“Sticks and stones cripple bones, but when you rap it’s your trap that can get you blown. Sing along if you’re rich or poor, but think before, what you say may get you involved,” raps Tumi Molekane from the band Tumi and the Volume on the band’s 2006 classic, Sticks and Stones.
The song makes the point that there are no innocent words and it is this reference to the potency of speech that gives resonance to the music of Tumi and the Volume.
Theirs is a tale of fierce determination complemented by sheer talent. They have done it all, from backpacking to galvanising world audiences.
Nine years into the band’s career, and amid the football World Cup frenzy last July, the foursome released their much-anticipated third album, Pick A Dream, in Europe. Sony Music picked it up and December saw the South African release.
“Since our second album was a studio album … what we had in mind when recording the album was, let’s knock this studio thing right out the park and let’s do it really well. The album was recorded and mixed in Paris, where producers are more experienced with regard to recording live music than anywhere else in the world,” says Molekane.
Tumi and the Volume comprises Molekane (rapper), Paulo Chibanga (drummer), Dave Bergman (bass player) and Tiago Chibanga (guitarist). They hail from different areas but are based in Johannesburg.
Heading for the mainstream
Listening to Pick A Dream, one begins to comprehend how Tumi and the Volume are developing their aesthetic. They are heading for the mainstream.
“We wanted a big produced album. We wanted our songs to play on radio stations and in your car. Music has a shorter shelf life now. We have become like a fast-food market because of the iPods and music phones. I can listen to an album on the go for two weeks and I’ll be like, I’m done with this album … So with Pick A Dream it was sort of recognising this and having to make songs that are quick on the surface, but the depth is still in what I say,” Molekane says.
Previously, they gained a marginal following by dishing up something dark and gritty.
The album opens with La Tête Savante, a song about one’s journey to the self. The track reflects the amazing cover art on the booklet by graphic artist Hippolyte. In the image a decapitated man — holding his own head high — stands in a ray of light among an audience of heads on poles.
“The cover and the song are basically saying that we artists have as much power as an audience — don’t let no rapper, album or guru tell you who you should be. It’s really like, don’t lose your head and, if you do, go ahead and look for it, because that in itself is an adventure,” says Molekane.
Generally the tracks are fast tempo with the exception of the laid-back acoustic Light In Your Head — it speaks of self-expression in a world that puts pressure on young people to conform. In songs such as Limpopo and Play Nice one hears of an atrocious society.
“Play Nice is about the music reflecting desperate times, when you have schoolkids videotaping themselves having sex, when you have suicide bombers killing innocent people and when you have church leaders sexually molesting young kids. After witnessing all these bad things, it’s really hard to go home and listen to some pretty music. Hence we created Play ÂNice,” Molekane says.
It all stared at the Bassline in 2002 when it was still in Melville. It was small, smoky and stuffy but you could see anyone from Abdullah Ibrahim to Hugh Masekela, McCoy Mrubata, 340ml, Blk Sonshine and Mood Phase5.
“There was an open mic session at the Bassline and I was asked to perform. It so happened that Paulo, Dave and Tiago were a resident band at the Bassline. We performed together and the music sounded really good. EveryÂone was surprised by how comfortable it felt. It sounded like nothing I had heard before and we were all interested in creating something new,” Molekane says.
They started rehearsing together and in 2004 released their first album, Live at the Bassline, which was recorded over two nights.
It got them nominated for several awards nationally but world acclaim was beckoning. So they packed their bags and started gigging their way around Europe.
“France has really been the most receptive audience to our music, particularly because the country has a good relationship with West Africa. People in France treat artists with honour, because they know that artists are cultural ambassadors and that is a fulfilment for me,” Molekane says.
But the band’s highlight while touring Europe was when they were invited to perform on Mykonos, in Greece, for the billionaire brother of Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich. The magnate had hired the entire island and Tumi and the Volume strutted their stuff at the kind of party those on the margins either envy or view with disdain. According to Molekane, the band was somewhat upstaged by strippers and dancers but the experience brought them closer together as a group.
“It taught us to never retreat,” Molekane says. “There was no vibe, so we created our own. Because we made these songs, they are precious and they come from a special place.”
Look out for the national tour by Tumi and the Volume in March