because they appreciate the band and what the band has to offer and it is a pretty rare thing,” says Dokkodo.
Kruger adds: “I don’t think we can tick a box and I love that about our music.”
Jackal and the Wind have also featured at First Thursdays in Cape Town, River Republic in Swellendam, Up The Creek in Barrydale, and Rocking the Daisies in 2017 where they were chosen as the “wild card” band in the lucky draw competition.
While Daisies is one of the biggest gigs the band has played to date, the consensus on the experience was lukewarm.
Chris comments that: “You know, I much prefer a more intimate gig, for instance, at Aandklas. Those gigs are way more insane for me than standing on a massive stage where it’s sometimes hard to connect completely with people.”
Audience member and bassist for Port Elizabeth-based, rockabilly blues band, “The Cottonfields”, Gavin Willmers, expressed his enjoyment after the gig.
“Their personalities complemented their music very well. Each member is unique which shows in their stage performance as well as musically. It’s almost like spilling smarties into a popcorn box and discovering an accidental, yet delightful flavour.”
Jackal and the Wind released a dynamic single, “Everything Slow” early in July, before dropping a second EP called “The Dog Tree”, which they released on the 27th of July in a show at the Ou Meul Theatre, Paarl – Kruger and Pretorius’s hometown.
Kruger recently dropped another sneaky bomb in a Facebook post on the 15th of August which reads: “We might release another single soon. Maybe.” Be sure to keep your beady eye polished.
The Ukulele Song was dusted off mid-show among other fond favourites including, Can Anybody Hear Me, Japanese Orchid and Oh Katie. PHOTO: Catherine Del Monte
Your gig-guide to Jackal and the Wind’s upcoming movements:
Jackal and the Wind are moving up North. Catch them this Friday, 30 August in Pretoria at Die Nagmark at Sonop Christelike Tehuis at 22:00 where Glaskas will be opening up for them, before playing Park Acoustics on Sunday, 1 September at 10:00 to 18:00 with the likes of Karen Zoid, Casper De Vries and Cape Town-based experimental folk band, Mr. Cat and the Jackal, which Pretorius also drums for.
For more tickets and more information on Die Nagmark, Click here
For more tickets and more information on Park Acoustics, Click here