The countdown to Grietfest Cape Town is on! This Friday night sees Cape Town turn into a silly zone as some of the best electronic music purveyors of the country (and the globe) entertain the EDM kids of the Mother City. One of South Africa’s most respected exports is Haezer who will be featuring at the Johannesburg leg of the Grietfest tour. Here’s what he has to say about his music at the moment:
BCTC: The last time BCTCBlog caught up with Haezer was 6 months ago just before his Trouble Maker video launched in South Africa. Where have you moved to musically since then?
HZ: I’ve been touring a lot and I think touring does influence you musically. The new E.P is definitely closer to ‘The Wrong Kid Died’ than my older stuff. I’m focusing more on heavier bass lines with less distortion, but more energy. It’s been more than a year since my last E.P and that’s a result of two things: extensive touring and perfecting my sound and taking my time releasing an EP that I’m 100% happy with.
BCTC: This March saw you travel down under. You toured there previously with Gtronic. How has your music evolved/been received there?
HZ: Australia has always had an affiliation to hard electro, especially Sydney. I think the dance scene in Australia is varied and the kids are exploring all kinds of dance music. The last time I was there it seemed Deep House, Trap, Bass music and Disco was definitely very popular.
This time I played a super club/complex named Ivy in Sydney. There were 4000 people and the response was amazing, even though it rained during my set!
BCTC: After Australia you toured in Europe where you visited Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Spain and Italy. What was the best show of the tour and why?
HZ: I think it was playing Southside and Hurricane Festival, north and south of Germany. It was a huge honour and a major achievement to co-headline the electronic floor at this festival. Hearing people chant your name half an hour before you go on stage was one of the most special moments for me!
BCTC: When you’re touring in these countries do you feel like the audience sees you as one of their own or do you feel very foreign when not in Africa?
HZ: Culturally we are not helluva different so I’ve made many friends in Europe. I think it’s a commodity being from South Africa in some senses, but I really don’t think that’s why I get booked. Die Antwoord certainly put SA on the map and I have noticed a certain curiosity about SA from fans. But most promoters know what SA is about and don’t stereotype us too much.
BCTC: Grietfest is up next. What advice do you have for the South African audience about your music? Are you in a different place/where’s your focus/new experimentation that we can keep in mind and enjoy from the show.
HZ: My sets are more like stories. I do experiment a lot more and there is certainly a definite progression through my sets, instead of just banging out the hardest tracks I can find. My set at Grietfest will make you bounce, jump, then shout, then mosh, then jam and sometimes have your hands in the air…It’s much more versatile I think.
Check out Haezer’s Grietfest mix released on Friday and get yourself nice and warmed up for Grietfest this Friday in Cape Town and Saturday in Johannesburg. Tickets available for R130 on Webtickets.
http://soundcloud.com/red-bull-studio-ct/haezer-grietfest-2013-mix
