Alternative indie band, Beatenberg has been around since 2012. From left to right: Robin Brink, Matthew Field and Ross Dorkin. Picture: Instagram
From Kirstenbosch Summer Concerts to acclaimed venues around the world - indie pop band Beatenberg has proven they can pull in the crowds.
Known for their hit tracks like Chelsea Blakemore, Beauty like a Tightened Bow and Rafael, the Cape Town trio recently returned from their international tour to New York, Paris, Los Angeles, Berlin, Amsterdam and London.
The band is looking forward to a well-deserved break but not before entertaining their Cape Town fans.
Today, the band which is made up of drummer Robin Brink, bass guitarist and keyboardist Ross Dorkin and vocalist and guitarist Matthew Field, will perform live at Kirstenbosch.
Brink said returning to the international scene was a positive experience after a hiatus due to Covid-19.
“We got to reconnect with fans across the world and also play to people who became fans halfway through our set,” he said.
“We (had) not played as a band at home or abroad since 2019. I am so grateful for the entire experience.”
Dorkin said living through the pandemic changed his attitude towards live performances.
“I was so invested in spending more time in the studio and less time performing, but the pandemic changed that,” he said.
“The pandemic made me feel the itch to get back on stage in a big way. It made me realise how much being on stage was a part of my DNA.”
The band, which spends a lot of time travelling, said their tours were a great way to see the world and experience new things.
“Travelling includes waiting at the airport, sitting in a van and that kind of thing. The performance is only 45 minutes to an hour, but there’s a lot of set-up and travelling,” Brink said.
Dorkin added: “We get to have enough of a glimpse of the city we are in. It’s a nice way to travel, and we see enough to know if we want to come back.”
Brink said on their most recent tour, they played for crowds of 20 000 people.
“When we got to Dublin, it was a smaller venue, but it was one of the best, and people enjoyed it so much,” he said.
“They didn’t even know us, but the crowd was electric.”
Despite performing all around the world, Dorkin said playing at Kirstenbosch Summer Concerts was still a great experience.
“Those shows always meant a lot to us. Being a local band and getting to play there is a big deal, so it’s always an emotional experience,” he said.
“To me, it feels like playing to people in your lounge. It feels like home.”
The band, which started in 2012, have also recently released their latest EP (extended project), On the Way to Beatenberg, a project they worked on independently from start to finish.
Brink said the EP felt like writing a chapter in a book of the band’s story.
“This is a small moment of closure. We just wanted to do what we do well, creating our sincere, authentic style of music. It’s a semicolon between where we have been and where we are going,” he said.
“We created this at the beginning of 2019. This music came together very quickly, and we enjoyed the process,” said Dorkin.
Four years into their journey in 2016, Beatenberg had the opportunity to work with the international rock band Mumford & Sons. It was this opportunity that kicked off their presence on the international scene.
Brink said in their early days, it felt like an uphill climb and seemed near impossible to break onto the international scene.
“Although we worked with a major label, there is a discrepancy between the developed markets and how they view South Africa,” he said.
“We are always aware of how lucky we are and look to people like Black Coffee for inspiration. We get to be international flag bearers for South Africa.”
For now, the band is looking forward to time off before they go on tour again next year - beginning with a perform at the South by SouthWest music festival in Austin, Texas, in March. Thereafter, they’ve already dropped their tour dates for an international tour, which kicks off in June 2023.
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