PerdebyTuks se amptelike studentekoerant / Official Tuks student newspaper / Kuranta ya baithuti ya semmušo ya Tuks

year74issue173September2012

GoodnightWembley!interview

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Is car theft escalating?

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Campus politics: whocares?

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DAVID CROSS

The new Aula theatre was officially opened last week Thursday.

The re-opening of the Aula theatre, the Rautenbach Hall, the Musaion and the Amphitheatre marks the beginning of a new era in the history of the Aula as the cultural hub on the university's Hatfield campus.

The evening's events were filled with

Tuks unveils the new Aula

spectacular performances and art exhibitions showcasing the new venue.

UP students entertained the guests with a variety of song, dance and musical performances and postgraduate students from the Department of Visual Arts exhibited a selection of artworks in the Rautenbach Hall.

UP Vice-Chancellor and Principal Professor Cheryl de la Rey formally welcomed guests to the evening's events and commended all

staff and alumni who contributed towards the development and construction of the new venue. “The University of Pretoria is forever grateful to those who made the construction of this beautiful building possible, which now stands as the pride of Hatfield campus,” she said.

The changes to the hall were designed by Anton de Jongh of ARC Architects. The use of glass, steel and concrete in the Aula’s

design owes its inspiration to the Iron Age archaeological site in Mapungubwe. De Jongh shared his thoughts with Perdeby: “We've been working on this project since 2009. I think in terms of the project from a total perspective that we're not 100% there yet, however, I do believe that we can be proud of what we have achieved so far in the construction of the Aula.”

Photos: Gideon van Tonder

P

Editorial2 3 September ‘12

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From the EditorBlood Sugar Sex Magik

So I went to the drive-in for the first time ever. Ever. I wasn’t paying much attention to the actual movie, on account of all the making out I was doing in the back seat, but the whole drive-in thing is pretty nifty, I thought. I’m probably telling you things you already knew, but just in case there are some of you (like me) who have been deprived of the wonders of the Menlyn rooftop for all this

time, do yourself a favour and go watch a semi-good movie while eating your semi-good KFC. It’s old school romantic (now available in 3D).

Meanwhile, I peed my pants (three times, maybe four) when I heard the Red Hot Chili Peppers were finally coming to SA. Dreams coming true, was what that was. The getting tickets thing was crazy stressful though. My friends and I bought our tickets at the Hatfield Computicket, which (naturally) only went online a minute after the Golden Circle tickets sold out (tickets friends of mine had been standing in the queue for since four that morning).

It was at this point that I had my first heart attack. But I recovered. Everything would be okay. We were second in the queue, after all. We would still get tickets. General standing would do. But then – disaster! They sold only eight general standing tickets, to only one of the 100 people queuing there, before announcing that those, too, were sold out. I had my second heart attack. Luckily (miracle of miracles) we had someone (someone who deserves a lot of chocolate for her efforts by the way) online trying to buy tickets at the same time as we were queuing (leave nothing to chance, you see) who managed to buy general

standing minutes before they disappeared from our grasp forever. Victory was ours.

This means that on 2 February 2013, I will be standing as close as my skinny ass can possibly get me to one of the greatest rock and roll bands of all time. This is round about when I’ll have my third heart attack, I’m sure.

“All the other kids with the pumped-up kicks, you’d better run, better run, outrun my gun.” Not really, but how catchy is that song? Little bit disturbing, though.

And now, to more important business: reading the paper. A slimmer edition than normal this week, but still jam-packed with awesome articles. Like the one about Klout (I haven’t checked my own score, for fear of what I might find), or the one where we interview Goodnight Wembley!, or the one where we review the new Bloc Party album (it’s good).

I promised my mom I wouldn’t a) swear or b) be bitchy in this editorial. How’d I do?

I’m the rainbow in your jail cell Beyers @PerdebyEditor

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News 33 September ‘12

MAXINE TWADDLE

As many as 30 cars have been stolen while parked on Duxbury Road this year.

Tegan Carpenter-Kling, a BSc Zoology honours student, told Perdeby that her car was stolen in July. Her Toyota Yaris was parked outside the Unicrest apartment building opposite the Brooklyn Police Station when it was stolen.

When Carpenter-Kling went to the police,

Is car theft escalating?

she was reportedly told that 30 cases of car theft from Duxbury Road had been opened at the Brooklyn Police Station since January. Warrant Officer Annabel Middleton of the Brooklyn Police Station said that she could not release the exact figures and would not comment on the number of cars that have been stolen from areas immediately surrounding the police station. Another officer, Marinda Swanepoel, could not release any figures either and declined to

MARGEAUX ERASMUS

The Residence of the Year Competition will not be cancelled next year but will undergo certain changes.

Professor Roelf Visser, head of Residence Affairs and Accommodation, told Perdeby that a new model has been applied to the Residence of the Year Competition. In essence, the new model for the competition is a scaled-down version of the previous one. Only ten activities from all the current res activities will be taken into account for competition points and where Culture, Rag, Sport and Academic achievements used to count 25% each, Academics will now count 40% of the total points while Sport, Culture and Rag will only count 20% each. “Res or student life should focus on [the] social and

New model for the Residence of the Year Competitionacademic,” Prof. Visser said. The remaining res activities will not fall away, according to Prof. Visser, but will receive individual recognition at a Residence Prestige Evening. “Now we will acknowledge each and every activity that you are taking part in,” he said.

Another change made to the competition is that it will now take place on a voluntary basis. In a proposal regarding the Residence of the Year Competition and Residence Prestige Evening, Prof. Visser states that, “Residences have the opportunity to decide in which events/activities they want to partake in and if they want to compete for the Residence of the Year or not. This ensures that no residence and/or student is forced or burdened by activities that are disliked and/or not value-add[ing] and/or not supporting the academic enterprise or culture of UP.”

Curlitzia Primaria Mignon du Toit told Perdeby, “We’re very pleased with Tuks Res’s decision to retain the Res of the Year competition. By the sounds of it, it will be better structured with reses having the option to only participate in the events they would like to.” She added that the fewer events needed for points in the competition would eliminate having to “scramble for participants in less popular events that we were previously ‘forced’ to take part in.” She also commended Prof. Visser’s decision to give recognition to individual events.

Similarly, Barend Taute, a third-year Boekenhout resident said, “I think it is great that the TuksRes followed the decision, made by the residence chairs, to keep Residence of the Year. The Residence of the Year award is one of the great tradition[s] we as residence

students still have left.” In contrast, Klaradyn HK for Internal

Culture and Socials, Elmien Kellerman, said, “I think the amount of activities and participation of residences should not be voluntary. Everything should stay the same as previous years. The way Prestige was handled [in] previous years worked.”

SRC President Mthokozisi Nkosi told Perdeby that, “I am comfortable with the outcome under [these] circumstances. Residences have been given options, whichever option each individual residence [goes] for will be influenced by the value that that particular residence sees in competing for this award.”

See Prof. Visser’s 2013 Residence of the Year Competition proposal at pPerdeby7416b.

AMY-MAE CAMPBELL

The Student Culture Committee (Stuku) hosted the first ever Mr and Miss Tuks pageant last year but due to unforeseen financial and managerial challenges, Stuku has decided to discontinue the pageant.

Stuku initiated the Mr and Miss Tuks pageant last year to create a beauty contest that caters for both men and women and approached Modelling South Africa (MSA) to assist them with the event. But due to escalating costs, poor ticket sales and the postponement of the pageant, a number of sponsors, including MSA, withdrew their support and the winners never received their prizes.

University management told Perdeby that it is regrettable that the pageant was unsuccessful and that the expectations created by the external contractors were not met. However, the university was not involved in the pageant. “Although it [the pageant] has been approved in principle by the Dean of Students, the agreements entered into between Stuku and its service providers were not signed by the relevant university authorities as is required,” the university said.

According to the university, Stuku members never informed them about the problems they

No more Mr and Miss Tuks pageanthad encountered at any stage before, during, or after the pageant. “Had these failings come to the attention of the management, the matter could have been dealt with much sooner,” university management said and added that UP approves of Stuku’s decision to discontinue the pageant as it will enable

them to better focus their attention on the services they already have in place.

According to Dawie de Villiers, MSA Pro Model coach and photographer who trained the contestants, MSA pulled out solely because of poor communication and

organisation on Stuku’s part. De Villiers confirmed that if Stuku is

willing to make the effort, MSA will do their part and sponsor photo shoots for the winners as promised.

“I would never jeopardise future business with UP. [I] would like to complete what we started,” De Villiers said.

Thabane Mkhwebane, Stuku manager, has confirmed that even though Stuku will not continue hosting the pageant they will ensure that all the winners still receive their prizes. “[A]s far as Stuku’s obligation to deliver on its promises is concerned, Stuku will get in touch with the winners of the pageant soon to hand over their prizes,” he said.

“Even though Stuku will not continue hosting

the pageant they will ensure that all the

winners still receive their prizes.”

comment on whether car theft was a problem in the Hatfield area.

Security guards from Thompson Security Group, the company which manages security at Unicrest, said that they were not aware of any car thefts. They added that Unicrest could not be held liable for any cars stolen from outside the building as owners park there at their own risk.

The threat of car theft extends all around campus. Thomas Hikins, a BCom Supply Chain Management first-year, told Perdeby that two of his friends had their cars stolen between April and May this year. Both cars were stolen from Roper Street near the university’s Lynnwood Road entrance.

SRC member in charge of Safety and Security Pierre Cloete acknowledged the issue of car theft. However, he said that “the problem is handled by the top management [level] of Security Services. As such, any information is confidential.”

Cloete told Perdeby that he is working on a proposal to improve security directly outside of Hatfield campus. He advised students to try park outside the ladies’ residences as university security guards are present on these streets.

An owner of a pub in Hatfield Square,

who wished to remain anonymous, revealed that cars have been stolen from the Square’s basement parking. Four cars have been stolen from the secure parking area since the beginning of this year.

In contrast to the above statements, Danie Basson, Chief Operating Officer of the Hatfield City Improvement District (CID), said that SAPS confirmed to him that there had been a decline in the number of vehicles stolen from around the university’s Hatfield campus in the last year. Basson attributed this to the presence of CID and UP security guards. He said that the guards “regularly prevent vehicles from being stolen. When this does not happen, we are more often than not [there] in time to arrest would-be vehicle thieves.”

According to information published on the South African Police Service’s website, 889 cases of car theft were opened at the Brooklyn station in 2011. The website also stated that last year, 100 less cars were stolen than in 2010. Statistics for this year have not yet been released.

Do you think car theft is escaliting around campus? Tweet your thoughts at @perdebynews or @MissMax6.

Photo: Marius Veldhuyzen van Zanten

FRANCOIS VAN DER WESTHUIZEN

University of KwaZulu-NatalFive students were arrested at UKZN’s Howard College campus on 22 August following violent protests.

The university announced the day after the protests that Howard College campus would be closed until last week Monday.

The students demanded improved security services and maintenance at residences. The

Intervarsity newsMercury reported that a woman was raped in a residence in Montclair, Durban and that students were robbed a few weeks ago at the same residence.

Ruth Castel-Branco, a UKZN student, explained that police fired canisters of tear gas at students and that running students were randomly shot at with rubber bullets. “I then started to move away and people were tripping over each other because they weren’t prepared for this, and as I tried to slowly walk away and not trip over anyone, the riot police then came behind me and with their shields pushed me forward, telling me to run,” she said.

Nomonde Mbadi, Executive Director of Corporate Relations at UKZN, said in a statement that, “Students have resumed protest action on the University of Kwazulu-Natal’s Howard College campus this morning [Monday 27 August]. We have received reports that protesting students have disrupted a test that was scheduled to take place at the Shepstone Building and that lectures on campus have been disrupted.” Despite these disruptions, UKZN did not suspend classes again.

There were no more reports of violence after last week Monday.

The arrested students were charged with public violence and have to appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court today.

Photo: www.infoburst.wordpress.com

Fun & Games4 3 September ‘12

SudokuLast week’s solution

MIH/Perdeby/20/08-E.indd 1 2012/08/14 12:44 PM

Features 53 September ‘12

DITSHEGO MADOPI

Earlier this year, AfriForum clashed with the university over its admission policies in the Faculty of Veterinary Sciences and more recently, the SRC has been petitioning for a student rate for the Gautrain. Last week, DASO voiced its concern about the lack of student anonymity on SRC voting ballots. However, these activities go unnoticed by some students. This week, Perdeby investigates students’ attitudes towards political issues on campus. Do these issues matter to students, or do they fade into the background as students concentrate on other aspects of life at university that they regard as more important or interesting?

“I’d say the general student population isn’t really interested in the workings of student politics,” says SRC President Mthokozisi Nkosi. “We have over 45 000 students on campus and we have less than 7 000 students who participate actively or vote.” According to Mothusi’s estimates, this means that only 16% of students make an effort to involve themselves in campus politics. That fact that the SRC is voted in by such a small percentage of students may lead people to question the legitimacy of the structure.

Michael Matlapenge, a member of the 2011 SRC, says, “I think there is an interest but from those students who are affected and feel connected to the causes the SRC deals with. The things that happen on campus are influenced by politics, even if you don’t recognise [that] directly.”

“The workplace also has politics so even if you are not interested in politics now, it’s an aspect of life you will encounter at some point so exposure to it earlier may help you understand how it works later. I also believe that people who only study and don’t participate in campus organisations (political or not) are the ones who are less inclined to appreciate the differences made by the SRC,” he adds.

Common words and phrases that students used when asked to describe politics were: “corrupted”, “boring” and “personal ambition of the few”.

Some students come from backgrounds with strong political affiliations. This can be a driving

Campus politics: are students turning a blind eye?

factor when they make the decision to become involved in politics – whereas those who come from more politically neutral homes may not feel compelled to participate.

There is also a generally negative portrayal of politics in the media which could affect perceptions students have of politics. Timothy Ramabulana, ANCYL Tuks Branch Chairperson, says, “During elections, people will use what happens in the parent party’s affairs and not realise that that a party on campus is still there primarily

to serve the students regardless of what may be happening externally.”

Tshepang Ratlhogo, a second-year BSc Geology student, says, “I am interested in campus politics because I’m aware of the important issues they raise, like the current youth wage subsidy discussions.”

The youth wage subsidy is a current political topic that revolves around the idea of providing jobs for unemployed youths by giving tax incentives for employers who employ young,

LUSANDA FUTSHANE

With each passing year, it gets harder to define social networking. In the beginning, we were satisfied with simply poking each other and writing on walls. Then we started making our relationships official online and using hashtags to follow and comment on breaking news. Now, thanks to the online social aggregating website Klout, we can put a figure on our social networking skills and even get rewarded for them. The question is: what does a low or high Klout score mean, and does the score really matter?

If you’ve never heard of Klout before, here’s a quick rundown: Klout is a website co-founded by Silicon Valley entrepreneurs Joe Fernandez and Bihn Tran in 2009. The website quantifies a user’s “influence” across his or her social networking accounts from websites such as Twitter, Facebook, Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn and Tumblr. Each user is then assigned a score between 1 and 100 (1 being socially dead and 100 indicating demi-god status) based on data points collected from these websites, like Twitter follower count, number of @mentions, retweets, Facebook “likes”, Google +1s, and so on. Despite the fact that some people have never heard of Klout, chances are that they already have a Klout score – especially if they have a Twitter account (all Twitter users automatically get their scores calculated, although they may “opt out”). In July of last year, Klout claimed to have calculated 100 million Klout scores.

You might ask yourself: doesn’t that just take all the fun out of social networking? Well, you’re not alone. Since its inception, Klout has been met with a lot of criticism. Science fiction author and blogger John Scalzi, in his guest article for CNNMoney titled “Why Klout Scores Are Possibly Evil”, points out that Klout provides a service that no one needed which simply creates unnecessary pressure and tension in social

Klout: how to make friends and influence people

inexperienced workers. Ratlhogo continues, “The decisions made by them eventually filter down to us to so it’s best to know how they are made and how we’ll be affected by them before their implementation. My complaint, though, is that it can be difficult to follow what they talk about because they use a lot of jargon.”

Nkosi responds to the issue of jargon: “How a political organisation communicates is linked to the identity of the party.” Matlapenge says, “We are in a learning institution so we expect students to be familiar with certain terms and if they are not, they should see it as an opportunity to learn something new which is empowering. Vocabulary and articulation are important in politics and the words used help to keep debates lively.”

Second-year mechanical engineering student Phadima Ledwaba says, “Last year, I voted because my friend was running and the adverts say voting is good. There’s no intrinsic reason why I did it. Voting doesn’t seem to change anything essentially so I understand why so many don’t do it.” Ledwaba’s statement highlights an issue mentioned in The Independent newspaper which comments that “the reason [that] politics doesn’t appeal to [the younger generation] is because it seems very egotistical and superficial. The politicians appear to want to do what’s best for the [institution], but they will say anything as long as it gets them votes and into more powerful positions.”

Nkosi says the SRC spends over R100 000 in marketing but the problem is that communication is a two-way street and students are uninterested in that communication. Ramabulana says, “We recently had a debate on the youth wage subsidy issue and the venue was not full, but if RAG held an event at the same venue, there probably would have been a stampede. Students are not interested until it affects them personally, then they humble themselves and want help from the political organisations. A lack of involvement affects other students because when you try to change things at a policy level, you get defeated by the implied attitude that students don’t care.”

Illustration: René Lombaard

networking. “It seems that what Klout exists to do is create status anxiety – to saddle you with a popularity ranking, and then make you feel insecure about it and whether you’ll lose that ranking unless you engage in certain activities that aren’t necessarily in your interest, but are in Klout’s.”

In April this year, Wired.com reported the story of Sam Fiorella, a marketing executive with 15 years of experience who got passed over for a job because his Klout score of 34 was too low (and because he had never heard of Klout). The guy who got the job had a Klout score of 67. “Fifteen years of accomplishments weren’t as important as that score,” Fiorella said at the time.

Perdeby conducted a survey to find out if Tuks students knew what Klout was or cared what their Klout scores were. 87% of the students surveyed said they didn’t know what Klout was and only 10% admitted to actually checking their Klout scores regularly. “If I gave a damn about popularity I would’ve never left high school,” says Nompumelelo Zithonga, a second-year economics student. On the topic of Klout scores affecting career prospects, she adds, “The only scores employers should care about are the ones on my academic record.”

Despite the dissension, Klout has maintained its success and has even started rewarding high-scoring users with material gifts (called Klout

Perks) like laptops, cellphones, VIP stays at exclusive hotels and discounts on designer clothes. The best Perks are reserved for scores between 80 and 100, the logic being that if you give influential people freebies they’ll promote the brands to other less influential people. This has caused a fair amount of debate: supporters say that it’s an effective marketing strategy, while others have called it exploitation. You can guess for yourself what score range each of the conflicting camps are in.

Just a few weeks ago, Barack Obama surpassed Justin Bieber’s Klout score. Justin Bieber’s score dropped from a perfect 100 (demi-god!) to a 92 while Obama’s went from hovering in the mid-90s to a 99. Why is this important? Klout’s algorithm has been chided for being dubious since its launch, with many people claiming that there is no real way of measuring how influential a person is. Scalzi writes, “I could rank your influence online. If you like: I’ll add your number of Twitter followers to your number of Facebook friends, subtract the number of MySpace friends, laugh and point if you’re still on Friendster, take the square root, round up to the nearest integer and add six. That’s your Scalzi Number (mine is 172). You’re welcome.”

We’d all like to pretend that we don’t care how many Twitter followers we have and whether or not our well thought out status updates get “likes”. It’s safer to act like we’re above popularity and social hierarchies, but truthfully, most of us aren’t. The reason that Klout is so successful is because of our own morbid fascination with how important we are. So whether your score is in the low twenties or on the heels of the leader of the free world is only as relevant as you want it to be. That’s until they’re start offering real money as a Perk – then we can all start spelling clout with a K.

Photo: Eleanor Harding

Smooth sailing for Goodnight Wembley!Entertainment6 3 September ‘12

Bloc Party: the guitar gods are back

MELINA MELETAKOS

When Taxi Violence frontman George van der Spuy and 7th Son’s Nic Gaud decided to embark on a side project together, they looked no further than what has become Cape Town’s creative hub, Kill City Blues, to carefully handpick the musos that would make up Goodnight Wembley!

They added Alex Krause (of Dead Lucky fame), Gideon de Kock (Yes Sir!, Mister Machine and Like Knives) and Jean Labuschagne (Dead Lucky and Bilderberg Hotel) to the already impressive list of band members and Goodnight Wembley! was complete.

The band set sail up north on their Maiden Voyage Tour, where Perdeby sat down to chat with them before they performed at Arcade Empire on the last leg of their journey.

The huge amount of hype surrounding this retro rock and roll outfit since their inception has identified them as a supergroup, a label they aren’t very fond of. “It [creates] an expectation, to some people at least, and that was never our intention. It’s all about the music for us and we don’t really give a f**k about anything else. We’re just trying to make good music. People want to label it, I guess that’s inevitable, but we definitely don’t see ourselves as better than anyone or anything like that. We’re just happy to be playing good music together,” says Gaud.

Goodnight Wembley!’s first single, “Time Machine”, has garnered plenty of air play on radio stations across the country. “If I could go back, find a way to, wouldn’t have to reminisce,” laments Van der Spuy on the track. This nostalgic yearning for the music that Van der Spuy and Gaud grew up on inspired them to create a soundscape that can best be described as a rediscovery of old school grunge and rock and roll. “We felt it would be awesome if that whole movement came back in a way, even if we have to start it ourselves,” explains Van der Spuy.

But make no mistake in thinking that Goodnight Wembley!’s time machine is stuck in the era of Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath. “Our sound is rooted in that retro stuff but I definitely think we’ve got that sort of contemporary edge,” says bassist De Kock. “There’s definitely three different decades in our music. There’s the 70s Sabbath/Zeppelin influence, there’s the 90s grunge and then there’s the more contemporary element, the ‘now’ element on top of it. I think that’s the perfect way of describing what our music is,” adds Gaud.

This mishmash of different artists and musical styles has guaranteed that Goodnight Wembley! creates a larger-than-life stage performance. Their sets are akin to a shot of adrenalin: raw, rapid and thrilling.

“The core of this band is five guys who love playing music and so we really show that on stage. We really enjoy our performances, we enjoy playing our music so if people pick that up, it’s great [because] you feed off the crowd,” says Gaud gratefully.

The band has written ten songs, all of which will appear on the album that they are working on, along with four tracks that they are yet to write. “We’ve tracked the first few singles already and we’re going to release them every six to eight weeks to kind of buy some time. We’ll go into studio in

October/November time. So the idea is really to stay on the road until then and get into studio, record the album and then we’ll release it beginning of next year,” says Gaud. Until then, Goodnight Wembley! plans on regularly releasing singles to whet the appetite of their fans. “It just puts an emphasis on our live shows and that’s our core, that’s what we’re about,” says De Kock.

With each member of the band being a part of an already well-established and successful act, you would think that making time for Goodnight Wembley! would be difficult. “With all our respective acts, they are all up and running and don’t require that day-to-day nurturing, so we have a lot of time for Goodnight Wembley! The timing was just right for a project like this,” says Gaud. Van der Spuy explains that with their other bands they are a lot more selective about playing big shows rather than small ones because they have done the ground work for each act. “That’s what’s great about this band. We can still build an audience as we go and play in smaller venues. It’s actually a lot of fun,” says Van der Spuy.

Their previous experience in the music industry has given

Goodnight Wembley! enough foresight to launch the band successfully. “From day one, when we sat down starting to conceptualise this project, we laid out our first year before we had even written songs. We had our exact plan of attack, of how we are going to market this band, how we’re going to launch it and how we’re going to see out the first 12 months. If I think back to when we started 7th Son, it was just, ‘Let’s take it out of the garage!’ There was nowhere near as much foresight as what’s been put into this,” says Gaud.

This insight, coupled with a sound that is as refreshing as it is rooted in the past, has ensured that Goodnight Wembley!’s maiden voyage has been for the most part smooth sailing. As Gaud explains, “We’ve only been a band for a couple of months, we’ve only played a couple of shows so to be playing the shows that we have and with the people who come out, is f***ing cool.”

Watch the “Time Machine” music video at perdeby.co.za or pPerdeby7416a.

Photo: JP Nathrass

MELINA MELETAKOS

British post-punk indie rockers Bloc Party are back from their four-year hiatus after releasing their rather unimaginatively

titled fourth studio album, Four. This time around, it seems as if the quartet has come full circle, with the tracks on the album sounding more like the guitar-driven splendour that made them famous on their debut album, Silent Alarm. Since Silent Alarm’s release in 2005, Bloc Party slowly started moving away from what gave them their distinct sound and started experimenting with electronic elements which culminated in their less-than-desirable third album, Intimacy.

But there is a twist in this resurrection tale. While Four relaunches Bloc Party’s signature sound, it also includes piercing, pulse-pounding metal influences that ooze off the faster tracks on the album.

“Three times three/ First cut first/ Pierce the skin/ It binds us,” whispers lead singer Kele Okereke menacingly on “3x3”, one of the more sinister tracks on the album. The song builds up with Okereke spurting out the chorus in a vocal style very similar to that of System Of A Down’s Serj Tankian.

“We Are Not Good People” is another one of Bloc Party’s heavier songs. A frenzied, aggressive guitar solo delivers an angry punch to the stomach, leaving you breathless but wanting – like a hard-headed teenage boy – left to pick yourself up only to go back for more. The track showcases some of the band’s more lacklustre lyrics such as, “With these five lines you will be reborn/ A superman or maybe a jock/ You can crush the whole world in your hand/ If you wanna.” But, then again, Bloc Party has never been known for their

profound lyrics, a flaw that has always been masked by the band’s impeccable guitar work and Okereke’s vocal ability. Then, as if you’re listening to a completely different band, Four surprises with a selection of slower, more mellow pop songs. With jagged guitar riffs interspersed with Okereke’s sharp falsetto and a jaw-dropping guitar solo, “Octopus” is a stand-out song on the album.

“Real Talk” transports you to Venice Beach à la Red Hot Chili Peppers with its groove influences and yet another one of Okereke’s chilling falsettos. These two contrasts in Four make the album seem a bit all over the place, as if it lacks some sort of cohesion.

Nevertheless, Bloc Party is back and they are making sure that everyone knows it. Four is an album that grabs you by the shoulders, shakes you violently and then kisses you softly on the cheek, as if to apologise for the slightly confusing listening experience it provided.

Bloc Party will be performing in Johannesburg at Mary Fitzgerald Square on 5 October at the launch of In The City Jo’burg, an annual event bringing international acts to the City of Gold. They will also be headlining Rocking The Daisies in Cape Town between 4 and 7 October.

RATING: 7/10

Image: www.blocparty.com

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KATLEGO PHEEHA

The University of Pretoria has a great sporting heritage and is known for its success in rugby, football and athletics. However, a new sport known as parkour is fast becoming popular.

TuksParkour was formed in May this year, having been in a two-year “conceptual phase” prior to that. The society is not registered under TuksSport, but is registered with the SRC instead.

Several members of TuksParkour are part of Sabotage Elite Free-running, and have competed and won a number of competitions. Most recently, the Mr Price Pro Ballito Parkour competition saw Kenji Marupa, founder of TuksParkour and second-year BIS Publishing student, win the style event. Jose Chung, also part of TuksParkour, won the speed event, and society vice-chairperson Mark Modimola was the runner-up in both categories. Marupa has also been working with New Balance South Africa to promote parkour in Pretoria.

Parkour is a physical movement discipline focused on overcoming obstacles whilst in motion. Not to be confused with free-running, which involves mostly somersaults, flips and flare moves, parkour is described as a displacement art form with the aim being moving from one place to another as efficiently and as quickly as possible.

“On a personal basis, parkour has the physical benefit of making one stronger, fitter and more resilient. Mentally, it enables one to unlock higher levels of critical deduction, creativity

Parkour taking Tuks by storm

and problem-solving, as well as modelling and learning abilities,” said Murapa.

Unlike most sports, parkour does not require any equipment other than light clothing and running shoes. Naturally, the sport is not without its risks and injuries are part and parcel of being a parkour athlete. “Cuts, bruises, grazes and sprains

are all a part of everyday life. There is a unique degree of risk that comes with parkour and free-running, which usually only manifests as injury through incorrect practices and preparations,” Marupa told Perdeby.

Marupa has high hopes for the society he formed less than six months ago. “I would like it

to be at the forefront of the parkour community development in South Africa, and to be a recognised global opinion leader in the art.”

For more photos go to perdeby.co.za or pPerdeby7416c.

Photos: Eleanor Harding

TuksBodybuilders qualify for SA ChampsNATALIE THOMPSON

On Saturday 25 August two Tuks bodybuilders competed in the BBSA/IFBB Gauteng North Provincial Championships. Both Bhekumuzi Maluleke and Braam Smith won their respective divisions and were subsequently chosen to represent Northern Gauteng at the BBSA/IFBB South African National Championships, to be held in Centurion on 5-8 September. Maluleke competed in the u/23, u/75kg division, while Smith competed in the u/23, o/75kg division.

“The competition was an awesome experience. The athletes demonstrated their level best and I was honoured to stand out against ten other athletes. Going to nationals is one of my goals achieved for the year and now the main goal is to bring home the first gold for TuksBodybuilding,” Maluleke said after the event. Smith commented,

“I really enjoyed the competition and I think that our province is sending a very good team to the nationals this year. I am very, very excited for the nationals and my goal for this year is to be selected for the Protea team to go to the World Champs. This is it, this is where months of preparation come together, and I can’t wait to get on the national stage.”

Leading up to the Provincial Championships, Perdeby spoke to Burton Morgan, a judge at the championships and Northern Gauteng team manager, to find out which elements of a competitor’s performance are crucial for success from a judge’s point of view.

“One of the most important aspects is to know what the judges are looking for when a competitor steps onto stage,” said Burton. “The four main things are symmetry, definition, good proportion and striation.” Morgan explained that Maluleke

displays all four of these characteristics and that is ultimately what makes him stand out against other bodybuilders in his weight category. Morgan added that Maluleke and Smith have two very different physiques but each has perfected their body to be able to reach the highest levels of performance.

Even though TuksBodybuilding is a recent addition to the TuksSport umbrella, the team has an impressive track record at National Championships. The club boasts three former national champions and two top-three finishers.

With the National Championships fast approaching, both Maluleke and Smith will be confident of being selected for the South African team that will travel to Spain for the World Championships.

Photo: Melissa Kemp

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