Hip-hop trio Die Antwoord keeps it real — real weird
With Die Antwoord hitting town Wednesday, here are five things you need to know about this inimitable trio:
They truly sound like no one else
First, there’s Ninja, whose raps are as blunt as the business end of a meat cleaver. Then there’s Yolandi Visser, whose Charmin-soft voice is at the opposite end of the sonic spectrum, a contrast that’s like pairing the growl of a disgruntled Orc with the sigh of an animated princess. The musical backdrop that DJ God conjures for them ranges from adrenalized electro to a rugged hip-hop bounce. As such, they’re one of the few acts who impact the rap, dance music and indie charts, often simultaneously.
They speak Afrikaans
Afrikaans is the third-most-prominent dialect in Die Antwoord’s native South Africa. “Ag, man, Afrikaans is groot.” Don’t know what that means? Ask Charlize Theron to translate it for you.
They represent zef culture
What exactly is the “zef” aesthetic? “It’s associated with people who soup their cars up and rock gold and (stuff)” Visser explained in a 2010 interview with The Observer. “Zef is, you’re poor but you’re fancy. You’re poor, but you’re sexy, you’ve got style.”
They once taught a robot how to be gangsta
Seen the movie “Chappie,” the 2015 sci-fi flick about a police robot gone awry? That was Ninja and Visser who abducted the ’bot and attempted to introduce him to the thug life, successfully teaching a droid how to swear.
Their videography will make your brain feel like scrambled eggs inside a meth-laced breakfast burrito
Mad at your brain? Punish that bad boy real good by immersing yourself in the Die Antwoord YouTube page for a few hours. There’s “Banana Brain,” where Ninja dons the prosthetic legs of double-amputee sprinter — and convicted murderer — Oscar Pistorius. During the aggressively gory “Pitbull Terrier,” he comes costumed as a human incarnation of the song’s namesake. On “I Fink U Freeky,” Visser sing-raps while covered in rats, then cooks an egg with a cockroach in it, which is precisely what your gray matter will feel like after watching it.
Contact Jason Bracelin at jbracelin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0476. Follow @JasonBracelin on Twitter.
