Lo-ghost and Academie at Raptor Room

ABOUT

Event Details:

Date: Friday, 20th December

Time: 20h00

Tickets: R60 Pre-Sales (Quicket) / R80 Door.

Academie (JHB)

In just over three years, Academie has made the case that dream pop music that is as transfixing as it is transcendent and beautiful can emerge out of Johannesburg’s exacting urban milieu.

Initially through their live shows and then with 2016’s groundbreaking EP, Volumes, Jean-Louise and Alex Parker have conjured up a dream pop soundscape that easily places the duo alongside those pushing the frontiers of the genre on the global scene. They have matched this with an arresting aesthetic and a recent slate of intensely conceived performances – all of which have fortified Academie’s standing as among South Africa’s most exciting creative talents.

2018 and 2019 saw the release of three singles, Battles, Eyes, and Monochrome, with more single releases planned before Academie relocate to Berlin in 2020.

The songs are a melancholic mix of dark and light that reflects the dualism that Academie readily embraces: in their self-contained musical world, pre-recorded samples, vocal reverb and loops are as central to the sound as the viola, guitar and saxophone.

Lo-ghost (CT)

Cape Town alt/cult-pop duo Lo-ghost (Shannon Devy and Evan Strauss) started their journey mid-2016 with a stunning debut video release for “Ghost in a Blood Machine”, the lead single off their first EP “Mother”. A manifestation of the interplay between love and shame, the video was performed and choreographed by Chester Martinez (FKA Twigs, “Honey 2”) and Devon Marshbank. The work was picked up and featured by media outlets across the continent.

Since "Mother", Lo-ghost have released a full-length album, a podcast series, multiple singles, a limited-edition vinyl release and multiple live performance videos. Their work is characterised by a fearless, emotive handling of difficult aspects of human condition, from the queer experience to grief and loneliness. Their ability to connect quickly and indelibly with an audience has earned them an energetic and devoted cult following in their hometown and beyond, with their music accruing over half a million streams world-wide in 2018 alone.