Closet Snare; free-jazz ‘n breakbeat combo

Closet Snare is a not a band. Under the banner of the sSHADOWORKSs company,
they prefer to think of themselves as a platform of seriously talented “jazz” musicians making more than just Cape Town music, creating improvised music that is beyond boundaries, genre-free and undefined by trend; music that has no name.

Welcome to the future… “Our music is not a reaction to contemporary living. It is musical art, and all art begins with imagination; in dreams through images before the sound takes place. I believe it is more intricate than just our everyday experience and obvious surroundings. We are musicians, not 2nd year industrial design students. Closet Snare, in fact, it is not a reaction to anything at all! It simply is the music we want to make.” - Marc Buchanan, Closet Snare guitarist and samplist.

The Closet Snare project was initially conceptualized in 2003, and it is now that those much talked about ideas are able to become a musical reality. The band was created as a release for working musicians that are often faced with the stifling reality of being categorized in spite of their love and ability to create music that has no name. The leftfield sound of Closet Snare carries a strong jazz influence amid a range of improvised sounds and beats, ranging from breakbeat and swing to hip hop. Slow, down tempo, moody tracks intersperse with fast, manic outbursts of free and improvised jazz.

There are elements of quirkiness and sometimes almost humorous musical ideas that
trickle through. These ideas come courtesy of the taste in interesting and really odd old vinyl records sourced by the incredible turntablist and live music artist, well-known Cape Town-based DJ and one half of The Real Estate Agents, Sibot (a.k.a. DJ Fuck). They presently occupy a position of cult status on the Cape Town music scene, and whilst they don’t yet have an album released, their music has spread far and wide, thanks in part to a number of strategically placed free mp3 downloads.

Closet Snare performed at the prestigious Cape Town International Jazz Festival in March 2007 and as of June have begun scheduling a series of live music concerts up north and are booked to play Oppikoppi music festival in August 2007.

“We all live and play in the urban environment of Cape Town. We are all young South Africans that want to explore modern music, from our experience as South Africans. But let it also be said that we are looking for that international sound that comes from home (South Africa,) to tell the world that we too are innovative and know how to have fun doing it.” - Kesivan Naidoo, Closet Snare drummer.

Closet Snare is: Mark Buchanan [guitar & sampler] Lee Thomson [trumpet & flugelhorn] Kesivan Naidoo [drums] Sean Ou Tim [bass] Sibot [machines] VJ Grrrl [visuals]