South Africa really seems to be hitting the jackpot in terms of number of international bands coming to visit in 2014, and with so many of them being indie, my little heart is quite happy (and my bank account quite empty)! When I heard that Editors would be playing at Oppi Koppi, I was mostly excited, but also a little lacking in enthusiasm to watch them at a festival – not always the best setting to see a favourite band for the first time. And then one of the favourites came up with the idea of going to watch their Cape Town show instead. Genius. This is why I keep him around. Continue reading

2013 has been horrible. Stupendously horrible in fact, so much so that I don’t actually want to dwell on that. So instead, I thought I would write a little something about the things I have loved this year. And as always, that means music and books. Continue reading

There are some books that just creep into the nooks and crannies of your mind with their evocative writing and complex characters. The Light Between Oceans is just such a book – unspeakably beautiful, and a real gem of a debut novel. Continue reading

So, I’ve loved the Kings of Leon since long before anybody’s sex was on fire, but I’m not one of those rabid purists who hates the albums they’ve made that have been far bigger commercial successes than their earlier work. Still, when I read an article in which Caleb Followill said that their latest offering, Mechanical Bull, would be more reminiscent of their first two albums, Youth and Young Manhood and Aha Shake Heartbreak, I was super excited. Continue reading

The Shining Girls, Lauren Beukes’ third fiction offering, has generated huge amounts of critical acclaim and general fuss. Indeed, when I was loaned the book, the person doing the loaning prefaced this by regaling me with tales of how much I would love it and how she had read it in one afternoon. I was intrigued. Continue reading

If you only buy one album in 2013, it should be The National’s Trouble Will Find Me. Continue reading

There’s been a definite increase over the last couple of years of brands bringing out bands (say that five times fast!) as part of a marketing strategy. The most recent of these was this weekend’s 5 Gum Experience, which saw Brighton indie kids, The Kooks, gracing our shores. Continue reading

I first fell in love with Jojo Moyes’ writing when I got Me before You as a birthday gift last year. In that book, Moyes tackles the issue of assisted suicide with insight and compassion, and I couldn’t wait to read her next offering. The Girl You Left Behind certainly doesn’t disappoint and is probably one of the loveliest books I’ve read in a while. Continue reading