It’s not often that the South African music scene sees a band explode the way The Graeme Watkins Project did in 2011. After the release of their debut album “Corridors of The Mind” in March 2011, the band’s spacing in the South African music industry changed dramatically, making them a hot product at most events and festivals around the country. In the space of one year they produced 5 Top 10 hits singles from the album. 2012 Saw them tour the album extensively both locally as well as internationally, and working with international producers on material for their follow-up album. This Follow Up Album, “Soldier On” was released mid 2013 and has seen the band touring it extensively countrywide.
In June 2016 the band released a new single entitled “Love in Abundance”. The single was completed earlier in 2016 when Graeme was reminiscing about his youth and the freedom that came with it. He concluded that if you gave life the opportunity, it will wear you out and before long you will become unrecognisable to yourself. The conclusion: A single about being young and love winning in the end.
Graeme describes the single as a high energy anthemic pop rock tune filled with things you love. It features loads of melodies, each supporting the next. Since their last release 3 years ago, all of the GWP members have grown into seasoned writers and perfected their craft; all which is encapsulated in this release.
I recently had a chat to The Graeme Watkins Project about a few things, this is what they had to say:
It’s been a while since you have released new music, what have you been up to?
We’ve all been crazy busy. Life’s been traveling at such a rapid pace, we are all growing up, doing the marriage and kids vibe, as well as solo projects here and there. We totally lost track of the last 3 years, and one day woke up and just started writing together again. It’s been quite organic and beautiful.
Do you have plans to release a full album in 2016?
We are taking it single by single for now. Trends in the music industry change so often and at such a rapid pace, we also don’t want to pressurize ourselves to slap out an album we aren’t 100% satisfied with. We want to write and record as we are inspired and make sure we’ve given our all to every song we do.
Which SA city is your favorite city to perform in and why?
Every city has an awesome vibe to it. We perform a lot more in Johannesburg and have our local crew who pull through. We make sure we pace our gigs out so we can give every gig our all and try something different each and every time. I love Cape Town gigs, as I’m from there. The crowds are always epic and we get such love from our cape peeps! Durban crowds are also epic, we love every gig we do. We really leave a part of ourselves on every stage we perform on.
What are your thoughts on the current state of SA music?
I think it’s an exciting time to be alive. I know the 90% thing is shrouded with controversy, but it’s made me realize how many awesome bands have been hiding in the woodworks. We don’t often get to go out and check live shows anymore, and there was a time where live venues in Johannesburg were lacking. But it’s all pulling together again now, which is rad to be a part of.
Where can people watch your next live show and why should they get their music loving bodies there?
We are live at the Chili and Choc Fest at Montecasino on the 15 July. We will also be releasing a tour schedule shortly. Keep an eye out on our social media. We really give our all at gigs and cater our set specifically to the crowd we are performing to. If we aren’t drenched in sweat and grossness, we didn’t give our all! So ja, come see us get all gross doing what we love!
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank The Graeme Watkins project for this interview and I wish them all of the best with their future musical endeavors. Crank up their new single, “Love in Abundance” below:
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