After 12 years St Lucia frontman Jean-Phillip Grobler is back in his home country. But this time he has an internationally acclaimed band with him.
The electro-pop group performed their first show in South Africa on Saturday at The Side Show in Cape Town to an impressive turnout of mid-exam students.
St Lucia is an unusual mix of people from around the globe. From Iowa to Germany, the New York-based crew have their fair share of cultural influences.
Grobler, originally from Johannesburg, is the only South African. He went abroad to further his studies and eventually ended up in Brooklyn, where St Lucia was born.
Their pop sound is straight out of the ’80s, with a huge emphasis on electro beats and some unique instrumental additions.
The music itself bounces with playful and light-hearted energy and this show was no exception.
The venue was prime. Intimate enough to suit the up-and-coming band, but with enough space so that dancing, in all forms, was encouraged.
One major design flaw prevented The Side Showfrom being truly outstanding. For whatever reason, the floor in front of the stage where the audience finds themselves was raised in ascending platforms.
In other words, the oversized “staircase” got higher the closer you were to the band. This ensured that anybody further than ten metres from the main stage could effectively see nothing but the tops of heads.
Luckily for me, patience and a few strategically directed elbows on my part meant perfect crowd position.
The event was sponsored by Jack Danielsand GAP, who spared no effort in branding every corner of the venue. Branded photo booths, bars, plastic cups and even a life-sized statue of what one can only imagine was Jack Daniels himself were strewn around the hall.
In true Cape Town fashion, St Lucia braced the stage only somewhere after midnight. Fortunately for the eager and rowdy crowd, the line-up included some of the more talented South African musicians on the indie scene.
Al Bairre and Shortstraw both delivered vibrant performances before joining the crowd for the main attraction.
Just before midnight, the crowd became truly restless.
A possible combination of free Jack Daniels shots and the small surface area of the venue seemed to encourage just about everybody to jump or swing their bodies in every direction.
Attempting to dodge the stream of empty beer bottles rolling around on the floor added to this obstacle course of a music concert.
Certainly not for the novice concert-goer.
When St Lucia finally made their way to the front of the stage, the audience only seemed to lose whatever remaining inhibitions they might have had.
Screams and cheers nearly drowned out Grobler’s voice in the opening song, but the band hardly seemed to mind. His first words to the crowd were a rusty, “Hoe gaan dit?”, much to the enjoyment of the South African fans.
The frontman appeared in his usual loud tropical shirt, the only attire that could truly match the music. His co-musicians were equally dressed for the part.
Song after song, St Lucia delivered an energetic and musically supreme performance.
Grobler’s voice was unlike any in any other live performance. Hearty and perfect pitch matched with a tangible passion ensured that there would be no disappointed fans at the end of the show.
Testament to his raging passion, Grobler’s perfectly flicked hair became a wet mess of sweat as the night wore on, and he apologised for it numerous times throughout the show.
Patricia Beranek, the only female member, was unable to wipe a massive grin off of her face as she bashed away on the keyboard.
One thing that seemed rather out of place, but that could be chalked up to a musician carried away by the moment, was Grobler’s unusual choice of dance moves. Spread fingers reached out on either side of the microphone if he wasn’t banging his chest with his fist. This, combined with closed eyes, and you had something resembling a Mariah Carey music video.
Dance moves aside, there was certainly no faulting the boys and girl from St Lucia on talent or showmanship.
A truly humbled Grobler pointed out his South African family to the crowd and explained over and over again how grateful he was to see home support.
The show ended a short hour later, after the band had been called back on for more.
Even once the band had left the stage for the last time, the energy levels remained at an all-time high. People blinked around at one another as the house lights came back up and a sense of awe hung just above the departing masses.
St Lucia, I think I speak on behalf of everyone there when I say you are welcome home any time you’d like.
This contribution was produced as part of a collaboration between LitNet and the University of Stellenbosch's Department of Journalism in 2014.