Rocking The Daisies 2013 – Damnit, is it really over again?

Last weekend thousands of South African music fans flocked to the 2013 installment of Rocking the Daisies. Our very own LW representative, Mehow, was there to party it up and cover the event for us. Here’s his review of what was one crazy and awesome music festival in the Mother City.

“Damnit, is it really over again?”

My question is answered as the car turns, the indicator clicks and sadly we’re driving away from the Cloof Wine Estate, away from the Eighth Rocking the Daisies annual Festival. I pull a pillow out and start catching up on sleep.

It was great, different but great. The usual elements were in play. The food village with epic festival foods; trader markets selling everything from warm clothing, furry hats to spray on tattoos; the daisy den for the champagne hipster dollies; art fields & massive wooden hands protruding from the fields; all green & sustainable as any festival of this size in SA can claim. I couldn’t believe that for the second time Cape Town weather was ruining my RTD bikini count.

But hey, no festival is perfect and just as something annoys you, you find something that makes you look past it. The camping was messy. I don’t know if total volume was increased or if people brought too much with. Peeps struggled to find a spot to pitch and this year’s early Thursday crowd was impressive. We had arrangements but by the time we arrived on Friday morning (11am) tent real estate was a real concern.

The organisers didn’t expect it, and sadly the protected wetland that divides the camp from the main grounds was eventually over run with tents and people. So no “green points” there for Daisies. It seemed like the VIP tenting area was too massive, barely filling up and wasting valuable space. Parking could have been decreased to allow for more tents which would have eased people up as well.

Like everyone else, after a few hours, and after running up and down from our car we eventually pitched, settled in and got round to do what we came to Daisies to do. Drink and listen to great music!

The Liminal’s kicked things off on Friday, the Main area started filling up as the sun went down. The sound was better this year, but with that strong wind some bands sounded empty, especially on Saturday. Regardless the bands delivered. I enjoyed all the bands playing on Friday night and gave each artist about half an hour and then walked around to capture as much of it as possible. Too much awesome is going on at the festival so you’ll be lucky if you even see half of it during the weekend. Good Luck were cool and this year’s lighting rig and basic AV did what it could to make every act look great. Smoke would have been rad but the wind wasn’t allowing for it even though plenty was being used. The Dirty Skirts were loud, The Black Cat Bones even louder. P.H.FAT was super energetic and kept everyone warm. It was a fantastic Friday night filled with really well performed SA music.

SIBOT over at the Red Bull Studio Live Stage was killing it. With no tent to guard punters from the wind and cold this year, dancing made everything better. Before him, acts like Headphase & The Kiffness got everyone on that side of the festival jamming hard. Slick visuals from all performers, mad lasers and epic sound pinned this as my favourite spot for the festival. I sat on a barrier and snapped away some cool pics on both nights.

Saturday started early, hearing about how epic Vodacom’s In The City Event was, peeps were getting amped for the main head liners now on their way to RTD.

Immune to the cold, jocks in vests with massive tribal tats were back at the Mainstay Beach Bar (a.k.a the Jock Trap). What’s been described as “Jocking the Daisies”, this bar was always busy and rumour has it that some punters didn’t even bother camping but jolled in the same spot for the length of the festival. We avoided it completely. I honestly tried to get into it for some shots but couldn’t. I missed Goldfish but they (and the other acts) sounded good even from where I was standing. Once again I had to judge this area of the festival by counting fist pumps per minute.

The usual suspects of South African comedy were back in the Savana Lemon Tree Theatre. Deep Fried Man sang his hits, Angel Campey was fantastic, and Schalk Bezuidenhout had a little bias loved for releasing his guide on how to “Rock the Daisies” as well as his original jokes. I over stayed at the theatre and laughed too much, quite easy to do when such a class of funny people are allowed to entertain you.

The Po10C Nu World Beat Barn was packed full on both nights, to be honest I barely knew any of the acts but have always loved this style of music. It was always jamming, full and keeping people smiling. The guys behind the decks were doing whatever it was they were doing, well.

I managed to see one act at the Hemp Stage, and what a rad act it was. TOUCHWOOD have been winning some awesome competitions in Cape Town and it was clear why. Their unique afro-gypsy folk sound was great to hear and a little impromptu harmonica from JEREMY LOOPS made this act memorable and reminded me why I come to RTD.

A quick bite and it’s eight o’clock when I sit on the hood of the mobile Jagermeister Bar. It turns out to be one of the better seats in the house for Alt-J. The area is so packed, so busy. None of the acts had such demand. I didn’t think Alt-J was so popular but clearly the recent radio play has gotten them noticed on our shores. It was great to see them live and sing along to a band whose music I actually knew. I planned on changing stages but The Hives emerge. Man are these guys great energy. I stayed through the entire performance in awe of how well these guys conduct themselves. Stage presence is of the best I’ve ever seen and people were having ridiculous amounts of crazy fun with these guys.

The Hives fly off and there’s quite a wait for Skunk Anansie but it’s the main reason I came to RTD. The last time they were in SA I was in my teens. It’s cold and windy as everyone braces for the rage and black feminism that is going to come through those speakers. They start late, but they start. Skin doesn’t look any different against a backdrop of her aged band members. Her shrieks and screams are beautiful. I feel like a kid watching her while she jumps around madly and keeps us going. I laugh as she even passes a comment on how cold it is. “Someone get me a jumper”, she says. I get to hear all their classics and even put the camera down to go party for the rest of their performance. Her voice hasn’t changed, ‘Weep’ sounds clear and perfect and leaves everyone feeling warm against the cold.

Skin decides to trust us and walks through the crowd, somehow she gets behind us and emerges by the Sound Tent. We roll her back, sing along for two more and say cheers. It’s one of the greatest live performances I’ve seen and makes my night and weekend.

With Skin walking away I go past to see how much noise Boyz Noize really makes. In conclusion, a fair bit. He’s got some seriously great music in his collection and seeing this Beatport legend in his craft shows everyone why he is where he is. I enjoy his beats before I mission along again. Like the night before, the lasers and bass are doing their thing. It’s a great party, with solid tunes for a long set that keeps punters going till the early hours.

RTD is one of those festivals that manages to cater for pretty much anyone and pulls it off. If you get stuck in one thing it’s okay cause you can always come back and experience another aspect of this festival next year. Though it felt different for being a little more commercial, I missed those little touches that made me love this festival. The camping was what it was but showed why those touches weren’t easy to find. This year the festival didn’t grow with its demand & hype like it has in the past. I’m sure the organisers will sort things out for next year. In the end my weekend ended far better than it started but I always make sure it does.