
Die Antwoord
My buddy Scott turned me onto Die Antwoord a few days ago. I wound up with an advance of their forthcoming album, “$0$” and can’t stop listening to it. I haven’t been this completely blown away by an album in quite a long time. Maybe a decade.
I have pretty broad taste in music. There is brilliance in every genre. It’s not uncommon for me to get really into a live jazz combo recording, or a punishing machine-like industrial metal
album, or sweet lovesick brother duets
. I can now officially add Zuid Afrikan zef rap-rave to the list. I haven’t spun a record so many times in a row since I can remember.
It’s difficult to tell if Die Antwoord is serious. In the United States, comedy gets pigeonholed into a category of its own. It isn’t allowed to share the stage with any of the serious genres. When was the last time you saw a comedy win best picture at the academy awards? When something this ridiculous and seriously well written and well produced comes along, I can’t help but suck it up.
The combination of impoverished South African culture, ridiculously insane lyrics peppered with Afrikaan/English slang, tacky early 90s hip-hop style, and incredibly well written and performed techno-rave music is extremely appealing to me. I can’t turn it off. It is so good, I must urge you to take the time to watch these two videos just in case they strike a nerve with you, too.
Disclaimer: If you are offended by harsh language and/or the human body, this may not appeal to you.
Isn’t it just so fucking full flex?