I was never a big fan of Tweak back in the day and kind of skipped the whole high school punk/ska phase in general, but I do remember them, as do a whole lot of other people who packed out the Assembly on Saturday night.
I arrived half way through Veladraco’s set which I enjoyed – it was a relatively chilled way to kick things off, although, that said, their drummer Nic (one half of the epic Derick Watts and the Sunday Blues, along with Veladraco bassist Gareth) did manage to total his snare drum during the set…
Up next were Half Price – the last time I saw them was at the Hogs 20th Birthday show a week before. I confess I hadn’t been overly impressed with that performance but obviously that was a very emotional night and the vibe was totally different. This time around was a total romp – wearing novelty aprons featuring the naked statue of David and, in the words of Homo Pete “tomato tits and a green punani”, their set was super energetic and loads of fun. Alive At Midnight’s Grumble joined them on a couple of songs, hopping around the stage with his usual manic energy in spite of the large moonboot on his right foot.
Headliners Tweak took to the stage in their masks backed by dramatic intro music (the theme from the A-Team). I enjoyed their set at Oppikoppi though I didn’t stay for all of it. Saturday’s smaller venue allowed for a more in-your-face performance and up close their energy was great. Still harbouring/embracing a teenage penile obsession, they treated the crowd to a barrage of inflatable dicks during ‘Girls Rule The World’ which was greeted with expected enthusiasm. The band performed all the old favourites, making for one big sing-along especially during ‘House Party’, ‘Britney Spears’ and ‘Birthday Card’ as well as their Blink/Green Day/Bloodhound Gang medley. Back in the day Tweak’s pseudo Americanisms (“better call the FBI”, really?!) pissed me off, but watching them perform these tracks with the added irony and perhaps wisdom of age was super enjoyable – suddenly the cringy teenage subject matter and lyrics became something silly we could all have a laugh at – ah, the folly of youth!
Hands down the highlight of the night for me was the build-up to and performance of Enrique Iglesias’ immortal power-ballad ‘Hero’. “Would joo cryee, if joo saw me cryeeng?” Brilliant, I didn’t stop laughing the whole way through.
My good mood dipped a bit when the final band came on, not because of their performance, which was pretty damn great, but because of the closing timeslot they’d been given. Loveglove Pyrotechnics recently announced they’d be calling it quits, and Saturday’s performance was to be their last in Cape Town. The closing slot after something as big as a 10 year reunion show for a well-known band would be tough on anyone, but the added knowledge of it being a goodbye show for Loveglove left me feeling they’d gotten a bit of a raw deal. Well, what the crowd lacked in numbers at that point they more than made up for in enthusiasm and the band ended things off with a bang.
For more photos from the event check out our exclusive gallery.
