In our opinion, Big Beat rocks. In all aspects of the word.
The Pietermaritzburg-based production company, who stage most of the big concerts and shows in PMB and the midlands, went out on a limb to bring top South African rock act Prime Circle to perform at the Golden Horse Casino.
Jon Calder. Beards and good keyboardists are fairly rare around here.
And as fortune would have it, the RCB got an invite to perform in one of the opening slots.
The biggest bonus was getting our keyboardist Jon a flight back up for the gig. There was an additional cost for extra weight (Jon’s beard is now fairly substantial), but ag… beards and good keyboardists are fairly unique and well, some things just have to be done.
Big Beat were all geared up for our soundcheck slot at 3.30pm on Friday afternoon, but the schedule was delayed due to some larneys having a meeting in the Golden Horse Casino, so it was a good chance to catch up with our mates from Zephyr, who we haven’t seen in a while. The band is a favourite in the KZN midlands, and they thrive on harmonies (always nice when vocals are a feature in today’s music business) and a general acoustic rock vibe, and are busy recording their album and building in new influences into the music.
Souncheck. Ryan and Jon with Chris Wyatt and Jeremy Mathias of Zephyr.
It was also great to see and catch up with Damon Beard from East Coast Radio as MC for the evening. Damon has long been a supporter of South African music and his passion and enthusiasm for it hasn’t changed. And he’s a first-class MC!
Skylit City put on an energetic set of sonic rock, and it was great to see them in action on a big stage getting the crowd going. There’ll surely be more of them to come in the months ahead. Zephyr too looked like they were enjoying the big stage and the local crowd, and were also well received. Prime Circle showed why they’re one of the country’s hottest acts, putting on a show of big beats and hits, both old and new, and under the Big Beat production set up the show ended on a high.
Our set consisted of five songs: our upbeat rock number Let it Rise, an old favourite I’m Alright, the ballad More Beautiful Tonight, new album title track On The Edge and ending off with the upbeat Loving Every Day. It’s always interesting seeing how our music translates to an audience primarily geared for Prime Circle’s grungy rock vibe. But this was one of the coolest, most appreciative audiences we’ve played to in a long time – a broader mix of ages and race groups than we’ve seen before in PMB. Performing in your home town, under these sorts of conditions, makes all the work worthwhile.
[rps]
whose that dude on the keyboard? what a rockstar!
Great gig Ryan, The quality of music that comes out of PMB and the Midlands is amazing. Big Beat have established themselves as the premier sound crew of KZN in my opinion. A great evening at a low cost. wheresle do you get four quailty bands for R120 a ticket! Well done.
Agreed Martin. Big Beat were great and we think it was a fantastic evening – we certainly enjoyed it
Thank you so much for your support!
Nice seeing you on Twitter during the event Mart – thanks for your shout outs for @theRCB.