MaxNormal.TV
Encyclopedia
MaxNormal.TV was a South African four-piece electronic/hip-hop outfit formed in 2001 which eventually evolved into Die Antwoord
.
was a part of South African hip-hop scene for many years, fronting such acts as The Original Evergreens, whilst Simon 'Sibot' Ringrose and Sean Ou Tim were household names in the electronic music scene. Mark and Sean were certainly no strangers to the music industry, each being involved with numerous experimental, and many successful South African bands over the years. In the year before the formation of Max Normal, Waddy released his debut solo album Memoirs of a Clone which featured the band on some of the tracks. Due to the success of the album, it was decided that a second album should be released, this time using the entire band. The new album, Songs From the Mall, was released on 23 July 2001. Both albums were produced, recorded, and engineered, by Adrian Levi, the head of Chameleon Studios, formerly known as Unicorn Rash Studios,
. They also had a very successful tour in Europe, where they played in London, as well as three shows at the world-renowned Pukkelpop Festival in Belgium, which was a huge success, also it was stated that Nelly Furtado
joined Waddy on one of his tracks.
at a 2002 performance in Cape Town. Waddy later disbanded the band and moved to Cape Town and started The Constructus Corporation
and the other band members started Chromoscience. The final appearance of the band again was Fucknrad with Sibot, which included one new max normal track called "The Organ Grinder". After the release of Fucknrad and host of opther related projects, Watkin revamped the band into the 'corporate' hip-hop group "MaxNormal.TV" in late 2005. The .TV was added to differentiate between the bands as Watkin stated he was tired of being asked when Max Normal was coming back. The new line up featured beat maker Justin De Nobrega (who later supplied beats for the Die Antwoord project), live video assistant and occasional rappers Yolandi Visser
and Neon don (who became a live member on later shows) and secondary live musician Jakob Basson. The group often performed live wearing 3 piece suits or rave costumes while frontman Waddy delivered his motivational speaking style raps to the audience. He also illustrated his lyrics to help the audience follow which were projected onto a big screen above the live performers and are triggered live to the beat by Yolandi, in a PowerPoint presentation style.
The band was introduced as a "multimedia" project as the band released a whole host of toys called Chommies a children's book called Good Morning Sunny South Africa, and the band were selected to design the mascot for Oppikoppi 2007, which was one of Watkin's stuffed toys called Dassie. After the final Max Normal release Good Morning South Africa in 2008, the band broke up soon afterwards. The album Good Morning South Africa gave out certain hints of what were to come from Die Antwoord
, as various lyrics and beats were used on the debut web release of $O$
.
Die Antwoord
Die Antwoord is a hip hop group from Cape Town, South Africa, consisting of three members: Ninja, Yo-Landi Vi$$er and DJ Hi-Tek.-Background:...
.
Early days
Watkin "Waddy" Tudor JonesWatkin Tudor Jones
Watkin Tudor Jones , currently known by his stage name Ninja, is a South African rapper, record producer, performance artist and satirist...
was a part of South African hip-hop scene for many years, fronting such acts as The Original Evergreens, whilst Simon 'Sibot' Ringrose and Sean Ou Tim were household names in the electronic music scene. Mark and Sean were certainly no strangers to the music industry, each being involved with numerous experimental, and many successful South African bands over the years. In the year before the formation of Max Normal, Waddy released his debut solo album Memoirs of a Clone which featured the band on some of the tracks. Due to the success of the album, it was decided that a second album should be released, this time using the entire band. The new album, Songs From the Mall, was released on 23 July 2001. Both albums were produced, recorded, and engineered, by Adrian Levi, the head of Chameleon Studios, formerly known as Unicorn Rash Studios,
Formation
Max Normal was formed in 2001 by Mark Buchanan (electric bass/electric guitar), Sean Ou Tim (drums/keyboards/sample), Simon Ringrose (turntables/backing vocals) and Watkin “Waddy” Tudor Jones (vocals). Max Normal fused various elements ranging from hip-hop and jazz, through to electronica, into a highly spontaneous theatrical performance that took South Africa by storm. They performed at various festivals around the country, including Up the Creek, Splashy Fen, and OppikoppiOppikoppi
Oppikoppi is the name of a music festival held in the Limpopo Province of South Africa, near the mining town of Northam. The festival started off focusing mostly on rock music, but gradually added more genres and now plays host to a complete mixed bag of genres...
. They also had a very successful tour in Europe, where they played in London, as well as three shows at the world-renowned Pukkelpop Festival in Belgium, which was a huge success, also it was stated that Nelly Furtado
Nelly Furtado
Nelly Kim Furtado is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Furtado grew up in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.Furtado first gained fame with her debut album, Whoa, Nelly!, and its single "I'm Like a Bird", which won a 2001 Juno Award for Single of the Year and a 2002 Grammy...
joined Waddy on one of his tracks.
Disbandment and Max Normal.TV
The last performance of Max Normal was as the support group for FaithlessFaithless
Faithless were a British electronica band consisting of Maxi Jazz, Sister Bliss and Rollo. The group is best known for their dance songs . Faithless recorded six albums. During their career they sold over 15 million records worldwide...
at a 2002 performance in Cape Town. Waddy later disbanded the band and moved to Cape Town and started The Constructus Corporation
The Constructus Corporation
The Constructus Corporation was an electronic / hip hop act from Cape Town, South Africa, that started in early 2002 and had disbanded by mid-2003, leaving the one-of-a-kind concept album / book The Ziggurat as legacy.-Formation of the band:...
and the other band members started Chromoscience. The final appearance of the band again was Fucknrad with Sibot, which included one new max normal track called "The Organ Grinder". After the release of Fucknrad and host of opther related projects, Watkin revamped the band into the 'corporate' hip-hop group "MaxNormal.TV" in late 2005. The .TV was added to differentiate between the bands as Watkin stated he was tired of being asked when Max Normal was coming back. The new line up featured beat maker Justin De Nobrega (who later supplied beats for the Die Antwoord project), live video assistant and occasional rappers Yolandi Visser
Yolandi Visser
Yolandi Visser is a South African singer/rapper who co-fronts the rap group Die Antwoord. She was also part of notable music and art groups MaxNormal.TV and The Constructus Corporation.She has a child with Watkin Tudor Jones, named Sixteen Jones...
and Neon don (who became a live member on later shows) and secondary live musician Jakob Basson. The group often performed live wearing 3 piece suits or rave costumes while frontman Waddy delivered his motivational speaking style raps to the audience. He also illustrated his lyrics to help the audience follow which were projected onto a big screen above the live performers and are triggered live to the beat by Yolandi, in a PowerPoint presentation style.
The band was introduced as a "multimedia" project as the band released a whole host of toys called Chommies a children's book called Good Morning Sunny South Africa, and the band were selected to design the mascot for Oppikoppi 2007, which was one of Watkin's stuffed toys called Dassie. After the final Max Normal release Good Morning South Africa in 2008, the band broke up soon afterwards. The album Good Morning South Africa gave out certain hints of what were to come from Die Antwoord
Die Antwoord
Die Antwoord is a hip hop group from Cape Town, South Africa, consisting of three members: Ninja, Yo-Landi Vi$$er and DJ Hi-Tek.-Background:...
, as various lyrics and beats were used on the debut web release of $O$
$O$
-Physical Re-release on Cherrytree Records:-Re-release on Rhythm Records:...
.
Albums
- 2001 Songs From The Mall (as Max Normal)
- 2007 Rap Made Easy
- 2008 Good Morning South Africa
Other Appearances
- 2005 Organ Grinder on The Fantastic Kill by Watkin Tudor JonesWatkin Tudor JonesWatkin Tudor Jones , currently known by his stage name Ninja, is a South African rapper, record producer, performance artist and satirist...
(as Max Normal)