Outstanding music from two of SA’s finest

IF YOU DON’T YOU NEVER WILL Prime Circle

IF YOU Don’t You Never Will is the title of Prime Circle’s long awaited seventh studio album. It’s been three years since the launch of Let the Night In, but the fans were spoilt when the band released its fourth, fifth and sixth like clockwork every two years.

Produced by Denholm Harding, Just Jinjer’s bassist, who Circle frontman Ross Learmonth describes as the de facto sixth member of the famous band, the sound in If You Don’t You Never Will builds on the frontiers that Let The Night

In (also produced by Harding) conquered musically, without going any further.

Instead, the sound returns to the DNA that was first set down in Witbank in 2001, toning down the raging guitar riffs of lead guitarist Dirk Bisschoff to instead showcase Learmonth’s distinctive vocals, underpinned by Dale Schnettler’s well known and always present percussive skills, buttressed by keyboard wizard Neil Breytenbach.

The result is a 10-track album – the group’s shortest songlist yet – which is contemplative and, perish the thought, mellow in places, but with enough texture to win over die hard fan and convince long time haters.

The Gift, the fourth track, will be the first radio single, but there are many others that are destined to be hits and definitely firm fan favourites; from Class Clowns, the first, to the driving We Are Here, the penultimate track on the album. The group’s bassist Marco Gomes believes the album gets better the more you listen to it. He’s absolutely right.

HIERDIE IS DIE LEWE Francois van Coke

This is the second solo offering from the phenomenally talented Francois van Coke, originally lead singer of Fokofpolisiekar, then founder of the very successful Van Coke Cartel that expanded from it.

The Cartel is no more, FPK has reformed to record only its third first studio album, and if Hierdie is Die Lewe is anything to go by, this certainly won’t be the last time we hear from Van Coke in either format.

The album, all 11 tracks, is a coming of age for Van Coke. It’s introspective and yet never loses the driving rock ’n’ roll mongrel that has characterised the often angry dominee’s son from Bellville.

It’s difficult to pick one outstanding track because the quality is exceptionally high throughout, both musically and lyrically.

Dit Raak Beter, though, has to stand out for its poignant candour – and perhaps the most autobiographical of them all.