Voodoo Child
Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa | INDIE
Music
Press
...Next was the gig we had been most eager to see. Firstly, because we had just got a copy of their EP and could now sing along; secondly, that they are just brilliant; and thirdly, because we’d never seen them playing on a big stage and were putting them to the test…YBSA style. VOODOO CHILD really changed the whole vibe of the day. Their performance, image and skill are up there with any top band, and they seemed to attract the whole venue’s attention. Mel (the singer, not the spice girl), who features on their EP, joined Lebo on stage for the album’s first track “Megalomaniac”. Each band member has his own character, which mixed together, works wonders. This is one live act you cannot miss, and if you never thought keyboards were cool, you have to watch Alan – he will give you a new outlook because, damn, he makes them funky. - Mio
Local rockers Voodoo Child have done very well with their latest video for the tune Megalomanic Attack. It's nicely editied, it's a rocking song, and it contains the sexy awesomeness of one Jade McKinon, whom you might recognise from the hallowed pages of FHM!
Check out the vid, and if you dig it, try and catch Voodoo Child live sometime. They rock hard, well and often... - FHM
June is set to be an Xplosive month for the members of Voodoo Child as their début CD “Attack don’t Panic” hits the music stores.
This is a South African band which, in my opinion, is as good as if not better than many who have reached the international charts. With a wide range of musical influences Voodoo Child is able to cater for all genres within one performance, moving seamlessly from one song to another. - Going places
Voodoo Child is one of South Africa’s most impressive cross-over rock outfits. Having been nominated for a 2010 SAMA award, Voodoo Child is one of South Africa’s best, and most-loved rock bands. Considering all the hype, I was interested to see how well this album would hold up (and for how long it would dominate my iPod’s playlist)…
Attack. Don’t Panic is one of the most beautifully composed albums that I’ve heard in a while. Pianos, keyboards, synths, bass licks, guitar riffs and stunning vocal hooks present an album that certainly cannot be ignored. From the well-known ‘Megalomanic Attack‘ to the superb ‘Child of the Sun’, ‘Taboo’ and ‘Shining Light’; I can’t help but feel that these guys were duped from taking the SAMA.
Fluctuating between soft rock, alternative, hip hop, funk and blues – Attack. Don’t Panic demonstrates superb musicianship and is just catchy enough to keep you coming back. In fact, there is almost something magical about this album – it sucks you in and doesn’t let you go. The right combination of jagged edges and polished finishes, compounded with good lyrical content, means that there really is something for everyone on this album, and it should continue to experience much mainstream success. But, perhaps, that is where it meets two difficulties…
In its attempt to appease so many musical genres and constituents, at times, this album feels like it is suffering from a multiple personality disorder. It feels like it is all over the show. Perhaps shuffling the tracks in a different order would have helped here. Secondly, in its attempt to take composition and production to the next level, there are moments which feel over-produced. The opening soft rock ballad, ‘Blind’, is a perfect example of this and is by far the weakest song of the album.
That being said, Attack. Don’t Panic is one of South Africa’s seminal rock albums. It is a unique sound and an interesting example of exceptional composition quality.
Best Tracks: ‘Taboo’, ‘Shining Light’, ‘Megalomanic Attack‘ - Music Review
Discography
2008 - 'Good times are Killing Me' EP
2008 - Homebrew 'Covers' complilation
2009 - 'Attack. Don't Panic' Debut Album
Photos
Bio
Voodoo Child Band Biography
It is a generally-held belief that first impressions last. It’s also widely accepted that introductions are best kept brief. However, having taken the best part of five years to officially announce their arrival, Voodoo Child have taken the lengthier (and more scenic) route to recording and releasing their debut album “Attack. Don’t Panic.” Firmly believing the maxim that good things take time, they have carefully paved their way along the notoriously rocky road that is the local music industry and this 2009 offering is a fitting flourish at the end of what has been a very merry song-and-dance.
Live venues around Gauteng have borne testament to the growth of the Voodoo Phunk, grounded firmly in their energetic performances on any stage. Through a combination of design and default, the band has cooked their sound up in a melting pot of funky bass-lines and rock guitars laced with catchy piano lines sprinkled over soulful, hip-hop-inspired vocals. The result is often met with confusion, but even the most hardened skeptics find themselves unwittingly drawn into a tapping of the foot or a shaking of the proverbial booty by Voodoo Child’s “get-up-and-dance” tunes. This steady conversion of followers around the country has given the outfit the honour of rocking some of South Africa’s premier music festivals, most notably Woodstock, Oppikoppi and Splashy Fen.
Not content to rest of their laurels, and buoyed by an inherent need for growth, the band has made the recording studio a second home in recent times, reaching heights with their funky cover, “Come Together” a remake of The Beatles’ Classic by the same name. The hit single was one of a number of stand-out tracks from the well-received EP “Good Times are Killing Me”. Keen to build on these early steps, they spent 2008 at Pop Planet studios recording the full-length album under the watchful ear of multi-award winning producer, Marius Brouwer. What has emerged is a holistic overview of the bands sound since they were established, threaded together by the unmistakable elements that leave one heady off the cocktail of sonic flavours.
The album itself consists of fourteen original tracks, and actively seeks to stay true to Voodoo Child’s live sound. An eight-piece string section, though, lends fullness to the overall product, and is put to use beautifully on the ballad “Child of the Sun”. The rest of the album is a smooth rollercoaster ride of rhythms and emotions, highlighted by songs like “Megalomanic Attack”, “I stay up all night” and “Good Times”. This funky list is headed by “Centre of Gravity” a sing-along ballad that is also the lead-off single from “Attack. Don’t Panic.”.
Next on the agenda for Alan (keys), Brendon (lead guitar), Fuzz (bass guitar), Hendrik (drums) and Lebo (vocals) is the dual task of looking ahead to the next album while touring the current and spreading their sound as far as it can possibly go… a job made easier by the band’s obvious love for live performance. And if the feedback from a growing fan-base is anything to go by, there is a world waiting to share that love with them for a while to come.
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