I love Die Antwoord (so much) and I've had the opportunity of seeing them live on various occassions. I think that, if you didn't know the evolution behind the band, they would probably scare the shit out of you but I think they are immensely creative and unique. I find it laughable when people get offended by their music because, despite appearances, it is really intelligent and artistic stuff.
Watkin Tudor Jones, who used to be the frontman for the band Max Normal and who has now adopted (read: become indistinguishable from) his "alter-ego" Ninja, is a prolific musician and artist. There is so much thought behind what the band is doing, that it's no wonder they've made it bigger than any SA band has before, baring Seether (but then again, who really gives a fok about Seether).
The other day I watched their video "I Fink U Freeky", from their latest album Ten$ion, and it called to mind imagery from this book that we have at home called "Platteland" by the American photographer Roger Ballen. A lot of Ballen's photography documents the lives of poor whites (i.e. arme blankes) in post-apartheid South Africa. The photographs are brutally honest and raw portrayals of a life which is incredibly foreign to and hidden from society at large. The portraits leave you feeling slightly ill but inexplicably intrigued- a lot like my forensic medicine course used to do.
Guess my utter surprise when I went onto Ballen's website the other day and discovered that he had photographed Die Antwoord for their video "I Fink U Freeky". My thought process ended up coming full circle which was very satisfying.
Die Antwoord challenges me and makes me think, but it makes me happy to know I'm getting the gist of what they're trying to convey.
Clever tokoloshies.
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