The evolution of Jack Parow

Turns out I was wrong...

 

Jack Parow is just as relevant as he was when he first broke into mainstream consciousness in 2009 on Die Heuwels Fantasties' 'Die Vraagstuk'. The difference between Jack Parow and many of SA's top 40 music charters is innovation. Parow and his team know that what worked in 2009 might not work in 2014, and so we've witnessed the gradual evolution of not just his music, but his live performance.

 

In 2014 Jack Parow has released an acoustic album - if you've been to one of his previous gigs prior to the release of Nag van die Lange Pette, like me, you'd find it very hard to fathom a Jack Parow acoustic set. So I made the effort of going out on a school night to witness this madness for myself and to find out how it all came about. 

 

No single inspiration

 

"How it originally happened was, me and Louwtjie, my guitarist, were asked to do an acoustic set at a show, so we were like 'fuck, we'd never done acoustic, but we'll just wing it, whatever, we'll do it'. Then we didn't rehearse anything and we went for it. Louwtjie just started playing guitar, I just started rapping over it, and that's pretty much how the whole acoustic thing happened. It was so fucken like that much fun, that it kind of just grew out of those roots ... I don't know if there was a single inspiration for it, but I think the acoustic thing was a very natural thing that just grew and evolved the whole time. We already finished that album in January last year and through the year we played it a bit so it kept changing into what it is now, which is what I think fucken cool, ja."     

 

 

A toned down Jack Parow

 

Now, while it's easier to imagine acoustic versions of 'Biscuits & Biltong' and 'Laat Ons Suip' than it is to imagine toned down versions of gig bangers like 'Dans Dans Dans' and 'Hard Partyjie Hou', putting together a full-on acoustic set and toning down the usually explosive Jack Parow show was probably quite a task.

 

"I think that's been the most difficult thing about it - I've been used to playing such a high-energy set for so long. To get into playing something so much more chilled, that was, at the start, the heaviest thing for me. Every time I get more and more into it 'cause it's just a new thing, obviously. I've been playing electric, hard sets for four years, and now all of a sudden doing an acoustic thing, but it's also kind of cool having the two together as one set - that's how we play most of the time - it works well together as a little unit."

 

Beautifully layered

 

Turns out fans love the more mellow side of Jack Parow - I know I do. Don't be fooled into thinking the energy is lost - I found Jack Parow's acoustic set beautifully layered with subtle complexities - it almost felt unrehearsed. For a change one could sit back, sip on your brandewyn and actually listen to the words of each song – I had goosebumps listening to ‘Afrikaans is Dood’ and ‘Last Laugh’. They’re actually quite emotionally moving songs when you’re not stomping your way around a dance floor.        

 

"It's kind of strange, people who thought they were going to like the electric side like the acoustic side more. And people who thought they were going to only like the acoustic side liked the electric, so that's kind of a cool thing - that speaks a lot for it, I think." 

 

Breaking boundaries

 

Jack Parow's not afraid of speaking his mind, but he's also not afraid of breaking boundaries. Considering he's taken stage-diving to a whole new level by doing it during an acoustic show, I'd say he's one of your best bets if you're looking for a musical role model to inspire innovation.