music | Die Antwoord - $O$ (2010)
FRE$H NEW TJOONS!!! Like the mampoer (local Afrikaan for moonshine) that fuels the crowds at Die Antwoord concerts, Die Antwoort have extremely high alcohol content and pack a lethal blow. Through their real/satirical personas (Ninja and Yo-Landi Vi$$er + DJ Hi-Tek) they manifest ”ZEF” a South African slang term that decribes a unique South African style which is modern and trashy and also includes out-of-date, discarded cultural and style elements. I was just so mesmerized by Die Antwoord as I am by all people who live like DEMON BEASTS BACK ON THE STREETZ to avoid the pressure of the social construct that makes the majority feel accepted and part of a group. Developing individual character is about being able to live your life without being a slave to what other people think about you. Social norms indicate the established and approved ways of doing things, of dress, of speech and of appearance - the most telling art lies on the periphery of what society dictates to us. Die Antwoord are foul but refreshing, like waking up in a pile of sick and curing your hangover by drinking a bottle of denatured alcohol, using pieces of bread as a filter for the bad taste. ”NEXT-LEVEL!” photography (by Roger Ballen), direction and production.
“Die Antwoord are at the forefront of a manic, potty-mouthed form of South African rave-inspired hip-hop music called Zef. (“like, 2Unlimited, C+C Music Factory kind of thing … but a bit more gangster, with a street edge”) The three-piece is also something of a conceptual freak show— think Ali G meets Harmony Korine meets Hi-NRG and you’re getting there. This act makes the people on “Jersey Shore” look downright normal.
Tattooed MC Ninja (né Watkin Tudor Jones) and oddly-fringed sexpot rapper-singer Yo-landi Vi$$er used to be in a high-concept hip-hop project called Max Normal.TV, and Die Antwoord’s brilliantly realized website and videos look more professional than most major label promos. In the true post-modern spirit, it’s hard to tell exactly where the joke stops and the real starts with these guys, which is probably why Die Antwoord are already drawing international attention (in the blogosphere, at least). The trio’s debut album, $O$, is out soon on Amsterdam’sMagnetron, and you can stream the whole thing at their website now. Watch the group’s disturbing video for “Enter the Ninja” and their quasi-documentary introduction “Zef Side”.” - Pitchfork.com
Sounds like: MaxNormal.T, Pill, Jack Parow, Dirt Nasty, Chiddy Bang
Moods: Energetic, Electronic, Party
