Mad God is a 3 piece doom metal band from Johannesburg, South Africa and take influences from bands such as Electric Wizard, Church of Misery, OM, Sleep, Sons of Otis, The Sword and Black Sabbath. Mad God combine traditional, epic, sludge and stoner doom and play a mix of crushingly slow riffs and psychedelic soundscapes layered with reverb drenched vocals and lyrics touching on horror, madness, drug abuse and interdimensional beings. Our music goes beyond the traditional metal tropes of blast beats and guttural vocals and experiments with slow and atmospheric textures that allows our essence to extend between worlds. Mad God’s show is more than just a live performance but an aural and physical experience that we share with our audience.

Initially a 2-piece acoustic guitar duo, the Wolves are now a 5-piece ensemble with an upbeat West Coast flavour. As the Wolves sound continued to evolve, Pete picked up a banjo as the band started to explore the folk, country and bluegrass genre, fused together with their rock n’ roll, punk rock reggae roots… throw in some surf-punk & left field percussion then you start to get an idea! During the pandemic, the Wolves recorded their first full length LP “Don’t forget to Howl” capturing the live energy of the band, with songs planned for release in 2022.

The Wolves are surfers with strong connections to the Ocean & Kreef Gods of Southern Africa’s diabolical West Coast. Pack animals by nature, the Wolves draw their inspiration from the WES KUS, nourished by fireside acoustic jam sessions, blazin’ banjo, frosted quarts, icy surf and occasionally howling at the moon when the stars are align. The Wolves etho’s ‘music, surf, jol’ is a reflection of the character of the band, who often go against the grain to embrace this lifestyle, and as a result they’ve been building a buzz since they started touring with their upbeat and original West Coast beats. Starting with an acoustic & djembe driven bass, the Wolves throw in a variety of different genres, as a result they have a stripped down set for intimate venues, with the upbeat energy of the full band better suited to bigger shows & festivals.

Excited as they are with the emerging sounds, the Wolves never anticipated the enthusiasm which their audiences have found after releasing their debut EP, “Hold the Wheel”, followed by singles “The City” and ”Uncle Tin”.

“I can’t get over this band”, comments Mike Smith, editor of LMG, “Nobody in SA is doing this kind of music. Local promoter of the Brass Bell agrees, “the Wolves are masquerading as a contemporary folk-rock band, but their approach to blend genres together allows them to create an original sound, enhanced by the raw kinetic energy of the banjo”.

Burn The Mountain is a power trio from Johannesburg South Africa. A mission statement? A rallying cry? Or mankind’s futile struggle against the permanent? You decide.

With live shows like a white-knuckled trip down the rapids, Burn The Mountain is about real music and real connection. No backtracks, no bull. Not ever.

Today sees the release of the band’s new single Runaway, their first for Mongrel Records.  A self-produced escape from the mad times we live in. Driving basslines, pummeling drums and soaring vocals, the track was recorded entirely DIY with the final polish applied by Ryno Zeelie.

“Runaway has been a lot of firsts for us. First self-produced track, first music video, first proper release. It came out of the frustration of the second wave. And what started as a 7-minute-long jam went through tempo shifts, key changes, ruthless trimming of fat and a decision to incorporate some of our more diverse influences. There’s synth bass, EDM in the bridge, industrial snare and exploring more of my vocal range. It signals a step forward for Burn The Mountain and we are beyond excited as to where it is leading us.” Comments vocalist and guitarist Thomas Selmer-Olsen

The video was filmed on location in Johannesburg with almost no crew and directed by Kyle Kemink. One band, a couple of stack amps and an empty warehouse to fill with music

Rest & Resurrection is the new EP from Johannesburg-based, South African blues-infused-hard rock artist, Ross Harding. Displaying a rich and versatile vocal tone as a singer, and accomplishment as a guitarist, he is known for his fusion of blues and hard rock with strong elements of classic rock, 90’s alternative and grunge.

In 2017 Harding formed the blues rock band, Black Harbour, with fellow musician and friend Kevin Hughes, and made local and international progress performing, touring, and recording with the band. Since then, he has focused on his career as a solo musician, performing both as a solo acoustic artist as well as with his full band.

“The ideas of Rest & Resurrection are contrasting musically and thematically (or contextually). The EP is about a new chapter as a musician and deals with elements that I’ve wanted to express in my music – rebellion (about choosing one’s own path), the concept of rebirth or starting afresh, and more personal themes like spirituality and love. There’s a feeling of coming full circle too, as the EP has songs on it that have been with me for years already and are finally being released as I intended them to sound. So, there’s a lot going on for me in the EP. I’m very excited to share it with people – I’ve dreamt about it for quite some time already.” – Ross Harding

Nine is an alternative funk infused heavy rock band from Athlone near Cape Town, South Africa. Formed in 1992, the four piece is Farrell Adams (vocals), James Reynard (guitar), Grenville Williams (bass guitar) and Jerome Reynard (drums). As one of South Africa’s pioneering Black rock bands, Nine represents the fusion of Cape, African and international sounds formed in the dying days of Apartheid South Africa. The separation of people, art and ideas defined that system, and Nine aimed to break it down.

In keeping with this desire to fuse different musical forms, the name Nine is not intended to have any specific connotations. It can mean anything and nothing, and reflects the bands’ intention of breaking down barriers between different cultural and musical paradigms. The band’s wide range of influences take in everything from rock, funk and hip hop to dissonant neo-soul, jazz and reggae. Their constant shifting of boundaries means Nine are a band who defy convenient categorisation.

The 90s saw their rise in the South African musical underground scene with the band enjoying critical acclaim on the back of two albums releases: their self-titled debut, 9, and the follow up album, Entropy. Despite their fiercely independent outlook and underground status, 9ine developed a sizable following through their regular appearances at South African festivals like Oppikoppie and Up The Creek. As respected musicians, the 2000s saw band members involved with some of South Africa’s leading music artists like Jack Parrow, Arno Carstens and Godessa.

And now they’re back with the release of their EP, Re-ACTivate. The EP contains re-recordings of three of the bands most popular songs: Last Tear, Not Your Fault and Cancelled.

Crash and the Void is an experimental heavy rock band from Pretoria, South Africa. Founded in 2019 the quartet consists of two brothers: Marius Schutte on lead vocals (also boasting a music theory degree) and brother Lumar Schutte, a highly decorated session drummer. Completing the lineup is Waldo Van Der Linde on guitar + lead, and Dillon Van Heerden on bass guitar (and sound engineering). Crash & The Void’s collective influence ranges from Hans Zimmer to Black Sabbath. The band infuse balls-to-the-wall rock and roll with B grade horror / sci-fi genres