SESLING

PHOTOGRAPHY BY WeLovePictures
WEBSITE: www.myspace.com/seslingsa
COUNTRY: South Africa STYLE: Rock / Hardcore / Screamo

I RECOGNISE SOME OF THE BAND MEMBERS FROM OTHER BANDS. HOW DID THE PROJECT EVOLVE INTO WHAT WE SEE TODAY AS “SESLING”?

We've all been friends for years and we've played together a bunch of times in our previous bands. This was just the logical step after Andre vd Walt & Chaos Theory split up. Werner was also interested to start another project with a different style of music to Wrestlerish. We've also known Dawie for long and being an amazing guitarist we couldn't think of anyone better to join us on bass.

YOU ARE THE FIRST AFRIKAANS BAND I’VE HEARD GOING FOR THAT UNDEROATH, NORMA JEAN VIBE IN YOUR MUSIC. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS THE MAJOR INSPIRATION BEHIND THIS BANDS MUSIC AND SOUND?

We are very much influenced by the Southern Hardcore sound, bands like He Is Legend & Every Time I Die. It's very much an unexplored sound in our country. We are really enjoying pushing our writing style in new directions.

NO MATTER HOW NEW AND ORIGINAL A FEW AFRIKAANS ROCK ‘N ROLL BANDS SOUND THEY STILL SEEM TO STRUGGLE TO GET AWAY FROM FOKOFPOLISIEKAR’S SHADOW. HOW DO YOU HOPE TO GET PEOPLE’S ATTENTION AND NOT FALL INTO THE SAME TRAP?

There is no escaping that shadow. They are the standard. They set it. To the untrained or non musical ear, if it’s kinda rock ‘n roll and Afrikaans, it's a Fokof copy. Those guys deserve all they have; they are some of the hardest working dudes we know.

Musically it's two different sounds. We are sonically heavier. Our vocals are completely different tones. Andre's screaming range is something that is now only shining through and reaching its full potential. Only time will tell how it works out. We still have a lot of growing to do in our own sound. Ask us again next year this time.

THE BAND HAS RELEASED ONE SONG ONLINE SO FAR TITLED “WOLWE”. TELL US MORE ABOUT IT AND WHAT YOU WERE “AIMING” FOR MUSICALLY WITH THE SONG?

Wolwe is the perfect example of the sound we are working towards right now. It's got that dirty Southern feel. It's definitely very much inspired by Every Time I Die's Big Dirty album.

IS “WOLWE” A GOOD INDICATION OF THE DIRECTION YOU ARE TAKING WITH YOUR OTHER MATERIAL?

Wolwe was a good starting point for us. Obviously some of the other tracks are slower or even faster but the Rock 'n Roll vibe is there. We're still growing together as a unit. There's allot of different tastes within the band and we're going to start exploring them after the EP.

YOUR BAND BIO ALSO MENTIONS THAT THERE WILL BE A VIDEO FOR “WOLWE”. ANY IDEA YET WHAT THE CONCEPT FOR THE VIDEO WILL BE AND WHEN IT WILL BE RELEASED?

We actually have two videos in development right now. Wolwe is being done by a company called Etiket and will combine live performance with animation. The other is a video for a song called "Dans Alleen"; it's a live performance video and just captures the bands live vibe.

THE BAND IS CURRENTLY WRITING AND RECORDING ITS FIRST EP TITLED "VROT VAN VERGIFNIS”. WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THE TITLE FOR THE EP?

It's a cool title. There's no deeper meaning. We liked the alliteration. That's it really.

WHERE IS MOST OF THE RECORDING TAKING PLACE AND WHO IS PRODUCING THE EP?

Everything is being put together at Anti Motion Studios with Jacques du Plessis (Wrestlerish, The Jumper) & David Grevler (Wrestlerish, We Shall Embrace) We also have PH van Pletzen (Yesterday's Pupil) mastering the EP for us.

WITH ALL THE BAND MEMBERS COMING FROM WELL KNOWN LOCAL BANDS LIKE ANDRE VAN DER WALT, WRESTLERISH AND CHAOS THEORY. HOW DO YOU BALANCE ALL THE CREATIVE IDEAS SO THAT EVERYONE HAS AN EQUAL PART IN THE WRITING PROCESS?

We have a pretty good idea of the sound that we are going for and as time progresses it's getting clearer. Werner and Tjaardt will usually come up with a riff and then everyone else will react to it or make suggestions to build up the final product.

WOULD YOU SAY THIS PROJECT IS THE BEST CHANCE ALL OF YOU HAVE HAD SO FAR TO MAKE THE TYPE OF MUSIC YOU’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO MAKE, OR IS IT JUST SOMETHING YOU REALLY FEEL STRONG ABOUT DOING AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME?

All of us are interested in a lot of different music but this would probably be closest to what we mostly listen to. Werner is playing a totally different type of music in Wrestelerish, so he gets to express that part of his music interest, but for the most part we all into heavier music, so that’s what we play.

MANY LOCAL BANDS ARE MAKING EP’S AVAILABLE FOR FREE DOWNLOAD THESE DAYS. ALTHOUGH DOING THAT HAS IT’S ADVANTAGES DO YOU THINK THE MAJORITY OF LOCAL MUSIC FANS WILL EVER STOP BEING CHEAP AND JUST BUY AS MUCH LOCAL ALTERNATIVE ARTISTS MUSIC AND SUPPORT THEM SO THAT THEY DON’T HAVE TO GIVE THEIR MUSIC AWAY FOR FREE TO GET NOTICED?

The South African music scene doesn't really cater for smaller bands starting out; getting the cash to record anything is already a problem, not to mention releasing a printed disc. But on the other side, if a band puts a lot of effort and money into their product, it seems unfair to release it for free. It's just an easy and cheap way to get yourself noticed.

The local public is getting more interested and more keen to buy local albums, but unfortunately there are only a few professionally recorded, well produced albums to pick from. Once again because of a lack of funding or sponsorship. But the local scene is growing by leaps and bounds; we only see good things ahead for us and the other hard working artist out there.

DO YOU HAVE LIVE PERFORMANCES IN MIND YET OR ARE YOU TAKING THINGS ONE STEP AT A TIME?

We plan on doing our launch show in October or early November, we still have a few things to sort out. More details to follow VERY soon.

ANY COMMENTS; THINGS FANS SHOULD LOOK OUT FOR OR PEOPLE YOU WOULD LIKE TO THANK?

Go listen to our first single on http://www.sesling.co.za and watch out for the launch show in the next month or two!