Zuma releases prisoners

A storm of excitement erupted at Pollsmoor Prison as 28 women and 60 juvenile males were released as part of President Jacob Zuma’s 10-week early remission programme. These are just a few of the 35 000 offenders who are going to benefit nationwide, said SA Correctional Services spokesperson, Letya Loose.
"The decision was made in light of the legacy of Nelson Mandela on this memorable day," he said.
Loose said that by the end of the program, they hope to have freed at least one society-changing, barrier-breaking, mind-changing political prisoner.
"We're more than just a little positive that at least one of them isn't such a bad guy," he said.
More than 14 600 inmates will be released in the next few weeks and a further 20 855 on parole and probation will be freed early.

The remissions were announced as a bid to alleviate prison overcrowding. This programme is set to reduce overcrowding from 34 percent to about 20 percent.
"We are sick of having our cells very overcrowded. It would just be a nice change to have them just plain overcrowded," Pollsmoor Prison Warden, Lucky Yahup.

Many prisoners, however, have met the proposal with heated opposition.
"I went to jail in 2006. Mbeki wasn't screwing everything up, fuel was still pretty cheap, and the CPI wasn't ridiculous. Now there is corruption, Mdluli is in charge of the police, and crime is through the roof. Prison has protected me from thousands of criminals since I came here!" said one prisoner.

Other prisoners have been outraged at the sudden programme. "All I did was steal a goat. If I had known that they would release me so quickly, I would have stolen at least a car or a watch," said inmate Gotye Stuuf.

"I got free food everyday here," said another, "what do they expect me to do once I'm out, get an honest living?!"

The programme has not only received warm reviews; criticism to its aims has been scathing.

"My crime syndicate has operated untouched and has been profitable for many years, and I'm not even talking about my illegal taxi business," says Minister of Public Spending, Robbin Hugh. "If they release all these people, I will have to contend with competition, not just with my taxi company, but also my position as a Minister."

Many other politicians have aired similar fears. "Half of those prisoners are more qualified than half of us MPs," said one unnamed source. "I mean, they probably passed their Woodwork course! How do I contend with that?"

Some politicians, however, have been overjoyed.
"I think it's great. I'm gonna see so many of my old friends, and this also means that if, one day, by some ridiculous stoke of misfortune the justice system actually works and convicts me of something, I'll be out much sooner than expected," said Minister of Finance, Emma Bezzlement.


However, criticism to the movement has been met with swift action by the newly-formed South African Prisoners Union.
"We feel that prisons are directly in opposition to our Constitutional Right to Freedom," he said. "I mean, racists get freedom of speech, why shouldn't we criminals get freedom from prison?"  said SAPU spokesperson John Picket.


Nevertheless, in the cities many civilians have been troubled by the programme's goals.
"There is going to be a big crime wave, just you wait and see. I'm already prepared: I've installed an alarm system and a giant electric fence to protect my old electric fence and alarm system from theft," said Sandton resident Gregory Turner.

In reaction, Loose has been quick to alleviate South Africans' fears of crime.
"We aren't releasing any violent criminals or anyone with weapons-possession charges," he said,
"just normal criminals."

However, sources close to the president have suggested that the decision was taken not in the spirit of freedom day, but rather in the spirits. 
"Umqombothi can be pretty strong stuff these days," said one unnamed source.

However, the Presidential Office has been quick to debunk those rumours.
"The President in no way or form touches alcohol. Every president that South Africa has had in the past few years have been upstanding figures who detest drunkness. Drunk people do stupid things, like appoint Mogoeng Mogoeng as Chief Justice, remove Willie Hofmeyr as head of the Special Investigating Unit, and disband the Scorpions. Oh, wait, on second thoughts: 'No Comment.'"

United Nations to review ambassadorial selection policy

This week, Robert Mugabe, President of Zimbabwe, was made the United Nation's Ambassador of International Tourism, a decision hailed by many as "the smartest ever since Napoleon invaded Russia".

Director of the Ambassadorial Selection Committee, Mr Wong Choyse, says that the decision has come too late."I look back and I think of all the other great leaders we could have put into UN Ambassadorial positions of power, and I'm sad, because they're no longer with us. As Ambassador of Diversity and Ethnic Tolerance, we could have had Adolf Hilter, or Idi Amin."

However, Choyse said that the decision had sparked a wave of reform in the selection committee.
"The board has opened up to consider many other African leaders for suitable positions in the UN. For example, Joseph Kony is being considered for UN Ambassador for Childrens' Rights. We think that the children will react very positively to him, because his name sounds kind of like 'cone', like an ice-cream."

The decision has also led to a surge of applications from leaders around the world.
Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has put forward his name for Ambassador for Gender Equality.
"I believe that I am as qualified to fulfill this role as Mugabe is to fulfill his as Ambassador of Tourism. After all, I'm a man, which means I'm already twice as qualified as any woman."

However, the call has been met with much criticism. Omar Al-Bashir, President of Sudan, was one of the first to raise his voice in protest.

"What has he done that I haven't?," he said, slamming his skull wineglass on his table of bones.
"It's unfair that he should get a title while i'm ignored."

Teodoro Obiang Nguema, President of Equatorial Guinea, has also added his voice to the complaints.
"It's such an affront to my dignity. All I can do is just sit in my palatial mansion with nothing but my billions to soothe my bruised pride."

The ANC Hipster League have reacted by calling the United Nations, "a bunch of outdated, outmoded copycats.
"We have been putting the wrong people into important positions of power before it was cool," said spokesperson Django Gulliver.

However, a source close to the electoral council has told reports that the decision was just a case of "broken telephone." "When the the president was being discussed, one of the elective committee members put forward a possible position, but the Director misheard. It wasn't supposed to 'tourism', but actually the International Ambassador of terrorism," he said.

However, Director Choyse has been quick to debunk those rumours.
"There's no way we would ever consider making anyone Ambassador of Terrorism," he said reproachfully.
"That position has already been filled by Hasan Izz-Al-Din of the Hezbollah, though we've had difficulty getting in contact with him since his minor misunderstanding with the FBI in 2001."

Scientist establish "scale of racism"

Scientists of the newly-formed Racial Affairs of South Africa: Investigatory Sciences Team have established a new scale of racism, to help guide South Africans through the difficult modern minefield that is racial affairs, says Thomas Blakanwite, head scientist for the project.

According to R.A.S:I.S.T's lead researcher, Callya Badwords, the scale operates on a 0-to-10 rating system, with South African examples alongside to give the reader some idea of how racist the action or person is. The scale ranges from Nelson Mandela (0), all the way to Jessica Leandra and Tshidi Thamana.
"We realise that those last two names bring a certain irony to the term 'model citizen'," said Badwords.

The ANC has reacted with mixed opinions to the findings. ANC head spokesperson, John Shimano, says that the report will be of great use. "It allows us to easily identify who is being a racist. You, for example, are a journalist. For us, that puts you at an automatic 8, unless you work for The New Age."

Another spokesperson, Igo Tistik, Chairman of the Chivas and Kick-backs Appropriations Committee, said that the findings were "an affront to the dignity of the South African people" and (by the usual arbitrary and strange reasoning) "an affront to the ANC." "We would take these so-called 'scientists' to Court, but we're just worried that, what with those other racists Brett Murray and Zapiro taking up our time, we'll forget which court case we are currently throwing taxpayers' hard-earned Rands at," he said.

When asked whether or not the new scaling system would work, ANCYL president Newlius Matema said, "Woodwork? Ha, don't ask me about woodwork, you racist!"

The decision, however, has been embraced by others.
"I think the list is great, because before it was published anything could have made me a racist. Now, I have an empirical way of telling people that they're wrong," said Tendai Sizwe.
"I think it's good," said suburb dweller Paran Noid, "because, although I did lock my doors when a beggar came to my window, I'm still a whole four points from hypothetically having my sponsors pull their funding for my modelling career."

Meanwhile, the Department of Education has reacted to the published findings with concern.
"With many of our politicians having been through the Matric system, we are worried that many will not be able to understand the greater implications of the scale, as it goes all the way up to the number 10," said Professor James Utitshala.

Rhodes food findings cause controversy

An uproar exploded across campus this week after a panel of leading scientists discovered trace elements of nutrients in Residence Food. Using advanced subatomic spectroscopy, extensive quantitative analysis and molecular electron microscopy, scientists have confirmed myths that Residence Food actually contains elements that are good for you.

"The findings have been incredible. We have found out that at least 1% of the Wednesday night porkchops contain real meat, and that the Friday grilled brisket is not, contrary to popular belief, dog meat," said lead scientist Ian Quisitive, of the Gearman Research Of Subatomic Spectroscopy.

Above: the research findings for eggs and meat.
The findings have been the subject of much criticism and attention.

"The process was quite intensive," said G.R.O.S.S. Research Assistant Petra Kews, "but definitely worthwhile. Many students had written to us with fears that the vegetables were bad for them, but we can now assuage their fears with empirical evidence showing that at least 43% of the vegetables are actually made from vegetables."

The report was originally called in after a student blew the whistle on seemingly poor standards of Health and Safety in the Hall Kitchens. "I was working in the kitchens after my subwarden gave me community service hours for downing a bottle of vodka, throwing up in the common-room and running around screaming "TO THE RAT" making noise in Residence, and after working hungover in the kitchen for three hours and thinking of a way to get revenge seeing the stuff they put in our food, I just knew that something had to be done," said 3rd-year BSA student Thomas Chundler, who asked to remain anonymous. After his story appeared in the local student newspaper, Cracked-of-late, G.R.O.S.S took Chundler's claims to the laboratory.

The findings, however, don't stop there. The panel also announced that the morning fried eggs are not, as the rumours say, 100% oil, but do, in fact, contain trace elements of chicken yolk and albumen.
"We have officially determined the oil-content to be about only 85% oil, but there definitely is egg somewhere in there. Those yellow-and-white lumps you get in the morning are not just foul, but also fowl," said Quisitive.

Since its release, the research report has sparked heated debate across campus.
"Just look at this," said Timothy Hunga, poking a brown mass with his fork. "I mean, we pay almost R15 to make the kitchen staff wake up at 5 in the morning to give us this and as much bread, jam, tea and coffee as we want, and they give us seconds for free. Why are they so cheap?" he asked.

Others have responded with apathy. "I'm vegan anyway," says UCT Classics and Photography exchange student Hugo Jobless. "I don't eat or use anything that's made of meat or from animal products, or undermines my retro dress sense," he said, putting his latest Apple products into his leather bag. When asked what/when he does eat, he just shrugged.
"I'll be fine: dying of starvation is too mainstream."

The International Office has, however, met the findings with grave concerns, in particular with the fired eggs.
"Having seen what has happened to places like Iraq and Afghanistan when scientists discover large oil deposits, we now face a valid fear that America is going to try and bring democracy to our kitchens," said Head of International Relations, Miss Ila Stark.

The Rhodes Officer for Resident Operations, Mr Orga Naais, said that the University has, "embrace[d] the findings, which debunk so many hurtful rumours." In celebration, they have added a new option to the menu, "At least 10% chicken and (something that passes for) beans with rice".

"We are just glad that these horrible rumours have been put to rest."

Rhode University cancels construction of pools

Rhodes University has today announced its decision to cancel the construction of three new swimming pools, says Head of Campus Constructions, Buildmore Stuuf.

“You see, we noticed that all along Prince Alfred street there were these spots already cleared and excavated, some of them with water already in them. We figured these would be prime spots for new pools, and had gotten well into construction when the Department of Roadworks called us and asked to leave their potholes alone.”

Stuuf says that relationships between Rhodes and the DoR have since turned into to a “holey mess”.
“Not unlike half the roads in South Africa,” he added.

The decision has left many students and local residence disappointed.
“It would have been great,” said Fine Arts student Havno Realjob. “There is a lot of parking there, and it’s very easy access.”

Another student, Vuyo Ristic, who asked not to be named, said that the new pools would have allowed more opportunities to visit the “meat-market”. “Now I have to creep on facebook, just like every other normal human being,” he said.

Marion Nomajor Riteoff, a BSC student, said that the call to stop construction was saddening. “The new development would have been perfect for late-returning party-goers, journalism students, and those sad fools living up the hill. Sometimes I get sweaty and tired on the way back up the hill from lectures, so having not one but three swimming pools would have made perfect sense.”

The first of the three pools, The Nelson Mandela honourary swimming pool, had almost neared completion.

Construction of the other pools was well ahead of schedule before its sudden termination.

However, the call has been met with support by the Hellenic Society. “With so many of our toga-clad members going home late at night having  drank themselves almost to death attended our society's events that support a strong heritage of Hellenic culture, the three pools may have caused many accidents. We simply can’t have so many members of our club accidently drowning on their way home,” said the society's media representative, Agnes Bailout Maralous.

The proposed pools had originally made headlines, and were lauded by the Dean of Water Studies, Mr John Steenkamp, as one of the first systems to utilise entirely natural methods in its filling and maintenance. “Since these roads have no drainage capabilities anyway and become massive rivers each time it rains, we thought we might as well take advantage of the situation. We don’t even need chlorine: the water is already full of aluminium and arsenic, so there is no danger of germs. Also, the pools fill through natural rainfall, meaning that wastage is minimised. This really could have made waves in the modern architectural community”, he said.

The Students Representative Council has also expressed its disappointment, saying that the decision was a step back for both students and transformation. “This is another missed opportunity to have another thing in the world named after Nelson Mandela,“ said SRC Transformation Representative, Givita Newname.

The proposed pool sites have since been filled in and reconstructed to look kind of like a shitty road.

Spear painting "a sick misrepresentation"

The South African National Congressional Peoples' Party Movement Party for the Furtherance of People's Power Association of South Africa... Party, said today that Brett Murray's infamous painting entitled "The Spear" was a "misleading" representation of our president, and an affront to his dignity.

In a press conference this morning, Jones Sensor Shipindwe, president of the SANCPPMPoFPPASAP, told gathered journalists that the painting was no true indickation, sorry, indication of Zuma.

"Just look at that silly picture. There's no way it's that small. If you're going to be racist and stereotypical, at least follow the normal stereotypes," he said, sipping a crystal tumbler of Chivas Regal. "As a president with so many wives and children, it offends me for someone to think that someone that small could get so many wives."

When asked whether it might be the government kickbacks, spending allowance, pension, medical and schooling benefits, transport allowances, free trips to Morroco and rare Siberian White Tiger pet allowances that were the main reason for so much love-interest, he scoffed.

"You racists, you think that just because a man is in government he has so much money," he said, wiping cocaine and truffle stains off his Georgi Armani custom-tailored suit with a gold-and-diamond-fringed rare albino pandaskin handkerchief. "We are rooted in the power of the masses, and we serve their interests loyally." He could not make further comment, as his personal chauffeur came in telling him that his gold-plated limousine was waiting to take him to the airport, where a private G7 jet would take him to a "people's empowerment conference" in the Bahamas.

Meanwhile, professors of Manhood and Sexual studies have debunked Shipindwe's claims with empirical evidence. "It's very easy for someone to think that such a powerful figure would pack more meat, but studies suggest that the usual, fully-dressed, no-junk-hanging-out bulge we see, is in fact his wallet packed with our taxpayers' hard-earned dollars," said Richard Hungli Keamouse, Dean of the Sex Studies school at Boston College. "Historical evidence has shown that big pricks usually tend to come with small ones."

Since the painting's release, there has been a massive outcry and debate about it.

"How can I focus on issues like rape, theft, corruption, embezzlement, xenophobia and gay-hate when that painting is still hanging up?" said Thomas Apatheticos.

Others still have questioned the arrest and treatment of the two men charged with defacing the painting.

"Why did they only beat the black guy? Police brutality should affect us all equally!" said James Msimba.

Many more still have spear-headed, I mean "lead" a campaign to ban the painting.

"We will not go back to our crime-ridden and poverty-stricken towns until this horrible image is removed!" said Tim Johnson.

Meanwhile, the painting has spawned millions of copies and tongue-in-cheek copies, one of which shows Nelson Mandela laughing whilst inferring with a small pinch of the fingers that the member on display is, in fact puny.

Mandela could not be reached for comment, because, even at his age, he was too busy heading several massive charities that deal with the real problems in South Africa, like HIV and the thousands of orphans.

Les memoires d'un tel vieil homme

"Le Temps court et s'écoule et notre mort seule arrive à le rattraper. La Photographie est un couperet qui dans l'éternité saisit l'instant qui l'a éblouie." - Henri Cartier-Bresson

Viens, mon ami. Assises-toi  près du feu ; reste pour une seconde. Il y a du temps ; quand on  vieillit, on a du temps. Moi, je suis vieux ; j’ ai vu plus de cinquante hivers froids et des printemps parfumés. Regarde ces trois photos ! Ouais, bien sûr j’en ai des dizaines d’autres, mais ces trois  incarnent mes souvenirs sans pareils ! Chaque photo raconte une histoire tout en montrant un moment qui m’a changé . Va ! Touche-les, je t’en prie ! Laisse-moi te raconter mon histoire…

De la violence et de la haine inutiles

Voyons la première photo! Ah, je me souviens comme c’était hier! C’est une image assez violente, non ? Cet homme, c’était un ancien combattant. C’est quoi,  me demanderais-tu ?  Eh bien, au Zimbabwe, cela veut dire « quelqu’un qui n’est pas assez âgé pour avoir combattu dans une  guerre, mais qui aimerait bien ce titre pour profiter des avantages ». C’est l’un des visages innombrables qui  ont pillé le Zimbabwe : l’un des multiples visages qui ont tué des innocents,  haï des paisibles citoyens, et volé des terres et divisé des milliers de familles. C’est une image qui me remplit d’amertume, penserais-tu ? Non, mon ami, j’ai fait ma paix. Quand j’étais plus jeune, peut-être cette image inspirait l’amertume dans mon âme, mais avec du temps  elle m’invite au pardon. Le pardon de tous les crimes commis contre moi. La vie est trop courte pour être rancunier !

Le début d'une passion

La deuxième photo ! Ah, regardes, c’est moi, dix-neuf ans, guitare à la main. Je suis si jeune : un corps musclé, les cheveux à l’état sauvage, rempli de jeunesse et l’arrogance qui l’accompagne toujours. C’était min premier concert. C’était dans un petit bar qui s’appelle Pirates. Je l’avais joué (elle s’est appelé Layla) depuis ma seizième anniversaire, mais ici, dans cette photo, c’est la première fois que je joue et chante en publique. Ah, je souviens la foule, dans ce bar plein à craquer. Ces gens ont crié, et m'accompagnaient en chantant. Mon ami, tu n’as pointe vécu jusqu’à t’as sentir la clameur de la foule contre ta peau, si vive qu’elle remplit tes poumons et ta cœur. C’est la raison pourquoi j’adore la musique et la guitare en particulière : le caractère léger de ses accords doux retentit partout dans mon cœur  comme des ondes qui se brisent contre mon âme.

Le travail acharné et des sacrifices apportent la gloire  

Et  voilà enfin, la dernière photo ! À vingt ans, je venais de remporter la plus grande régate de l’Afrique du Sud – le fameux Boatrace. Regarde-moi, un sourire charmant aux lèvres illuminait un visage joyeux, le bras  aux épaules de mes camarades, une médaille prestigieuse pend autour de mon cou. Je m’étais entrainé depuis sept mois ; j’avais parcouru presque 1 900 kilomètres de course à pied et à l’aviron. Chaque matin je me levais à cinq heures et demie, bien avant le lever du soleil. Moi,  j’adorais vraiment la rivière de Port Alfred : la beauté naturelle de ses hauts arbres dégarnis qui  dépassaient le buisson vert comme des doigts squelettiques. Cette beauté est pareille au songe qui se garde longtemps au réveil.  Mes mains étaient couvertes d’ampoules profondes et douloureuses, et mon dos accablé de douleurs atroces. Et c'était la période décisive de ma vie. Je venais de me rendre compte qu’avec plus de travail et de persévérance plus rien ne me serait impossible.

Mon ami, je te demande: qu'est-ce que tu ferras dans ta vie? Des grandes choses? Ton present, deveindras-t-il un belle passé que tu peux cherir dans ta viellesse? Moi, je reponds « oui ». Un jour, j'espere que tu reponderas du même facon.

Brace yourself

As Lord Eddard Stark warned us.

"Winter is coming."

After the bone-biting chill of today frostily and unnecessary-adverb-ly swept across Grahamstown, I fear that the sweet warmth of summer has seen its heyday, and is on its swift way out.

The last week has been very enjoyable, and not just primarily because of the weather. Sure, the sun has been shining beautifully, and some days have been unseasonably warm to the point that the air becomes a hot honey against your skin, cloying sweet and sticky, but the people at Rhodes itself have been... well, they look pretty good.

Now, blog posts about the weather aren't exactly what you'd call riveting, nail-biting prose, and so I come to the secondary point of this post: fashion. Now, I'm no Gucci or Gaultier, but I've grown up around two sisters and a my mom (they used to watch a HELL of a lot of Style Network channel, a testament to their lack of cupboard space), and so I pride myself on knowing at least a little bit about fashion and how to look good. This past week, I've thought exactly that about the Rhodents I've seen across campus and in the various local haunts at night. This I can attribute to one sole reason: home.

We were in that most wonderful of times: the first week of term. Freed from the stresses and strains of university, students went home to relax and unwind. Upon their return (I know this is an assumption, but I can only base it on what I've seen) most got new clothes, had their hair cut, coloured, Brazillian deep-conditioned, straightened and god-knows-what-else-ed. Also, being home, they probably decided to wear their nicer clothes (and here by "nicer" I mean "anything that WASN'T flip-flops, teesavs, beaters, hippy pants, hoodies, terribly-motto'ed printed tees, and the innumerable other things that encompass the "student too lazy to even put on shoes let alone drag a comb through their greasy, matted locks" look). And so, lulled into this sense of home (and in some cases, the fashion prerequisites of big-city life), most came back still lost in the heady mists of home-hood. As a friend eloquently noted, "Bro, these chicks are, like, at least one point hotter than I remember". Sexist shallowness aside, I couldn't help but agree.

Alas, let me reiterate: winter is coming. That first blast of freezing cold not only make students shiver and bitch and moan at supper, but it dealt a potentially fatal wound to fashion prospects. I've been here for two years now. Do you want to know what a cold, like, really cold, winter does to dress sense? It alters it utterly.

So, what have we to look forward to on campus? Well, for one, we can applaud winter's kiss in rendering the barefoot look a thing of the summery past. No one is so lazy that they'd freeze their pink little phalanges off. However, that is not enough of a saving grace. Hoodies are coming. Lots of them. Some with terrible res/matric slogans embossing/adorning/ruining them. And not those cute hoodies, either. The puffy, pouffy, "fuck you, winter" marshmellow ones so thick they'd make the girl who invented pouty ducklips look like Einstein. Hoodies of this caliber are utterly devoid of any shade or suggestion of sexiness; if anything, they remind of that last boss battle in Ghostbusters.

You see my point?

It's not just the hoodies, either. similarly puffy and pouffy hippy quasi-pyjama pants will make their usual appearance, accompanied by those ever-godawful Ugg boots. Or, (fucking)Ugg(ly) boots, as I prefer to call them. The only thing worse would be slippers: oh yes, you'll see plenty of those, too.

Kate put on her new hoody and went to lectures.

Or maybe I'm being defeatist: there are some who met the cold with valiant fashionable resilience: black coats, jeans, boots, scarves. I can just hope the wintry wind fills the sails of this revolution.

Or, maybe even worse, I'm being shallow. "There's more than meets the eye," I hear you cry. "Beauty is but skin deep!" Well, maybe. And maybe not. No one loved the Mona Lisa because the canvas and wood underneath its paint was. Let's be serious: you can't judge a personality from across the quad, and so you might have the most wonderful, striking, charmingly charismatic personality in the world, but it won't count for much if you dress like (for want of a better word) a lazy moron. And don't say "oh, but just talk to them".  What, every person I ever see? Yeah. Not likely.

All in all, I love winter. Yup, it's definitely tie-collared-shirt-and-jeans weather, a look which is just painful  under the the burning eye of the summer sun.
Except when I have to row. Then winter is a bitch. A hand-biting, bone-chilling bitch.

RyG goes Cuban

Ever since that fateful day that my now-defunct iPod played their speed-of-insanity “Diablo Rojo”, I have been deeply in love with the musical style of the brilliant, unique guitar duo that is Rodrigo y Gabriella. Comprising of Rodrigo Sánchez on lead guitar and  Gabriella  Quintero on lightspeed, percussive rhythmic guitar, the duo kicked off their notoriety by playing their heavymetal-esque acoustic flamenco style in bars across Dublin.

So you can imagine my excitement when my mom pointed out an album in a music store we happened to be passing. “Oh look, don’t you like them?”, she asked, pointing to the red and blue cover of El Rodi y La Gabi’s new album Area 52. I could barely contain myself: I didn’t just like them, I practically worshiped them – their previous albums have accompanied almost every shower I have taken since discovering them (the acoustics of tiled rooms are magnificent, aren’t they?), and their flamenco, triplet- and riff-driven guitar is half the reason I keep playing and practising, whittling my thumb away to nothing.

However, after giving this CD a few (dozen) listens, I was quite surprised. Much like the vegetarian lasagne they serve on Thursdays in the Dining Hall, I had to take quite a couple of bites just to decide whether I liked the new offering or not.

The crazy flamenco style of RyG joins C.U.B.A to produce some wonderful and sometimes curious results

Area 52, the band’s fifth studio album, showcases a musical collaboration with C.U.B.A, a 13-piece Cuban Orchestra and various other guest musicians playing a variety of instruments, from sitars to rock drums. Some critics have said that the duo lack depth, and so perhaps a foray into a more encompassing style is a good one...

...or perhaps not.

Let me break down the CD into a track-by-track breakdown as they appear on the album.

“Santo Domingo” kicks off the album with a extraordinary intro that grabs you by the balls and gets you listening immediately. You can almost instantly feel the new edge to their sound: trumpets blast and interject to create a rich, exotic sound, and an added ‘wah’ effect to the guitar work makes the riff at once familiar and brand new. They stay true to much of their old style, with centrality being lent predominantly to the ever-inventive guitarists. However, the song quickly loses its flame to an unnecessarily long jazz piano solo piece, followed by… what the f-? Flutes? Really? Flutes. In a Rodrigo y Gabriella song? One simple question: why, God, why?

After the first song fades away, we are given a beautifully sculpted rendition of “Hanuman”. The song swells and resounds with a great Cuban interlude, and the electric guitar work and solos are nothing short of the fantastic Mexicano stylings that I fell in love with. My only critique would be that, apart from the solo, the guitar pieces are lost in the sounds of all the other instruments.

"Ixtapa" , the next track, is fantastically remastered. Their new rendition is absolutely tranquil, seeping a calmness that grows and swells with their amazing building progression. With the great guitar work that resonates so deeply within my heart, I just can’t help but scrunch up my eyes in utter incredulity. Their old style is mixed with new influences, fusing with definite Cuban styles to produce a wonderful achievement; and besides, just listen to the sitar work done by Anoushka Shankar – it’s damn near enough to make you cry, and it adds a poignant and wonderful dimension that I never thought the band could have.

Originally a tribute to Pink Floyd, “11:11” is probably the centrepiece of the CD. The guitar screams with reinvention, accompanied by a new, heavier beat. The piano and great drum work works in tandem with punchy horns to build up and accentuate the guitar work. The solo… God, the solo… I have never heard a guitar scream “FLOYD!” more loudly: the unmistakeable wailing, bending sound of the electric guitar in this song is nothing short of genius, and it captures the Floyd sound brilliantly. Syd Barrett would be very, very proud. However, the song goes a little “full retard” (to quote Robert Downey Junior) and suddenly ends with weird tribal-esque drums and singing. To finish so fantastic a song is almost blasphemy. My advice: skip the last 40 seconds or so.

“Master Maqui”, the next track, continues the guitar work nicely: again, it’s very good, even if it is at times lost to the other instruments. I constantly feel like the two primary guitarists are Jack Dawson, being forced to drown in the freezing Atlantic whilst that bitch Rose (in the form of trumpets, drums and those damned flutes) hogs the whole wooden float. At times, this song feels a little bit like a Broadway show-chorus tune, and at times it shows definite Arabian Nights influences. It’s… well, sometimes it’s nice, and sometimes I just have to ask “WTF?”.

Next is “Diablo Rogo”, the piece that captivated and awed me all those months ago. This track is one hell of a mean one: the old song is still definitely there, recapturing the heart-racing incessant awesomeness of their Spanish speed, driven even more crazy by ‘wah’-effect guitar, light piano and great drumming.

“Logos” was another one of my old favourites, simply because of it’s sheer foot-stomping addictiveness. Though this track is a slightly altered portrayal of the guitar in the original, it is by no means a bad song. In fact, it’s a whole different kind of addictive: it is unbelievably calm and yet at the same time driven, making your foot stomp all over again, and for much of it the accompanying orchestra is absent, which can be a good thing. All in all, this is a great reinvention that still stays true to the original.

“Juan Loco” is no different: though a very different feel to the original, the playful beat and melange of instruments and sounds make this song one that stays true to its roots whilst exploring other influences. The build in this song verges on sheer sonic mastery.

“Tamacun” is an all-time favourite of mine: after I practiced (for six long and arduous months) the insane, lightning-fast triplets Gabriella had shown in one of her tutorial videos, this is always a song I like to mess around with when I play live. This is a wonderful track to end this relatively short CD with: the song comes reinvented, bursting with a Cuban playfulness – saucy and spicy, with a lighter, jazzier sound that drives right to the heart of why I love this band so much. Like some of the other tracks the guitar is sometimes lost to other instruments: there is, for example, too much trumpet, I think, and you don’t get quite so much the palm slapping and percussive elements for which the virtuoso Gabriella is so well known. However, it’s still an awesome track.

So, my feelings at the end of it all are a bit mixed. Sure, as a localised Afro-Cuban experiment, the album works very, very well. However, I can’t help but feel that the very definite, unmistakable Rodrigo-y-Gabriella-ness of the band has taken a back seat in this experimental drive. Sure, their songs appear in some tangible form of their old glorious selves, but much of the sheer jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring guitar insanity for which they became so well-known has lost its centrality to a backdrop of trumpets, piano and (God help us) flutes. I really do get what they were trying to do with this album: to experiment and get a more localised flavour, to see what kind of a spin they could season their old favourites with, and to a certain extent it does work – the sitar, piano, drums and trumpets add a whole new dimension of sound. However, I must say that if I had wanted to buy a Cuban instrumental orchestra CD, I would have done so. At R150, I wanted the ear-pounding, soul-smashing heavy-metal-on-nylon duel fury that these two magnificent artists so expertly and easily dish out. This album, though it is a fantastic one, just fails to deliver the sheer guitar dexterity and mastership for which this duo has become famous. Where is the double, palm-muted body tapping of the old “Diablo Rojo”? Where is the simple ingenuity of the original “Ixtapa”? Alas, if you’re looking for a sound more reminiscent of their older eponymous album Rodrigo y Gabriella, or the unstoppable heart-racers of their Live albums (Manchester and Tokyo respectively), then perhaps Area 52 is just a time-killer until the next time they make an unbelievable amount of awesomeness out of two simple guitars.

Books, covers and everything in between

I’ve been in Cape Town on holiday for almost a week now. It’s nice, being back home and seeing the family, taking a break from university work and the daily worries that come with it. However, outside of the “vegetarian – default” meal system at Rhodes, trying to get by outside of the great RU walls has been nutritionally challenging. Now, Cape Town has a certain image. I’m not one to judge a book by its cover (or a city by its hipsters) but I must admit that I’ve been quite… well, disappointed.

My family have been awesome in meeting this whole vegetarian lifestyle that I’ve got going on. Family meals have taken on a more vege-centred, meatless form, even though they still have yet to give up the red and white entirely. Apparently sushi is just too awesome to never eat again.

However, the first few problems arise as soon as I step foot out my door (which is a new door: we’ve moved house, and when I say “moved” I mean something more like “took our stuff about a hundred metres down the road to a new complex”). I went to Long street with my family to eat out. We sat down in a nice little café, and everything was just perfect. Perfect, that is, until I opened the menu.

No vegetarian option in sight. Well, there was salad (a range of salads), but salad is nowhere near a main course. Hell, salad is a side-option to a main course. So we decided to get up and try another place.

And another.

And another.

And another.

I found it hard to believe that so many places in Long street had nothing to offer green-crunchers other than salad; these placed offered about as much choice as a Zimbabwean presidential election. I eventually had to ask the chef of one establishment to make me a cheeseburger, minus burger, plus fried onion and egg. Now, I’m not saying that Cape Town doesn’t cater for vegetarians: there are lots of places that do do it, and well (Kauai comes to mind), but they are just too few and far in between. Even the high-end places like Harbour House, Sevruga’s and Willoughby’s have nothing really aside from a soya dish and vegetarian maki. It’s almost insulting. I’ve almost, almost, rescinded on my ideals and partaken of chicken just so that I don’t have to eat another salad or choke down another vegetarian pasta. I mean, there are literally thousands of different vegetarian meals that can be made. The other night I made a vegetarian ratatouille with pasta; is it too much to ask a master chef to make something similar, if not better? I cannot imagine what it would be like being a vegan: cutting egg, milk and other animal products entirely from my diet would in effect guarantee my starvation.

However, investigating what I could eat without betraying my new ideals has been interesting. A few pertinent questions have arisen: if I eat eggs, doesn’t that mean eating caviar is okay? (some sushi is quasi-vegetarian, but topped with caviar and mayo); and what about prawns? I mean, I gave up fish, but prawns aren’t exactly fish, are they? Sigh, categories and labels are such confusing things (does eating one prawn mean that I failed to stay the course? Oh well: that tempura was well worth it, if it does).

Anyway, I’m back in Rhodes as I add to this post, which has been sitting around partially edited for the last few days. It’s gonna be interesting to see what this next term brings. My first guess? Work: it isn’t even the first day of term yet and already I have several Word documents sitting on my desktop waiting to be finished by Friday… C’est la vie d’un étudiant, non?

My other guesses? Well, for the most part, two: firstly, I got a Kindle, so I'm probably gonna read a lot more than I used to; and secondly, I've been practising guitar a lot (played two gigs - open mic nights, really - in Cape Town) and so I think that George and I (George is another great guitarist at Rhodes, and he plays a style that really gels with mine) will make some serious music this term and in the others to follow. Working name? El Toro. The Bull.