Engler and Jedi Rollers band launch third CD

Gigabout, with John Harvey

NEO-beatnik Hagen Engler and his band of merry pranksters, the Jedi Rollers, return to Here groove bar tomorrow for the launch of their third EP, Cloud Control.

Hagen, who has over the years accumulated a number of guises, most notably Inspector Ras, 10-ft J-Bay Smartie-Pants Boy and Haai van der Schyff, recently left Port Elizabeth for Cape Town, but his commitment to the Algoa Bay music scene has remained staunch.

Cloud Control is a seven-song journey through the Rollers' eclectic influences and features the hip-hop single Push Play, 20-second punk freakouts, art-rock marathons and even pop songs (eat your heart out reality programming).

The EP was recorded at Studio One in PE by Andre van Rooyen and mastered at Paris Studios, Cape Town, by Paris Lucas.

The outfit will also be making their first Mother City appearance in March, which could well prove to be a stepping stone to greater things.

Top PE acts Strange Little Man, Shiver and Village Seed will join the Jollers at Here from 9pm.

Dozi, the acclaimed “Afrikaans Zulu” with the Midas touch, comes to the Optics Action Cafe in Uitenhage on Sunday.

Foreigners living vicariously through sketchy Sky News reports would invariably like to attribute the success of South Africa’s latest white Zulu singing sensation (Johnny Clegg being the forerunner) to the freedoms and cultural homogeneity of a post-1994 South Africa.

But 37-year-old Dozi is not nearly as much a product of the “Rainbow Nation” as he is of the Zulu one.

Born on March 23, 1964, in Hlukluwe, Kwazulu-Natal, Dozi and his siblings literally grew up among the Zulu people. It is said that the energetic young Henk Opperman (Dozi) was completely bilingual in Zulu and Afrikaans before he could even crawl.

His studies in graphic design at Pretoria Technikon were soon to take a back seat to music, the talented vocalist having formed a band with friends December and Dirkana and subsequently fronting the South African Police Dance Orchestra.

A rigorous touring schedule eventually led to a record contract, with his second album, Dozi op Aanvraag, selling in excess of 25 000 copies.

Dozi’s Optics performance commences at 8pm.

The ever-popular Crazy Zebra restaurant hosts a Symphony of Fire on Saturday.

Open air festivity blends with fireblowing and trickery to make this a favourite among regulars.