My lifelong dream is to headline at Wembley Stadium in London, England. It's just such a fantastic venue with such a rich history of excellent performances. Apart from that, it's totally humungous! However, this isn't the only place I'd like to play. Cape Town Stadium, where I got to see the legendary U2 perform earlier this year, would be epic, as would any of SA's 2010 Fifa World Cup Stadiums. Madison Square Garden, NYC, USA would be another great place to perform.
However, when I think about it, I've actually performed in some amazing venues, and from a young age no less. I was only 13 when I played a drum solo in front of about 3000 people at Bellville Athletics Stadium, for my school's Inter-schools Athletics Tournament, which was nerve-wracking, but loads of fun at the same time.
Here is a list of a few incredible venues that I've been blessed enough to perform at, and why that particular show was so memorable. Enjoy!
Grand Arena, Cape Town - 2008
The opening night of our tour supporting Seether. 5000 people singing back at us waving giant foam fingers. Not to mention, the amazing backstage area, equipped with plenty of food and drinks. We also played
Standard Bank Arena, JHB;
Wavehouse, Durban; and
NMMU Sports Centre, PE on that tour, all of which were amazing. However, the Cape Town show stands out the most, as it's my hometown and it was my first ever huge arena show.
Artscape Theatre, Cape Town - 2005
My high school jazz band performed at the Cape Town Youth Jazz Festival. We did a half hour set that included some of the most insane improvisation and musical innovation. I particularly remember using a 5/8 running into a 6/8 time signature on one of the songs.
Die Mystic Boer, Bloemfontein - 2010
Closing show of our 2010 tour. We had an incredible show
and one of the craziest backstage parties ever.
Mercury Live, Cape Town - 2006 & 2011
I've played at Mercury so many times, but our music video launch for our song "Single" in 2006 and our album launch for "12th Avenue", earlier this month, were two of the most epic shows I've played there.
Endler Hall, Stellenbosch - 2005
I played at a Choir recital here while in high school. It's just a beautiful auditorium with incredible acoustics and a genuine pipe organ. I love it when you can hear every voice and every instrument when there isn't a single microphone in the room.
Wanderers Sports Club, Windhoek, Namibia - 2010
My first show outside my country's borders, but definitely not the last. The crew at this venue made me feel like a rock star. I didn't have to worry about a thing.
City Hall, Cape Town - 2004
Another jazz band performance. City Hall looks amazing from the outside and even better from the behind the kit.
Zeplins, Pretoria - 2005
Probably the strangest place I've ever performed at. Very dark, very gothic, but still rocking. It was here that we opened our first ever national tour as a band, and where I witnessed my first ever failed stage dive. Can you spell faceplant?
V&A Waterfront Amphitheatre, Cape Town - 2008
This is another venue that I've performed at since high school. I can't remember all the details of every show I've done here, but I do remember a show in 2008 where the stage was covered in artificial grass, which was helpful since my bass player at the time left his shoes at home!
