Kobus! (or K.O.B.U.S!) is an

Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans g ...

extreme metal Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tra ...

band formed in 2000 by ex-

Springbok Nude Girls The Springbok Nude Girls (a.k.a. the Nudies, or the Nude Girls) is a rock band from Cape Town, South Africa. An alternative rock band, the Nude Girls introduced punk rock, ska, acid jazz and heavy metal into their songs, introducing a new ...

guitarist Theo Crous and ex-Voice of Destruction vocalist Francois Breytenbach Blom. They performed as a duo until 2004 when they were joined by Rob Nel on bass and Paul André Blom on drums. In 2007 Rob Nel was replaced on bass by Pierre Tredoux and in 2008 drummer Paul Andre Blom was replaced by Werner Von Waltsleben. The band has released three albums: The self-titled debut ''Kobus!'' in 2002, ''

100% Skuldgevoelvry ''100% Skuldgevoelvry'' (100% Guiltfree) is the second album by the South African heavy metal band Kobus!, released in 2004 on the ENT Entertainment imprint. Francois Breytenbach Blom and Theo Crous continue on the experimental side of the fen ...

'' in 2004, and ''

Swaar Metaal ''Swaar Metaal'' is the third studio album by South African heavy metal band Kobus!, released on the independent record label Rhythm Records in March 2007. The ten-track album (and unlisted hidden track) sees the band's founder-members, Franco ...

'' in 2007. The first two releases contained an eclectic mix of styles, crossing genres from track to track. The album ''Swaar Metaal'', which won the 'Best Afrikaans Rock Album' award at the 2008 South African Music Awards, is sonically more uniform than its predecessors, an Afrikaans-language heavy metal album, regarded as a first in Afrikaans music.

Background

Initially formed as an experimental

-language project in 2000 by vocalist Francois Breytenbach Blom and guitarist Theo Crous,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

n band K.O.B.U.S! first release, '' Kobus!'' in 2002, through ENT Entertainment displayed a flagrant disregard for uniformity. Straying from the respective styles of their previous bands, the album mix an array of moods, blending surreal comedy with dark ballads and Afrikaans rock psychedelia on 12 tracks of

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to ...

and

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...

. The song "Hoenderman" was a fan favorite. Their sophomore release, ''

'' in 2004 again disregards uniformity, a bold companion piece to their debut. Almost twice the running time of the debut album and comprising 16 tracks, the album includes a number of heavier songs as with their next album. In 2006 K.O.B.U.S! joined the independent South African label Rhythm Records. ''

'' (heavy metal), Kobus!'s third full-length album, stands apart from previous releases as a heavy metal album. The lyrics, dark in theme, deal with topical South African issues. Tracks like "Witman", which describe frustrations from some

white South African White South Africans generally refers to South Africans of European descent. In linguistic, cultural, and historical terms, they are generally divided into the Afrikaans-speaking descendants of the Dutch East India Company's original settle ...

's perspective, "Kinderhel", a song about child abuse, and "Doodstraf", which calls for the implementation of the death penalty, deliver very unapologetic political commentaries and deal with decaying moral standards in society. Other lyrical themes include the

Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre in which a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically feature symbolic imager ...

. K.O.B.U.S! was invited to perform at the gargantuan

Magic Circle Festival Magic Circle Festival is an annual heavy metal festival organized by Magic Circle Music and founded by Joey DeMaio of the band Manowar. The festival was first held on 6 and 7 July 2007 in Bad Arolsen, Germany. The success of the 2007 festival, ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

during July 2008. Headlined by

Manowar Manowar is an American heavy metal band from Auburn, New York. Formed in 1980, the group is known for lyrics based on fantasy (particularly sword and sorcery) and mythology (particularly Norse mythology and Greco-Roman mythology), as well as n ...

, it featured the likes of

Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guilloti ...

, Stormwarrior and W.A.S.P. The festival ran over four days in

Bad Arolsen Bad Arolsen (, until 1997 Arolsen, ''Bad'' being the German name for ''Spa'') is a small town in northern Hesse, Germany, in Waldeck-Frankenberg district. From 1655 until 1918 it served as the residence town of the Princes of Waldeck-Pyrmont and ...

, Germany. ''Swaar Metaal'' won in the category for Best Afrikaans Rock Album at the 14th annual

South African Music Awards The South African Music Awards (often simply the SAMAs) are the Recording Industry of South Africa's music industry awards, established in 1995. The ceremony is held annually, usually in late April or May, with the judging process starting in N ...

in 2008. In March 2008 Werner Von Waltsleben replaced Paul Andre Blom on drums.
''Entertainment Africa''. Retrieved on 13 January 2013.

Discography

*''Kobus!'' (2002) *''

'' (2004) *''

'' (2007)

References

* *

External links

*
Litnet article on Afrikaans metal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kobus South African heavy metal musical groups