10 December 2009
Cape town-based singer songwriter, Ian Henderson returns from Buenos Aires to meet actor, beat-poet, and funny man-extraordinaire, Mystery White Boy, for two nights of irreverent music and poetry at The Grand Daddy's 'The Venue'. Ian will perform with a full band, including Jedd Kossew on guitar, Graham Beyer on bass, and Shaun Michau on drums.
Date: 18 & 19 December 2009 (Two shows)
Venue: The Venue @ The Grand Daddy Hotel, 38 Long Street, Cape Town
Lineup: Ian Henderson plus band & Mystery White Boy
Time: 21h00
Tel: (072) 1230263
Tickets: Presale online from http://www.webtickets.co.za / @ R50
At the door on the night @ R70
The accolades have been flying thick and fast for singer-songwriter Ian Henderson since the release of his sweeping second solo album, Superglue. His mercurial pop record with a light touch, grounded by bittersweet lyrics, has been a great success for the Durban-born musician now living in Cape Town. “The songs for Superglue came fast,” Henderson muses, “I couldn’t turn the creative tap off…the music just came pouring out.”
No surprise then that after the release of the album, three music videos and a blistering tour all over South Africa to promote the album, some time off was necessary. “I thought it was important to get some perspective. Argentina has been eye-opening,” Henderson tells me over Sykpe from Buenos Aires, where he has been holed up for the past two months on an artistic adventure. “It’s been phenomenal to collaborate and play with musicians over here. It’s given me a whole new angle on what I’m trying to do.” I ask him why he chose Argentina as creative point-of-departure and not, say, the US. After all, his album has a refined Western sheen that would happily make playlists in the USA, the UK or Europe. Wouldn’t it have made sense to try tour those markets? “It’s not about making sense. It’s about being creative, open and learning as much as I can. I know a lot about the States already. This journey was about the unknown. Throwing myself into a country where I don’t know the language and seeing if I can still make my songs work.” There is a pause. “And it’s cheap,” he quickly adds with a laugh.
Has the journey to Argentina affected his song-writing? “Most definitely,” Henderson says happily, “but there are no Spanish love songs just yet! I’m in a different place emotionally and spiritually than where I was when I wrote the songs for ‘Superglue’, so there is naturally a different landscape to my music now.” Our conversation quickly turns back to South Africa. “I’m very excited to be coming back and sharing my new songs. This feels like a new start for me. Obviously I’ll miss the friends and fans I’ve made while being here in South America, but my time here has given me a lot of new ideas and a lot of fresh energy.”
He’s certainly not wasting any time. Ian will play his first gig before South African audiences within a week of being back on home ground, with a show mystically entitled “Ian Henderson and Mystery White Boy”. I ask Ian for a hint at what local fans will see at the show. “Ah yes,” Ian drawls, “Collaboration will be the name of the game. I’ll be performing with my band and pushing them in a new direction. This will be a performance with the safety net comfortably taken right off.” And who is Mystery White Boy? “He’s a crazy slam poet from Joburg whose known for mixing things up with a bit of humour. He’ll be making his Cape Town debut with this show, wreaking havoc and making grown men cry. He has a habit of being loud.” Ian laughs. “It should be interesting.”
