“We play mostly in clubs along Long Street and Lower Main Road in Obs[ervatory] and that is only the case because there are not many other places really,” says Nicolai. “We have to obviously play where people who like our kind of music will go…”
The Sleepers are a band from Cape Town. They play all around the city at many student hangouts and do their unique thing on stage. They gig fairly regularly and they draw a predominantly student crowd. The mature sounds that waft through the air when they start playing are heavy, yet laid-back. Their influential hypnotic approach is in itself quite strongly and diversely influenced. Their individual musical tastes combine into a flavourful delicacy of vintage, modern and experimental sounds. One of the key players in their assortment of style is guitarist Nicolai Roos: a passionate and knowledgeable 22-year old Cape Audio College student with a keen ear for classic rock and always amped to delve into an experimental guitar tone or trying a new electronic effect. When asked what his current influences are, he replied “…mainly progressive rock like Sigur Ros, trip hop, experimental stuff. Things like Zappa, the new Nine Inch Nails song, Mike Patton’s stuff, Meshugga….anything experimental and proggy.”
A fairly chilled-out sophisticatedly humourous and modest fellow, Nicolai seems quite excited at the prospects of the band from his point of view. He really likes where the music his band are churning out is going.
“I sort of want to keep the same pace that we are going now because we are really maturing and pumping out some great stuff,” says Nicolai. “I have some idea of what I would like the band to become but I don’t know exactly. I know it will be different but we will keep a similar approach in terms of song writing and stuff.”
Since guitarist Adam Hill and former bassist Carly Phillips started jamming together back in 2003, the band has developed promisingly. Nicolai claims he was “stolen” from his former band Mantra and so was drummer Steve Jacobs from his respective band. Nicolai says that they gelled really quickly because they are all very creative and have a similar work ethic in terms of their music. Unfortunately Carly developed lukemia and was replaced by Jordi Reddy.
“She started complaining about a sore back and stuff but it spread quickly and unfortunately she couldn’t play with us anymore. It was really sad because she was one of the founding members and a vital member of The Sleepers,” says Nicolai. But a replacement was needed and what a replacement. Nicolai describes Jordi as a “fucking good bassist”. Well versed in bass phrasing and a reputable sonic vocabulary, Jordi has added his own flair which has definitely enhanced the band’s sound in an interesting way.
The Sleepers are indeed very progressive yet they draw influences from bands and artists that are not only from years gone by, but that don’t really have any roots in South Africa or even Africa as such.
“It basically started with my Dad’s CD collection,” says Nicolai about his musical influences. “It was mostly The Doors…Floyd…Zeppelin…but the Doors I think were my main influence. I always liked that blues thing they had going, that sort of dark type of blues but the type that makes you want to party as well. Led Zeppelin was also another big influence. Jimmy Page’s combination of Gibson and Marshall definitely influenced my choice of equipment…”
Nicolai’s ventures to places like Canada and London scored him lots of good buys. His collection of rare Led Zeppelin T-shirts and his favourite black Gibson SG, can attribute themselves to elusive overseas bargains. His Jimmy Page style Les Paul says a lot about what his influences are, and especially when he is on stage, one can basically picture good old Slash of Guns ‘n Roses playing the riffs Nicolai plays during a live set. The style of playing and choice of instruments scream classic rock with a modern progressive edge.
But why are local bands so interested in foreign musical genres that they completely ignore any local influence? Rock band members in South Africa are generally uninterested in locally inspired genres such as kwaito, afro-house and local jazz. In the local scene, no rock band plays a local cover, or tries to look like Jimmy Dludlu on stage to pay tribute. However, a frontman wearing a Johnny Cash or Miles Davis T-shirt onstage is ubiquitous. Top selling South African bands like Freshlyground and Fokofpolisiekar are seen as musical anomalies because they have taken international genres and have used them to express exclusively South African feelings. This irony reflects that of which haunts the history of blues music still today. Many American blues artists in the early 60’s were popularized not by Americans, but by emerging blues British artists such as The Who, The Doors, Fleetwood Mac and Eric Clapton who actually bothered listening to them.
The Sleepers are not a band that actively ignores any local influence. It just so happens that what they want to do is internationally based and the response to a band that has standards on the international level is very feasible within itself.
“Once you work with certain people and you all have the certain standard you want to live up to then things begin to take shape quickly” says Nicolai. “Hard-working members like in the band Queen are all very precise in what they want from their music and insist on quality. That was why their resulting albums were all very professional. The same with Pink Floyd: they all had a common goal and discerning ears and being able to work together with people of the same determination for quality is rare.”
The level of professionalism is one thing that a local band has to live up to. No one wants their albums to match up to just local quality. Artists and bands want their work to be in the realm of giants such as Queen and Pink Floyd.
Nicolai says that The Sleepers do not want to sound anything like any one of their influences. The way the actual sound comes out is not the issue but it is rather the approach to songwriting that develops from their influences.
“I wouldn’t say that it’s a direct influence from certain bands like we don’t say ‘okay, we’re gonna write a Tool-type song now’; we just try something with a similar approach to avoid completely ripping bands off,” he says. Although the resulting sound is a predominantly European or American style of sound, the debate here is whether it is a South African sound. Is it the Sleepers’ own original Cape Town style or is it a foreign style? The genre of music played by the Sleepers does indeed originate from foreign influences but the important thing is that their style and highly integrated sound is placed in a South African context.
It is believed that Hendrix once stated that his Marshalls were the essence of his sound and that he was nothing without them. Nicolai shares a similar attitude and is a connoisseur of his sound. He is very particular about the quality his sound although the scratchy public address systems of the local venues tend to nullify The Sleepers’ very particular choice of equipment. Adam Hill plays an acclaimed Vox AC30 and Nicolai is used to playing his Marshall JCM2000 half stack. A major setback to this prestige set of equipment came when the head of Nicolai’s stack got stolen.
“It’s really affecting my sound because I’m now playing a shitty 80w Marshall Valvestate combo amp. God it’s horrible”. He is currently borrowing his friend’s Peavey valve combo amp and this has satisfied him while he saves up to redeem the quality he is used to.
“It’s a really awesome substitute to my Marshall stack because I get that creamy valve sound from it I’m used to. It’s a monster.”
The insistence of a particular sound from British amplifier manufacturers allows us again to ponder over whether our own Capetonian rock bands are representing our culture as itself or as something foreign. Our bands are playing foreign genres, using foreign equipment and draw on inspiration from overseas influences. The actual genre of The Sleepers is also a tough one to call, given the diverse international influences.
“[Our genre is] probably something like ummmm…fusion alternative?..” says Nicolai. “I really don’t know. It’s not that I don’t like labels I just don’t think that there is a certain label for what we do.”
Is Cape Town student rock a ‘cover genre’ or are we actually doing our own stuff? What else are local bands supposed to be influenced by when creating their own specific sounds and styles? Would a band in the future that happened to be highly influenced by The Sleepers consider the influence as Capetonian? Archbishop and South African political figure Desmond Tutu says that a person is a person because of other people. Perhaps our bands are bands because of overseas bands.
©2007
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