Springbok Nude Girls find each other again to ‘Partypocalypse’
AS ONE of South Africa’s most decorated rock bands of the last three decades, Springbok Nude Girls need no introduction.
The Nude Girls introduced punk rock, acid jazz and heavy metal into their songs which went on to introduce a new world of music to the youth of South Africa in the mid-tolate 1990s. This saw the band go on to win awards, tour the globe and release a number of successful albums.
However, like any musical band, Arno Carstens, Theo Crous, Adriaan Brand, Arno Blumer and Francois Kruger had their ups and downs.
In 2001, the band announced an indefinite hiatus.
However, in 2006, a blog entry on drummer Kruger’s site informally announced their reunion. Their reunion coincided with the return of trumpeter Adriaan Brand.
Their first album in four years, Peace Breaker, was released in March 2007. The Nude Girls performed as the opening act for U2 in Cape Town during their South African tour in February 2011.
Now signed to a new label, the band recently released its latest album, Partypocalypse. Theyd started working on the album two years ago with no initial concept, but that has since changed.
“There was no initial concept as to what it would sound like. Since we had a month to put it down there was a kind of cut to the bone, cut to the chase urgency about the procedure and only later a fuller picture emerged. I was actively writing some punk-ish songs with SNG in mind because of our live shows and because I like punk,” said Carstens.
Did he have any idea of what he wanted the album to turn out like, while putting it together?
He explained it was only at the last stages of mixing that things started to sound like something really special for the band.
“The album came together with a very unique feel. Partypocalypse is like nervous energy trying to get things done in an atmosphere of chaos,” Carstens added.
On the lyrics, he said: “Each song has its own lyrical world they exist in. There is a good touch of surrealism in the lyrics. Sarcasm, humour, truth darts. It’s all there.”
He said the album had a Springbok Nude Girls sound fans have come to love.
“It’s got an unmistakable SNG sound. Theo is like the musical voice of reason in the band. The rest of the band give suggestions and Theo interprets them into something fantastic.”
One of the biggest challenges in putting this album together was doing so with everyone in different places.
“It would be great to have had more time with the guys to write music, but Adriaan is in the US and Arno Blumer is in the UK, so it takes some synchronising. Prior to Mongrel Music getting involved, it was self-financed, which meant we could only work when Theo did not have other work, so it took a long time to mix. But all of that made it to be an even more special album in the end,” said Carsten.
He said the band decided to name it Partypocalypse because that is what the world feels like.
Twenty-six years after their first show, and two decades after the release of Blue Eyes (the song that redirected the trajectory of the band), 11 albums, two live recordings, an EP and two DVD releases later, Carstens says he’s far from tired.
“This album is different from our previous offerings because by now I should be sick of it but I’m not, I’m even a bit intrigued by it. Seeing the cover art and the music come together is cool. It gives the music a new universe. Partypocalypse has its own vibe,” he said.
He hopes that fans have a momentary release when listening to the album.