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Cape Town – Fresh off their announcement that they’re returning to South Africa for three shows in October, we got to ask UK band Bastille a few questions.
The last time the British rockers were on South African soil, in 2014, they played to sold out crowds and had rave reviews.
And now the band – Dan Smith (lead vocals), Kyle Simmons (guitarist, bassist and backing vocals), Will Farquarson (bassist, guitarist and backing vocals) and Chris Wood (drums and backing vocals) – are returning to South Africa to play in Cape Town on 4 October, Johannesburg on 7 October and Durban on 6 October.
Tickets cost R495 and are on sale from today via Webtickets.
We asked bassist and guitarist Will Farquarson e few questions ahead of their tour.
Check it out here:
What keeps you coming back to South Africa?
We love South Africa. It's a beautiful country full of wonderful people. The first time we visited we were lucky enough to go on safari which was an amazing way to see the unique beauty of Africa. Dan's parents are South African and so that also makes it special for him obviously, but we all loved it in equal measure and cannot wait to come back.
What are you looking forward to most about your visit to SA?
The warmth and hospitality of the people culture and the unparalleled beauty of the place.
Your videos are always very creatively made, what’s the creative process behind them?
We usually start by looking over various scripts until we find one that we feel we could work with. Once chosen it is often a very hands on experience. We have been lucky enough to work with some amazing directors who have their own artist voice, but we always try and be as involved as we can. I'm sure sometimes it's annoying for the guys, who maybe have their own vision for the video, but we tend to try and have as much input as we can.
Your latest LP dropped last year – how does it differ from your previous work?
Primarily it is sonically quite a departure. We utilise new sounds, both electronic and more traditional instruments. We moved away slightly from the big cinematic strings of the first record and experiment with, in places more intimate sounds, and in other places more electronic harder sounds.
Also thematically it is perhaps more relevant. It deals with the current political climate relatively directly, whereas Bad Blood was perhaps a little more metaphorical, taking inspiration from ancient history and the classics to pass comment on contemporary problems. Wild World, I think, tackles these problems more head on, talking about specifics much more nakedly.
It looks like you guys are constantly on the road – what’s the one thing you never tour without?
Kyle and Woody love their X Box's. Dan and I aren't really gamers so I guess for me it's probably plenty of reading material. The thing that tour does afford you is time. Every day there are huge periods of down time so I try and be productive. For example I learnt to speak french last year. It strikes me as a rare situation to be at once busy and yet have time to indulge in self education, so I try and take advantage.
What can SA fans expect from your performance?
Obviously the performance of our music is the main focus of our shows, however our new production is something of which we are all immensely proud. It is, we hope, more than just the backing to the show but in fact a body of work in its own right so to speak.
Tour itinerary:
Cape Town
Date: Wednesday, 4 October
Venue: Grand Arena, GrandWest
Time: Doors open at 18:30
Ticket Prices: Standing – R495; Seated R350 - R425
Durban
Date: Friday, 6 October
Venue: Botanic Gardens Durban
Time: Gates open 17:00
Ticket price: R495
Johannesburg
Date: Saturday, 7 October
Venue: Emmarentia Dam, Johannesburg
Time: Gates open 11:30
Ticket price: R495
