We rented a holiday house with a few friends outside of town but Eric and I were eager to discover what the city was like. Fortunately, we were introduced to a world that was vibrant, real, and full of inspiration, not even in my dreams could I have imagined such a place. The music scene, which we were about to explore a little better, felt like a very new and fresh movement to me that was just beginning to make a name for itself. Gigs could be attended every day of the week. From Camps Bay to Muizenberg, back to Gardens and Bree Street. The city was full of music. Jazz, Rap, Rock, Techno, Pop, and Soul. And people came from all over the world to enjoy it.

But none of the artists we met had such a sustainable impression on us as the Johannesburg-based music-duo Club Valley consisting of Nigel and Jason. Two people who each in their own way radiated an impressive aura and could hardly be more unique. They were pre-act for Alice Phoebe Lou at the Old Biscuit Mill in Woodstock when they caught our attention. A sound that was raw and psychedelic in our ears, but also romantic and engaging emerged from the speakers. The stage clearly was their habitat, the showtime was just their time. And when load shedding kicked, and the generator didn't start in time, they did not stop playing.

“And if the world ends, tomorrow, tell my friends I really love ‘em.”

The sound of Club Valley is challenging to describe. As they use only two instruments, the drums, and the guitar, and Nigel's voice, sometimes Jason’s, it is reminiscent of garage punk rock, that two friends started back in Highschool. But it goes much deeper than this. The lyrics are intriguing, religious, and spiritual almost, but not cheesy. They are candid and relatable. Even the two themselves are failing to find an expression for their music that stays within the limitation of one word. During a video chat a few weeks after the shoot for their music video “Ilah’s Dream” they kept paraphrasing their music with expressions like “Jozi gaze surf rock”, “Hypertech punk pop jazz” and “the new club valley wave”. But I believe that's also one of the reasons, why we resonate so much with their music. Every song feels different, it feels intuitive and dense, even though it's just the two of them performing together, with no bass guitar. It's a movie-like atmosphere, or as Nigel calls it: “It’s our perception of the world. Where we stemming from. We are just two African dudes, you know from the southern end of the world. But we can see everything. We're in tune with the world.” 

Nigel started making music after a long-lasting period of sickness he spent in the hospital. A bacterial infection screwed up his nervous system and forced him down. He was gifted a guitar when he was released and started practicing for months. He taught himself to play the guitar, as there was no youtube and no internet in the house at the time. “It's a string instrument, it makes sounds. If you stare at it for a long time you kind of get an idea what was happening. I just started fucking around with the guitar. It wasn't even in tune. The whole process was like skateboarding to me. Sometimes you just drop in and it becomes a natural thing.” remembers Nigel.