CATHERINE GRENFELL, better known for being the ultimate rock chick and awesome 5FM DJ on the fresh drive during the week. She also hosts and produces a show on Saturday afternoons called live(5), whereby she manages to get South African bands, artists and DJ's to perform live on air with a live studio audience. She is hugely involved in the music industry, and I was more than keen to get a little insight as to what goes through a DJ like herself and of her stature's mind.
How long have you been DJ’ing for?
I
have been DJ’ing for the last 2 years and started out playing rock music and
then moved to also playing commercial, electro, and house music. I have been in
the radio industry for 12 years.
What, in your opinion, is the most enjoyable / fulfilling
part of being a part of this industry?
My best is being
sent demo’s and discovering that one that you know is going to be epic!
What would you consider to be your least favourite part of
being in the industry?
The arrogance, the bitchiness
and people being two-faced.
Have you ever encountered any Crazy fans/ incidents with
fans during a show or out in public?
Not really for me,
but I remember Mark Gillman (5fm Breakfast show DJ from a while back) used to
have a lady that would sit outside the studio and bring him wierd presents,
like ceramic owls. And I would have to go and fetch them from her. He wouldn't go and speak to her and she wouldn't leave the studio until someone came and
collected them.
Where are the majority of your performances based (area
wise) and how do you advertise your upcoming shows to the public?
I DJ all over the country, but the majority of the gigs are
in Joburg. I Tweet and facebook about the gigs.
If you could be any super hero, who would you be and why?
Ironman, is just the coolest ever!
What are your views on the current South African music
scene, and is there a particular genre that you feel needs a bit more attention?
I think that the SA music scene is kicking ass at the
moment. I would love to see a bit more growth in the hard rock scene and a bit
more originality in the hip hop scene.
Favourite thing to do when you have a bit of time off.
Reading, cooking and just chilling with my family.
How do you feel about female rockers in South Africa? (In
comparison to the amount of male rock groups /artists there are presently)
I have to be honest and say I’m not always a huge “female
singer” fan. Their voices generally tend to grate me, but hopefully I will be
blown away by a female rocker’s vocals soon J
Favourite Cartoon character
Spongebob
Square Pants
What is your main message you’d like to give out to your
fans/following right now?
Support amazing music, and
don’t have blinkers on to different types of genres. Open your minds to
something you wouldn't normally listen to.
Where can we catch you next (apart from the fresh drive
today ;)…)?
I've got a couple of corporate gigs coming
up, As well as a trip to PE and Cape Town.
It is well known that you stick to your roots when it comes
to rock music, what direction do you see the rock scene going in within the
next few years in South Africa?
I see a lot more
collabs with different genres, new fresh original sounds and moving away from
your run of the mill rock sound. Dated rock music is so annoying.
Favourite Song at the moment by a South African Artist
Haezer – Stars and Jack Parow & PH Fat – Spring Moeder
Fokker
Who is your biggest personal influence?
It has to be Barney Simon. I grew up listening to his shows
and that is where I discovered such amazing bands.
Give a random fact about yourself.
I've had my appendix taken out
What did you want to be when you “grew up”.
It ranged from a vet, to a fashion designer, to an interior
designer, to an architect
Biggest fear.
Bringing my commercial CD bag when I’m playing at an underground gig
Favourite part of each show (both live and on air) you
perform.
Crowd reaction for live and listening to
people’s reaction about a certain band or topic.
Describe your personality using any Movie title.
The Wedding Singer
To find out more about Catherine, check out her twitter page here, and her 5FM web page here
When I was about sixteen years old I was quite hugely into the South African Metal scene, and used to sneak into venues like "Cool Runnings" and "Olive Lounge" to get to see some of the best bands in town, and let me tell you - they made every cent of my allowance worth it. Not only that, but at almost every single event, the headlining band would be "FACING THE GALLOWS". People would shuffle into the jam packed bar to try get as close as possible to the local legends. 16-year-old me would be squeaking and jumping all over the show if she knew that old boring me would one day be interviewing the incredible "Rick Rack Cadillac" (lead guitarist that had everyone chanting his name at every show). So without further ado... May I introduce Mister Guitar Guy from FACING THE GALLOWS:
How long have you guys been
performing for?
We've been playing shows since February, about, 2007.
What, in your opinion, is the
most enjoyable / fulfilling part of being a part of this industry?
Being able to play music for people who love music and
having a great time with them.
What would you consider to be
your least favourite part of being in the industry?
Having to carry heavy gear all over the place. The road
trips are always fun. Definitely not cool carrying gear.
Have you ever encountered any
Crazy fans/ incidents with fans during a show or out in public?
The first time we played RAMfest, someone threw a pig’s
head on stage. That was pretty insane. I hear it’s a way of showing one’s love
for a band in some countries…
music video for "Hey! I can see my house from here"
Where are the majority of
your performances based (area wise) and how do you advertise your upcoming
shows to the public?
That’s a difficult one to answer right now. There aren’t
many venues around Joburg at the moment. So we’ll take any venue we can get.
We’ve played a lot more shows in Pretoria recently which has been quite rad.
We use the internet and flyer bombs to advertise for
shows. If all the bands team up to punt the show, it will be a rad show!
If you could be any super
hero, who would you be and why?
No pants man, because I hate wearing pants. He exists,
right?
If you could work with any
current artist/group, who would it be and why?
Beast because Inge Beckman… mmm. There are a few local
acts I would like to work with, Wrestlerish would be great!
Favourite thing to do when
you have a bit of time off
Play guitar, play garden cricket and enjoy life in
general. When I have time off I try to do more things that I love doing. The
best time off is at about 4.20 pm.
What are your future
intensions with the group?
To share our music with more of the world. We’d really
like to try show people what SA music is all about. There are so many local
acts that are world class and the collective SA music industry is starting to
make their mark on the world.
Favourite Cartoon character
IR Baboon.
What is your main message
you’d like to give out to your fans/following right now?
Be good to people and the Universe will be good to you.
We’re living in a hectic time at the moment and there’s no space or time for
negativity.
Where can we catch you next?
We’ll be at the Buck & Hog in Emmerentia on Friday 22
Feb for Handstyle’s fundraiser show. R20 gets you in. Otherwise we’ll be
playing RAMfest Cape Town on 8 Feb, Monster stage at around 11pm. Do it!
Best show so far
My favourite will always be Oppikoppi, 2011 I believe.
I’ve never seen so many faces in front of me in my life. It was special.
cc: DanNeil Blair Photography
Favourite Song at the moment
by a South African Artist
Growing Old by City Bowl Mizers.
Who is your biggest personal
influence?
Reaction. It’s the best way to get an idea if you’re
doing things right or not.
Give a random fact about
yourself.
I have mild tourettes. Not the swearing kind though.
What did you want to be when
you “grew up”.
A Ferrari test driver… Not quite there yet.
cc: Savior Photography
Biggest fear
Parktown prawns.
Favourite part of each show
you perform.
The bang of the first note.
Describe your personality
using any Movie title.
Pineapple Express
SO! If and when you feel like punching someone in the face and need a little musical inspiration - these guys are the way to go! for more info on FACING THE GALLOWS check out their facebook page here and their twitter page here.
From left to right: Tessa (guitar), Loandi (bass and lead vox) & Auriel (drums)
“Last night Cortina Whiplash gave me my virginity back and then violently stole it again. Too beautiful.” - Eleni Ladas, Facebook fan In past interviews with CORTINA WHIPLASH, they were quoted to have said, "Rock n Roll will never die, it'll be our salvation." A focused, intense attitude to their music. Being passionate about one's music should come naturally to those who are dedicated enough, and these girls more than prove their worth. With sex appeal dripping out of their instruments when playing live, these ladies can capture and contain any audience they're put in front of. Cigarettes, tequila, red lips and killer Iron Fist heels, one cannot help to simply be drawn to their music and pizzazz. With their album release in 2010, "Queen Hyena", I wouldn't be surprised if their audience and following had quadrupled over the past two years. Putting aside the "sugar, spice and everything nice" cliche, here's a small glimpse of what these women are really made of...
1) How long have you ladies
been performing for?
Auriel:Together, since 2005 probably but as Cortina
Whiplash, since 2008.
Tessa:We’ve been
performing together in various projects for over 5 years now.
2) What, in your opinion, is
the most enjoyable / fulfilling part of being a part of this industry?
Auriel:The jam time.
Just playing music with two of your best friends, travelling and getting up to
no good.
Tessa:I’d say it’s
all the interesting people we’ve met along the way, also the travelling, whilst
most people are sitting behind a desk we’re getting drunk on the backroads of
SA.
Loandi:Being on stage
and expressing things in a way that you can’t necessarily do in a normal
conversation.
3) What would you consider to
be your least favourite part of being in the industry?
Auriel:The
limitations that genre and location has in this country. Rock ‘n roll is but a
crumb of the big industry pie. First of all the shit that people will refer to
as ‘rock ‘n roll’ is often laughable. Secondly within that misconstrued genre
we have Afrikaans/Belville rock ‘n roll, Pretoria rock ‘n roll that is vastly
different from Durban or even Joburg rock ‘n roll. You will often find that
people in Pretoria have no idea what’s happening in Joburg or Cape Town.
I think folks miss out on a lot of good music by
considering themselves fans of specific genres only and people should make more
effort to either get out of town to see bands or support out of town bands.
Tessa:Stinky man
breath microphones. Seriously there’s nothing worse than the smell of a
microphone after a bunch of booze-breathed men have been shouting into it.
Loandi:The sexism
4) Have you ever encountered
any Crazy fans/ incidents with fans during a show or out in public?
Auriel:Yes, we have
some colourful fans…some are scary at times, but we love them nonetheless.
Crazy is welcome with us.
Tessa: We used to have
a fourth band member called Mandy, she was a blowup doll and she was also our
flautist. After a show at Wolmer someone kidnapped her whilst she was
backstage. We fear the worst and doubt her hygienic seals are still intact.
Other than that we have pretty cool fans, some fans have
made their own t-shirts quoting some of our writing, others have kept the t-shirt
they were wearing the first time they heard us play. We really dig our fans and
respect anyone who takes the time to listen and understand rather than judge
and criticise.
Loandi:At Smoking
Dragon a female fan gave me her bikini top and she stole my shirt, she
literally pulled it off my body in front of everybody and gave me her bikini
top in return. Fair trade.
5) Where are the majority of
your performances based (area wise) and how do you advertise your upcoming
shows to the public?
Auriel:Mostly Joburg,
but this year we’ll spend a lot of time touring the rest of the country.
Tessa:We haven’t been
active on the scene for almost 6 months now but we’ve played most of our shows
in joburg purely because that’s where we’re based. We try to play as much of
the country as possible though and we’ve played shows in just about every major
venue and festival around the country. EXCEPT for RAMfest and Rocking the
Daisies, hopefully we can rectify that this year.
6) If you could have any
super power, what would it be and why?
Auriel:To be able to
speak and understand every language in the world.
Loandi:I would want a
really long tail that I could use to balance myself on, like an extra limb, I
could use it to hang on branches and possibly to play a 2nd instrument whilst I
explain things with my hands.
Tessa: The ability to
poop bullet-shaped (so they’ll pass easier) golden turds. The reason should be
self-evident.
7) If you could work with any
current artist/group, who would it be and why?
Auriel:There are so
many really and it changes all the time, but at the moment probably The Brother
Moves On. I love what they are doing.
Tessa:There are oh so
many, we’d love to work with Jack White, Eagles of Death Metal, The Black Keys,
Patti Smith
8 ) Are there any South
African Artists you’d like to work/ collaborate with, and again, why?
There are many local female artists and instrumentalists
I would love to work with. Thandiswa Mazwai, Tamara Dey and Yolandi Vi$$er
comes to mind.
The Stella’s, The Slashdogs, Shadowclub
9) What are your future
intensions with the band?
Auriel:Wow, you sound
like an angry dad…”what are your intensions with my daughter?”... boy have I
heard that before. Just making honest music and representing woman in a real
way.
Loandi: To keep on
keeping on.
Tessa:We want to make
people feel really uncomfortable, challenge their comfort zones so to speak and
say vagina a lot in our songs.
10) What is your pet hate,
with regards to the band? (e.g. Comparisons, internal arguments, finances,
etc.)
Auriel:I hate the
general ‘women of rock’ genre that people love to shove us into. There is no
woman/man in music. It’s just fucking rock ’n roll. Get with the program.
Internally, shit can get emotional. Obviously with three periods in the band
you can only imagine, but that’s when our writing is at its best.
Loandi:We’re sisters,
we love like sisters and we fight like sisters, so we fight about things that
sisters fight about, which is pretty much everything.
Tessa:The fact that
we don’t get to have more time to jam together.
Their video "Oh for P"
11) What is your main message
you’d like to give out to your fans/following right now?
Auriel:Be who you are
and speak up. There is a lot of unacceptable shit out there that people let
slide. If you have an opinion make it heard, leave the room, leave poop on
their doorstep, challenge authority.
Loandi:My main
message as a woman with a flat chest is to not think too much about what you
don’t have and to just love who you are and what you do have. It’s not about
what you wear it’s about how you wear it.
Tessa:Always buy us a
shot of tequila if you see us at a show.
12) Where can we catch you
next?
The Bohemian in Joburg on the 27th of March and the
Otterlake Easter Festival 31 March in Pretoria
13) Is it difficult to keep
up with your personal lives and the on goings of the band at the same time? Or
have you all learned to handle it.
Auriel:It’s
difficult, but we get better at it all the time.
Tessa:I think we’ve
finally found a good balance; also we’re all women so I think the dynamic is
different to most bands. Ultimately we’re all really good friends, pretty much
sisters, and as women do we share all our fears, joys, experiences with each
other.
14) Who is your biggest
personal influence?
Auriel:Probably my
high school art teacher, Mr. Johnston. He was like a mentor to me. He
introduced me to a lot of cool music and free thinking.
Loandi:Freddy Mercury
Tessa:My grandfather
15) Give a random fact about
yourself.
Auriel:I have a
second personality, called Ace. You don’t want to run into her in a dark alley.
Loandi:I use a tongue
scraper.
Tessa:I can handle a
chainsaw like it’s nobody’s business
16) What did you want to be
when you “grew up”.
Auriel:I wanted to be
an orchestra conductor. I used to put on a classical vinyl and conduct my
stuffed animal imaginary band with Chinese chopsticks.
Tessa:A rockstar! For
real.
Loandi:I always
wanted to be in showbiz, grew up on a farm and used to pretend that the big
diesel tank in the back was my first stage and I’d sing to the mielies. Then I
would quickly jump off the tank and pretend to be in the audience clapping.
17) Biggest fear.
Auriel: Spiders and
Shania Twain, and especially a cross breed of the two.
Loandi: Losing my
family and my band.
Tessa: Becoming a
bitter, rude, mean old person
18) Favourite part of each
show you perform.
Auriel:The afterglow.
Nothing like getting off stage drenched in sweat and pumped with adrenaline.
Loandi: There’s a
magic moment that only happens sometimes when a song ends and everything was
more than perfect, but that doesn’t always happen but it’s amazing when it
does.
Tessa: The part when
someone haggles you from the crowd and you have a super snappy, witty comeback
and a microphone.
19) Describe your personality
using any Movie title.
Auriel:Faster,
Pussycat! Kill! Kill!
Loandi: Eternal
Sunshine of a spotless mind.
Tessa: One flew over
the cuckoo’s nest
20) Is sexy what you aim for,
or does it come naturally?
Auriel: I was born
sexy.
Loandi:There have
been many times when I haven’t felt pretty or sexy but rock ‘n roll isn’t
always pretty. When our music is tight and we’re solid as a band that’s usually
when people think I’m sexy.
Tessa:I think in pop
music it is easier to define sexy, it’s blatant and obvious by what the women
wear and do etc. but in rock n roll I think the perceived sexiness is a result
of experiencing music that is genuine and expressed by someone who doesn’t give
a shit what you think about them and that’s kinda sexy. But no sexy isn’t what
we go for but thanks for implying that we’re sexy
Power. Pure unadulterated power. There aren't many other ways to convince you to get your ass up and make a plan to see these women live, but let me tell you - nothing will ever be the same once you do. To find out more about these gals, take a look at their facebook page here, or stalk them via twitter here
