Comedians bring the'Towers' down at Zim’s First Comedy Fest

If you read my previous post, you would know that the Goliath & Goliath team was set to jet into the Harare and tickle our funny bones. And just as they promised they did… well, at least it looked that way.
 I noted a good number of patrons gasping for air, slapping their thighs, spilling their drinks and guffawing throughout the show.
Carl made an entertaining host, as he threw a few jokes here and there. The Program though a little late (we are African after all!) ran like clockwork as each comedian took a turn to crack our ribs. (in a non-violent fashion of course!)
Jason found himself the big butt of the joke as everyone took a stab at his weight,  gait and goodness all. Being the good sport he is, he passed the heat onto to someone else as he lightly roasted a few patrons. By the time he was done all I knew was people married for 10years have the libido of old Peugeots, that Mdara Zober’s libido runs on diesel (Creeepy) and that Jason only allows experienced drivers to ‘drive’ his car (wink). I loved Donovan; he was such a charmer and a funny one at that. (what more can a girl ask for though *ehem* in a performance ka!)
Our Zim Comics flew the flag Marijuana high! Michael K being my favourite, his impressions were top notch! As for Q... watching him feels like watching your favourite nephew grow (let’s ignore the fact that he might be older than me). My point is He gets better and better every time I watch him perform okay! Big pat on the back for that one! Lovers and haters (I’m stuck somewhere in between) of Dancehall were left agog by the end of his set. All I can say is "USADAROOOOOOOO!!!"

Both during the intervals of the Program and at the end of the show; patrons milled about in the foyer all smiles.  For the most part it seemed All had a gay old time. Teaming up with something for a good cause a pair of ladies from the charitable initiative With Love Zim sold some really funky jewellery; made by the women from the Mbare soup kitchen. 

The Miller Genuine Draft  themed after party was the cherry on top as DJ Chucknosis (did I spell it right?) spun that good music from his Pink Apple Mac… (I sh*t you not it really was pink!)
I hear we’ll be having four of these Comedy fest things next year, I say …. Bring it On!!

Village Unhu goes '100 hundred'

I’m yet to pay Village Unhu a visit but alas the time has come for me to see their things! (Get your mind...just go get some soap !)
  Village Unhu is known as a hub and home for art and artists alike. Village Unhu in collaboration with Alliance Francaise intend to showcase this artistry in the exhibition titled '100 hundred'. This exhibition comprises of 100 paintings, graphics and multimedia sculptures by artists such as Nyandoro, Wallen Mapondera, Shannon Murphy, Thandazani  Dhlakama, James Jali, Moffat Takadiwa, Mattheus Nyaungwa, Misheck Masamvu and many others.   
Don’t let the name of the exhibition fool you; it’s actually free of charge to have a look at the good stuff and you can buy it too at $100 bucks a piece...Awesome Right?! 

Check out the Poster Below. #TSKC

My Thoughts on : Dimitri & The Scarecrow's 'Scarecrow The EP'

Track-list:

1.       Anarchy

2.      Drums, Guitars, Mics & a Boom Box

3.      Scarecrow

4.     Technocracy

5.      Little Ravens’ Lullaby

6.     Funfare
7.     Scribbling Hard

The first time I listened to Dimitri & the Scarecrow ‘it’ was both live and very alive. The passion exuded in the front man as he roared out ‘Scarecrow’ was amazing to say the least.
I was beyond ecstatic to receive the album at long last all 7 tracks of from start to finish was lyrical life journey. Heck a rollercoaster to say the least. Throughout it I kept thinking “what’s this guy going to say next, what’s the next beat going to sound like?!”

‘Scarecrow The EP’ is packed with clever relatable metaphors. Dimtri sounds a lot like he swallowed a thesaurus...in a good way.  In ‘Anarchy’ he treads on the well known sacred political ground. He dices typical Zimbabwean social ills, freedom of speech and the power in the saying “each man for himself”. I’ll let your own perception do the math with that one.  

On ‘Drums, Guitars, Mics & a Boom Box’ he raps out his passion for Hip-Hop; a juxtaposition of what Zimbabwean Hip Hop is painted as now, what it actually is and what it could be on deep bass and a well paced high-hat. The chorus is a bit on the scratchy side but I guess it’s fair to assume the sound was meant to be rugged? A choir master would have a heart attack; I’ll bet whilst one with a taste for weirdly combined fusions of sound (GUILTY!!) would enjoy it.

‘Little Raven’s Lullaby’ is by far my favourite. The melody of moans at the beginning is pure Goth! Though I love it, I wish the vocals were slightly better mastered! Then there’s the deep growling bass beating to Dimitri’s chilling recollection of real time problems observations and moments of epiphany. He sketches out the dreams we buy via our television sets and the cancerous existence to humanity deemed popular culture. If you’ve ever been a Fort Minor fan the “Let my voice be free” phrase will send your subconscious into shards of nostalgia.  

When I first read the title ‘Funfare’ on the cover I could have sworn it was either a typo or wordplay; luckily for Dimitri & The Scarecrow it was the latter.

There’s a heavy urban, almost reggae-d melody to it. That piano settles it just right. I love the saxophone as it knots it together almost perfectly, its fault being its loudness. (Why oh why is it so loud?)  
 

With ‘Scribbling hard’ we charter through what sounds like the thoughts of an emcee as he explores the curse and possibly the burden of being African and Black. It left me thinking really hard.  “Were they really right about our primitiveness and savagery?” The backing vocals sound very ‘Blue’ and there’s a hint of John Legend influence somewhere in there. Here Dimitri highlights his versatility not as Rapper but as an artist.

Overall another Kicka** Zimbabwean Album of great Genre related diversity (and they said we had no talent, tsk!)

I give ‘Scarecrow the EP’ 4.2 Stars

Have you listened to Scarecrow The EP? What’s your favourite track?

CARL JOSHUA NCUBE to host Goliath & Goliath for Zimbabwe’s FIRST EVER International Comedy Festival!

Carl Joshua Ncube has done it again! (Shoot I’ve used that opening line before!) *ehem* let’s try that again…
Carl Joshua Ncube has teamed up with Xtra Time Investments, some awesome local comics and some cool partners for Zimbabwe’s first ever International Comedy Festival called the Rainbow Towers Comedy Fest.

Local supporting acts Michael K and Q (the… wait! Is it only Q now?!) are set to tickle our funny bones. Having watched both of these guys in action I look forward to seeing their performance especially if there is some new content somewhere in there. Q is the baby of the bunch even though his act is anything but. (Note to yourself don’t be the one to hackle as the young man knows how to dish out some generous roast).
Michael K’s name is synonymous with Harare stand up. Having presented on a multitude global stages, Michael K will be Zimbabwean Comedy ‘Legend’ in the room. Speaking of legends and all things LEGENDARY, this Comedy Fest undoubtedly the brain child of the infamous Carl Joshua Ncube who seems more than a little psyched about bringing his dream straight into the realm of reality. Carl’s candid guy next door banter is bound to have everyone (yes even you!) in stitches.
The main attraction or shall I say attractions (*wink*), Jason & Donovan Goliath are a pretty big deal in South Africa and hopefully by the end of the Festival a big deal in Zimbabwe too. There’s a hot big funny guy and a smaller cute funny guy. The idea of them combined sounds a lot like something my ribs and bladder might be unable to bear but hey YOLO right?!
Don’t be fooled by the last name as these two are neither brothers nor *ehem* together. (Google told me so, OKAY!). Combined they have 13years in funny business experience. I’m all for good laughs AND on top of that I like things, so really I’ll be there!

For $15bucks you can join in the fun on Thursday the 28^th of November at 7pm (white people time guys!). If my animated descriptions didn’t help, you could check out the poster. #TSKC