Photo Album: KONGOS @ Park Acoustics

This past Sunday (the 11th of December 2011) I made my way to Park Acoustics at the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria. The line-up of artists on the day included Flint & Tinder (an acoustic folk duo from Pretoria), Bateleur (a Post Triassic band from Cape Town) and KONGOS (a band with South African roots now based in Arizona in the United States). More than 2000 tickets were pre-sold for the show (which makes it the Park Acoustics with the biggest attendance in SA Music history).

We arrived at the venue at about 11 AM. When we got there we were greeted by growing queue in front of the entrance gate. After sorting out our media accreditation me and @SniperMime had the privilege to interview the KONGOS for about 2 minutes. I was particularly nervous because it was the first time I had ever interviewed artists on camera. (If you were wondering, the interview will be up on my sister SA Music site SA Music Zone later in this week).

After struggling to gather our faithful companions outside the gate (thanks to some folks phones dying on them) we eventually made it into the venue on time to catch Flint & Tinder on stage. The crowd seemed to be just growing and growing by the second. Flint & Tinder entertained the crowd with their chilled out acoustic set before making way for the uniqueness that is Bateleur. I must say that I have not heard a band like them before. These okes are quite brilliant in my humble opinion.

When Bateleur were finished with their set the KONGOS made it onto the Park Acoustics stage at about 3 PM. They were greeted by a hearty cheer from 3,000 Gauteng music fans. The KONGOS got straight into their set and impressed their South African fans right from the start. The 2nd single off their album Come With Me Now and their popular song In The Music went down particularly well with the crowd.

Before tearing the crowd a new one with their hit single I’m Only Joking (which has received extensive airplay on both Tuks FM and 5 FM) the KONGOS played their versions of the Beatles songs Come Together and Eleanor Rigby which had the crowd dancing and singing along loudly.

The scorching African sun (which apparently wasn’t as scorching as the sun in Arizona) didn’t deter the crowd from standing in front of the stage from the beginning to the end of their set. Most people attending got a heavy case of sunburn but “it was all worth it” (according to many of my friends on Facebook who attended the show).

Here are some photos taken by me at the KONGOS show on Sunday at Park Acoustics

The KONGOS were truly amazing and I recommend that you see them live if you have not yet. Besides Park Acoustics they also played a gig at the Alexander Theathre in Braamfontein on Friday (which was apparently a very good one too). But, don’t fear South African music fans, the KONGOS have more gigs coming up in the next few months. They will be playing at the Assembly in Cape Town on the 17th of December, Unit 11 in Durban on the 23rd of December, at the Avontoer New Year’s Eve Party in Stilbaai on the 31st of December, at A Word of Art in Cape Town on the 14th of January, at Tanz Cafe in Jozi on the 20th of January, at Arcade Empire in Pretoria on the 21st of January and at Up The Creek Festival near Swellendam on the 4th of February. Check out the KONGOS Official Website for more information about them.

Kudos to my good friend @SniperMime who snapped this video of the KONGOS performing I’m Only Joking at Park Acoustics on my Nokia N8 on Sunday. This will give you an idea of how good they are live

Did you attend the show at Park Acoustics? Please comment on this post and let the readers on this blog know what your thoughts are. Feedback is appreciated and welcome here.

Watch this space for regular updates in the Photography category on Running Wolf’s Rant.

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