Posted on February 2, 2009 - by Justin Hartman
The Parlotones Concert
I’ve been trying to remember what the defining moment was that got me to listen to The Parlotones for the first time. Initially I thought it was a live performance I had been to but in truth it was actually as a result of a documentary I saw on SABC 3 about the band a year earlier.
The documentary was playing in the background while Colette and I did something else but I do remember telling her that almost every song that they played I really enjoyed. Needless to say a few weeks later I bought their third album A World Next Door To Yours and I’ve been a big fan ever since. I even got their Unplugged album for Christmas!
So yesterday the family and I shipped off to the Kirstenbosch Gardens for the Parlotones leg of the Old Mutual Kirstenbosch Summer Sunset Concerts.
Watching live bands is a special thing but even more so when you know all their songs so I had a fantastic time. It was Luke and Ben’s first concert and while Ben slept through most of it Luke was banging away at a tin cookie drum in tune to all the songs. You really can’t ask for a better setting than to have a family-orientated concert in a place as beautiful as Kirstenbosch Gardens. People have told me how special it is but until you experience it for yourself you really can’t appreciate it.
My only criticism of the band is that they played too much of their new stuff. They’re currently working on their latest album and they tested four of their new songs yesterday. It’s great to do this, and I’m sure many fans liked this, but I felt that during these times they lost the crowd a little because nobody knew the words. I would have limited the new songs to two and played more of the hits like Rock, Paper, Scissors (seen in the video below) which never got aired at the concert.
Apart from a fantastic concert I have to admit I was also extremely impressed with the whole organisation of the event.
We arrived at around 16:00 (gates opened at 15:30) and I was expecting chaos however this was not the case. Parking and entry into the Gardens was simple and efficient and despite being 75% full at the time we had no problem at all with finding a place and relaxing in the 30 degree heat.
Similarly, when the concert ended we experienced very little problems in getting to our car and traffic was slow but moving freely. The concert was sold out and there were allegedly over 5,000 people at the event and I have to take my hats off to the organisers (whomever you are) – you did a fantastic job.
I can’t wait to go to my next concert at the gardens! If you want to see more pics I took have a look here.
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February 2, 2009
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New blog post: The Parlotones Concert http://tinyurl.com/bg4vlh
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February 2, 2009
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Hey Justin, I was also there – was a great concert though I think I preferred last years one. It rained very hard before the concert but stopped when the concert started and it was awesome. Afterwards we were even sliding down the hill on our picnic blankets.
Defintely one of the many things that makes cape town awesome!
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February 2, 2009
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Luckily I didn’t have last year’s to gauge from but my best Parlotones concert was the one I attended in JHB.
Was a small venue (about 200 people) and they played every song from the 3rd album plus a whole bunch from earlier albums.
Check out my pics from that event (pics taken with iphone so go easy on the quality):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/justinhartman/sets/72157603832591879/
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February 3, 2009
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Great post!
Sadly missed the show (they were sold out).
I’m addicted to Parlotones and Kings of Leon at the moment.
For some strange reason they remind me of Discovery 911 vehicles, December holidays, and the Garden Route.
First exposure really does have impact!
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February 3, 2009
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That is it.
If ANYONE else tells me how good this concert was, I will go over to their house and beat the crap out of them
We could not get tickets (yes, we left this too late and I blame a former friend
), so I am extremely jealous that we missed the concert. Thanks for the awesome feedback, Justin, and also the video. First time I see the video, it reminds me of the Barnyard Parlotones shows I have been to.
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February 4, 2009
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Kirstenbosch concerts are my favourite thing to do in the summer. They are cheap, well organized and there is nothing better (to me anyway) than listening to live music in a beautiful place.
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February 12, 2009
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I thought the concert was great and that they did a great job of introducing a few new songs while still doing all the favourites. They are really brilliant!
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February 12, 2009
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PS. I think it’s ridiculous that your son can’t visit his brother in the general ward for free!
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September 17, 2009
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[...] is no secret that I’m a Parlotones fan-boy (as is evidenced by this post) and this once in a life time opportunity event was certainly not going to be missed by me and [...]