Ryan Calder Band

I’m not sure if it’s like this in other countries of the world, but it’s an ongoing mystery to me how people transform into the most self-righteous bigots when they climb into a car. (more…)

It’s not often that I get to just sit and play guitar, but on this particular Saturday afternoon, I was strumming the chords that would become this song when Tam walked into the room and started singing spontaneously.

I remember we’d both been pretty busy and it was nice to just be at home, with no agenda for the day. Tam walked in, heard the chords and said, (more…)

Allow me to be honest: it was one of those weeks. The RCB worked, and man… did we work. It’s an emotional experience collaborating in music and putting yourself out there. All of us in the RCB feel it. The highs of the music business are exceptionally high, and the lows are laden with the smell of sulphur.

However, I am constantly amazed at who comes to watch us perform.

KZN is historically avoided (more…)

It was inevitable that the engineer who mastered the album – Brent Quintin – would pick out the E9 chord at the beginning of Wide Open World.

“Hey Earle, what does this sound like?” he asks his fellow Sesalos engineer.

“Welcome to the real world!” Earle bursts out, reciting the John Mayer classic. (more…)

Rod and Karen Nichols are the owners of a venue which has recently started up in Westville, and they’ve called it Open Strings. Once a month Rod and Karen open their home and host a major South African act performing an acoustic set. On the bill thus far has been Farryl Purkiss, John Ellis, Syd Kitchen and Nibs van der Spuy. (more…)

The braai. A transcendent feature of South African culture, which unites black, white, coloured, Indian and politicians. Yes, politicians are a race all on their own.

If the world were to end tomorrow, I would have a braai today and invite everyone I knew. Okay, maybe not everyone. But the point is that a braai is one of those things that everyone could come along to if they wanted to. It’s the one thing (more…)

I’ve long been a fan of Eric Clapton.

Now I know what you’re thinking, and you’re wrong. This is not a lyrical derivative of Wonderful Tonight, although I sometimes wonder if those kind of songs just lie dormant in our sub-conscience and make their way to the surface in subtle ways. As the band tells me, everything we listen to influences the music we create, some of it is just more dominant.

In actual fact, it was the (more…)

It all started while waiting in an aisle to pay for the groceries. You know those magazines… the ones with Photoshopped six packs? Well, I bought one. I dug deep into my resolve and my wallet and fished out R35,95 for this month’s Men’s Health edition. This particular edition came with a mini booklet called “Abs for Life” – complete with workouts, diet plan and info on how to get the mid-section you always dreamed of.

Why?

Well, the only reason I have any aspirations to bear resemblance to a Greek god is because, well, it (more…)

This song was the first one penned for the new album, about four years ago. It was one of those songs which very quickly had a structure, but developed slowly lyrically… so much so that it was only completed last year.

So for those who don’t know, my beautiful wife Tamlyn Mary is the inspiration behind this tune. Without boring you with too many details, Tam and I met at a time when I was fairly rogue. (more…)

A new series begins on ryancalder.co.za, which will take the form of various stages… and we at the RCB are inviting you along for the ride.

We want your input, your ideas, your feedback… rate it, comment on it, share it – whatever you do, we encourage interaction on whether you think it rocks or whether it sucks. Tell us.

As you know, I am a budding animator and am looking to create a series for this website called “Life in South Africa”. (more…)