Bottomless Coffee Band’s latest EP Prediker: Hoofstuk 1 runs the gamut of emotions we’ve all undoubtedly felt over the last year.
The first of four instalments which will ultimately come together to make a full length album called Prediker, Hoofstuk 1 is a three-track EP that’s ultimately filled with hope but still asks some existentially challenging questions.
In the indie-tinged “Sewe Somers” Lourens and Este Rabe – who make up the band – offer their advice for a successful marriage with the comfort and confidence of two people who know, accept, and love each other unconditionally.
The sombre strains of “Ek Wou Nog” try to make sense of a world where people are taken from us without warning or prejudice. With an almost fatalistic attitude the song fights its way through grief to a point of acceptance and closure.
Originally “Sewe Somers” was supposed to get a music video but after a moment of serendipity the band found themselves shooting a video for “Ek Wou Nog” in the Dutch Reformed church of Nieu-Bethesda instead and the result is a touching visual accompaniment that brings the ballad’s emotional complexity and honesty to life.
“Alles En Niks” closes things off by bringing the energy up significantly and reminds us that, despite the uncertainty of everything, as long as we still have hope anything is possible and that our relative cosmic insignificance is the reason we should all be expressing ourselves as freely and honestly as possible. Prediker: Hoofstuk 1 isn’t afraid of delving into the deep end of the emotional pool but even at its darkest there’s a sliver of hope that’s well worth holding on to.
