“So after the launch on Saturday, I finally found a quiet time this evening to crack open my copy of the album and sit under my headphones. Remarkable. I pride myself as being a collector and follower of music for 47 years, and this is a gem.
As the last track ended, I found myself in a melancholy mist as one would feel after reading a moving book, or watching an inspiring movie..
In a world of plastic music and Trendies trying to pass off odd sounds as uniquely current, this is a breath of fresh sweet air. You guys rock!! get this out to the world, it has class written all over it.” – Stephen Forssman
And here’s an actual picture of someone, front man of One Man Down, the magnificent indie band that opened for us, Dave Shortland, buying the album.
So, I listened the album ‘Based on an Original Idea’ by The Ponies and because I know Lloyd and used to do music reviews, I thought I’d post my thoughts:
The Ponies are well worth the ride, I reckon.
A former journalist colleague of mine (I hired him, in fact) is Lloyd Coutts. He now lives in Jo’burg, no longer PE, and I’m now in the UK. A lot of water has passed under our respective bridges since those heady days of the 80s and 90s when press restrictions made reporting the death throes of Apartheid interesting.
Among other things, Lloyd now plays bass, writes songs and sings for a band called The Ponies – an indie rock band who have released their debut album, Based on an Original Idea, and the band features three journalists, an asset manager and an advertising industry video editor in its line-up.
The other journos are guitarists Tim Cohen and Richard Jurgens while video editor Ryan Norwood-Young (guitar) and asset manager Ricus Reeders (drums) complete the band. Who said drummers weren’t an asset? The drumming and patterns by Reeders are particularly impressive.
Supporting the independent rock tradition of South Africa, The Ponies come galloping in with this album of original songs, mostly penned by Coutts. I understand the album could be up for a South African Music award as best alternative album…
Well, it certainly has the potential.
From the opening guitar-driven Bonnie No 5 and the instantly likeable Jimi Hendrix tribute Buster to the more soulful Ulysses and the more spiritual sounds of Galaxy Glow as well as personal songs like Air On A Shoestring and Anti-Co-Dependency Song, this album covers all the bases.
It’s a definite ‘hats off’ to Coutts for his song writing and to the band overall for a fine debut album and their tight sound. Based on an Original Idea would get my vote for the SAMA award.
“So after the launch on Saturday, I finally found a quiet time this evening to crack open my copy of the album and sit under my headphones. Remarkable. I pride myself as being a collector and follower of music for 47 years, and this is a gem.
The Ponies 