The Chorus

We return after A Great Busyness - thank you for your patience - talking about all the single ladies (well, solo actresses in superb shows) and how what is based on something past can be made better in the present. Reviewed this week: THEATRE: My Name Is Lucy Barton, My Brilliant Divorce MUSIC: James Bay - Changes All The Time, Crowded House - Some Greater Plan (For Claire) BOOKS: Black Dogs by Ia...

We return after an unintended break due to day jobs and holidays and illness and things. The entire Olympic Games happened since we last chatted, and so did a second run for Bruce's musical Actress, which we discuss. Also noted: Adam Sandler's superior brand of celebrity; how gross Parktown Prawns are; that idiots get way too many platforms and that a little kindness goes a long way. Revie...

Century up! Waves coffee cup at the grandstand; points to heaven like an Argentinean footballer . What started as a little bit of fun and an excuse for two friends to drink coffee and whiskey, play guitars and talk about music, books, theatre, film and television is still a little bit of fun and an excuse for two friends to drink coffee and whiskey, play guitars and talk about music, books, theatr...

Our guest is Candice Etberg of the NPO Ladles of Love, which has a Nelson Mandela Day activation at which you can make a massive difference in terms of providing meals and proper nutrition for those who need them most. Book a slot via LadlesofLove.org.za⁠ . We also find the 'lost novel' of Stefan's favourite author (it was right there on the table), revisit The Troubles and enjoy some...

We endure a visit to the darkness, see Elvis there and enjoy the profundity of small tragedies. Slash, Conan and Agatha Christie are also around. And the coffee is great. Reviewed this week: THEATRE: The Return Of Elvis Du Pisanie, Deathly Murder - Killed By A Killer MUSIC: Slash - Orgy Of The Damned PODCAST: A History Of Rock Music In 500 Songs BOOKS: Heart Of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, Lost Prop...

We confirm that revisiting the past can be both exciting and depressing, but at least you can flip forward in a book. Neil Young enjoys a welcome return to our consciousness, and we delve into the darkness of infant ungulates. Reviewed this week: THEATRE: The Brothers, Number One And A Weekend Special MUSIC: The Lemon Twigs - A Dream Is All We Know, Charley Crockett - $10 Cowboy, Neil Young - Fu##...

On stage, in song, in print and sort-of on screen, it's pointed out that women and what they go through requires constant consideration - which is hopefully not a revelation. Elsewhere, Manchester is united in music. And yes, that was phrased like that to hack off Liam Gallagher if he ever reads this. Reviewed this week: THEATRE: Ile, Your Perfect Life MUSIC: Liam Gallagher and John Squire, St...

After extensive intranational travel, two theatre productions have inspired discussion. Stefan also says guitar things about a borrowed instrument and Bill Bryson does the first disappointing thing of his brilliant life while Denzel Washington keeps a clean record. Reviewed this week: THEATRE: Expelled, Amadeus GEAR: Gibson SG MUSIC: Slash - Orgy Of The Damned, Sheryl Crow - Digging In The Dirt BO...

Thanks to a touch of colic in the space-time continuum (or an uploading glitch - your choice), Episode 94 now appears after Episode 95 in the list. Meh. Blame Terry Pratchett. Meanwhile, we look at Los Angeles through Ry Cooder's eyes, Nazis through the filter of the Booker Prize and why it's not a good idea to hitchhike in the Australian Outback. Reviewed this week: MUSIC: Hermanos Gutier...

We welcome rock star, actor, dog/cat/bird owner and, most importantly, coffee sponsor Cito into the studio/cramped dining room to chat about his bewildering array of musical projects, including Wonderboom, Blvd Hvnny, El Cantante, Absinthe Led Zeppelin tribute shows and more. Classical literature and other, less busy rock stars are thrown in for good measure. Reviewed this week: MUSIC: Pearl Jam -...

In which Stefan reads his favourite book again, John Hamm is funny more than once, modern football is fascinatingly unpacked and Carey Grant scores (he was good at that). Reviewed this week: MUSIC: Christa Wells - Velveteen, John Leventhal - Rumble Strip BOOKS: Zonal Marking by Michael Cox, Love In The Time Of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez TV: Archie, Maggie Moore(s), Fargo Season Five Stay in...

It's a new year, so we focused on all that supports that theme most strongly: 81-year-old Harrison kicking Nazi ass, Ryan Adams making an album called 1985 and Timothy Leary taking drugs in the Sixties. For the sake of science. Get an early start in 2024, people. There is much to read, listen to and watch. IT MUST GET DONE. Reviewed this week: MUSIC: Ryan Adams - Sword & Stone/Star Sign/Pr...

Last episode for the year, a return visit for our first three-time guest, Bronwyn Williams, who has a new book out: Rescuing Our Republic, co-written with Ludwig Raal, in which she asks the heavy, world-shifting questions so we can keep talking about the equally important stuff, like books, music, film and theatre. Thank you for all your support this year. Keep suggestions for topics and chats com...

Recorded on the day Shane MacGowan died, while we happened to be drinking and chatting about whiskey named after his band, there is talk of the horrors of hubris and the war it often results in, as well as the effectiveness of ego when it comes to getting something done. Also, we speculate on what can we do about casualties of creativity, the injuries caused by innovation, and other alliterative A...

While sipping more excellent whiskey and coffee, we muse on unintended themes like living forever (Peter Pan; The Beatles) and how to best make use of those years (be enduringly brilliant; spend Rupert Murdoch's money in a healthier way; get a robot to do the hard work), before sipping more whiskey and coffee. Reviewed this week: THEATRE: Janice Honeyman's Peter Pan MUSIC: Now & Then -...

After a break due to being involved in arts projects beginning with "A" - Actress (theatre show for which Bruce was writer and composer) and Aardklop (large arts festival at which Stefan was managing events), we reflect on the joy and value in such work. While drinking whiskey and coffee, because those are a few of our favourite things. We also remember that Roger Waters is an old man an...

We chat about the approach of dystopia, and then it begins to sound like it's arrived. But we press on unto Gilead and beyond, where a Stoner makes Stefan emotional, and Bruce is almost certainly not being unreasonable. Reviewed this week: MUSIC: Jonathan Wilson - Eat The Worm, Brothers Osborne - Brothers Osborne, Andrew Synowiec - Fun, The National - Laugh Track, BoB Playlist: https://open.sp...

This week's discussion includes artists of all stripes who don't mind using a bit of brain power and thoughtfulness in the execution of their craft and the underpinnings of their concepts. Which is a pleasing thing a world where The Bachelor and Jersey Shore exist... Reviewed this week: MUSIC: The Lighthouse - Caroline Spence ft Sarah Jarosz, More Than A Country Mile - Robin Auld, Femme So...

There are a number of ways to reflect life in art. We see theatre doing it in ways that hurt and opera doing it in ways that excite. We see chefs doing it under a load of stress. And we see Wes Anderson doing it wonderfully . Plus, we sip whisky that tastes of thorn trees - and it's good! Reviewed this week: MUSIC: The National - First Two Pages Of Frankenstein, Matt Nathanson - Boston Accent...

Our guest is Albert Maritz, director of a new production of Paul Slabolepszy's Saturday Night At The Palace at the Joburg Theatre (28 July to 20 August, Webtickets ). There is talk of racism, masculinity and insecurity, and some of that even has to do with the play. Albert also reveals a portion of the richness of Afrikaans theatre and literary culture, largely because rooinekke Stefan and Bru...

Theatre highlights issues we all face and how we feel about them. Books take on more esoteric issues in poetic ways. Musicians create audible emotion. And directors make actors hit other actors really hard. A lot. We consider these things. And drink coffee. Reviewed this week: MUSIC: Grant Lee Buffalo - Mighty Joe Moon, Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit - Weathervanes, Sigur Ros - ATTA THEATRE: The...

Stefan has read a book that he immediately regards as a classic, which happens once a decade or less. A big band grieves through loud music, a bald man goes native and there is beauty in war - if only in screen craftsmanship terms. We feel affirmed, and celebrate with a lovely bourbon. You should too. Reviewed this week: MUSIC: Extreme - Six, John Ellis - Native, Foo Fighters - But Here We Are BOO...

Realising that we both have gigs coming up (Bruce on 3 June at Spilt Milk Social Cafe in Melville; Stefan on 10 June at The Radium Beer Hall in Orange Grove), we don't at all in any way then unconsciously compare ourselves to the immense intellect of David Foster Wallace, the astonishing talent of Madison Cunningham or the curious weirdness of Agent Elvis. We also remember Tina Turner with fon...

There's another Hollywood writer's strike. Last time, that made for some terrible shows. This time, it may burst the streaming bubble, which both makes us nervous and suggests a quality-over quantity future. For now, shows going behind the scenes in the worlds of elite sports are still changing the audience profiles in those arenas. Intelligent lives lived well still leave meaningful resid...

Powerful stories examine de pression; a useful guitar pedal ensures com pression; a black man prepares to be a white racist and that nice Stanley Tucci is removed from the babysitting list. We did add milk to our coffee, so at least that wasn't too dark... Reviewed this week: GEAR: MXR Custom Comp Compressor pedal MUSIC: Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Wilder Woods, Birds Say by Dar...