The art of headbanging

I listen to many types of music – largely, the commercial stuff played on the radio. It’s not that the popular music is my favourite – it’s mostly because I’m too lazy to go out and seek the not so popular music and then find time to actually listen to it.

One of my favourite genres of music is alternative rock. I simply love the sound of intricate solo guitar pieces. With the volume pumped up, the beat of the drums in the aggressive songs resonates with my entire body. And who won’t sing along to the lyrics of songs that seem to emulate your feelings.

I was, therefore, really excited to go to One Night in Cape Town, a concert featuring Kongos, Eagles of Death Metal, Enter Shikari, Seether and Bullet for my Valentine. Patrons to this concert were obviously fans of rock and metal and there was I, someone who dips her feet into this world now and then, ready to enjoy these bands with them. I soon realised I was doing this concert all wrong.   

It had never occurred to me before that I actually don’t know how to headbang. It’s always seemed like the only natural way to move your body to heavy rock is to move your head up and down to the beats. That’s kinda all I did besides watching in awe at how headbanging is really done.

I imagine the most popular way to head bang is to move your head up and down like I do, sort of like a repeated exaggerated nod. I feel it’s best done with your eyes closed since the fast moving images just makes your head hurt and you feel the music much more when you close your eyes anway.

For the long beats, most of my fellow golden circle compatriots seemed to prefer moving their upper bodies from the waist to about a 45 degree angle and back up, whilst also nodding their heads. I’m most afraid of this type of headbanging because of the amount of space required. I’m also scared that someone’s head is going to bang into mine when standing really close to other people at a concert. That being said, this style is actually safer on your spine than the up and down head movements that I prefer...where you don’t infringe on other people’s spaces.

There’s more than just nodding your head back and forth, there’s also the windmill where you can circle your head, whipping your head in a half circle, and shaking it from side to side. I suppose headbanging any which way you prefer is correct and developing whiplash means you’re doing it wrong.

The right hair is key to headbanging perfectly. The lead singer of Bullet for my Valentine had pin straight hair that fell back into place after any head movements. His hair was down to his shoulder blades so whenever he headbanged, his hair moved beautifully to the front of his guitar and back into place again. He had shiny blonde hair that caught the light with his movements which made watching him all the more entertaining.  

Hair length also determines the type of headbanging that’s most appropriate. The lead singer of Bullet for my Valentine spent most of his set banging his head up and down. The short haired bass guitarist, however, chose to whip his head in half circles as that made a better performance than flicking hair that he didn’t have. Really long hair, like my waist length hair, doesn’t really move much and doesn’t have the same impact when headbanging.

And then there’s the just-showing-off type of headbanging. When the entire band was on stage, Bullet for my Valentine generally started off their songs or the fast paced bits of the songs with in sync headbanging…while playing their musical instruments!

Wondering what to do with your hands while your head whips back and forth? Air guitar. Although I’m convinced that some of these air guitarists play real guitars cos they seemed to be strumming and picking and changing chords to the sound of the music. Maybe they fake it really well but I say attempt this at your own risk.

Hopefully my ‘research’ will help improve your headbanging skills. Maybe my next rock concert experience will shed light on the moshing etiquette…if I make it out of the pit alive.

Why I hate cops

I've always maintained that I hate cops. It's not because there's corruption in the police force.

It's because they generally do not have the physique to be able to run after robbers when you've just been mugged.

It's because their visible policing seems to be targeting ordinary citizens rather than hunting down rapists and murderers.

It's because when our police officers are patrolling, I feel fear that they will accuse me of some offence rather than make me feel safe.

The reason I hate cops the most today is because of this morning's incident when I was on my way from Sandton to Sunninghill at 4 in the morning. It's cold and dark and being a victim of crime myself, I tend to always err on the side of caution.

When I noticed the police car behind me, flashing their lights, indicating that I needed to stop, I decided that I was going to continue driving to my friend's complex and stop there when it was safe to do so, and then deal with what the cops wanted from me. Many media sources have previously mentioned that we are allowed to drive to a safe destination before stopping for police officers.

This just aggravated the police officers more and they started hooting for me to stop. I didn't know how else to indicate acknowledgement besides switching on my hazards and thereafter sticking my hand out of the window to indicate that I'm turning into the next road.

Eventually the cops just pulled in front of me forcing me to stop. An infuriated police officer got out of the car and grilled me. He yelled at me asking why I wouldn't stop.

I gave my reasons: I'm a girl driving alone in a city where crime is rife; and recently, two sisters were raped by police officers not far from where I was driving - in two separate incidents! I was going to stop when I felt it was safe to do so.

Instead of telling me why they stopped me, the cop continued to yell at me for five minutes telling me that if I am so scared, I should not be driving at night. Interestingly enough, they angrily told me that not stopping when a police officer requests it, is an admission of some guilt and they a liable to shoot at will if they deemed it appropriate! Eventually they drove off without even checking my licence.

And that right there is the reason I hate the police. Because I am more afraid for my safety when cops stop me than I am of being date raped. Because I cannot live my own life for fear of being stopped by cops. 

And so, whoever it is that makes our laws and enforces them, if girls driving alone at night can't continue driving to a safe place when we are asked to stop by the police, what are we supposed to do? Submit to being raped by them instead?

Bond of protection

Today marks a very joyful yet auspicious day in the Hindu calendar – Raksha Bandhan, a day that has been celebrated throughout history that still has a magical spirit about it.

Raksha Bandhan means “bond of protection” and celebrates the union between brother and sister. Religiously, the sister performs a ceremonial prayer to God for her brother’s well-being and protection from evil before tying the rakhi (a sacred thread) on his wrist. The rakhi symbolises her love and well wishes for her brother and his lifelong vow to protect her. The sister feeds him some sweets and her brother acknowledges her blessings with a gift and a promise to always take care of her.

I don’t have any brothers so when I when I was growing up, I tied rakhis for my cousins since Indian extended families are so close that cousins are viewed as siblings. My cousins also lived very far away from me so sometimes I’d tie a rakhi for a male friend that I was not related to but who I viewed as my brother. This day is jokingly referred to as the Friendzone Day because sometimes if a boy develops feelings for a girl and she does not reciprocate them, she may tie a rakhi for him today to say she thinks of him as her brother.

Raksha Bandhan is a tradition that surpasses the religious aspect of it. In majority Hindu communities, even non-Hindu girls perform the tradition of tying a rakhi for her “brother” to join in on the celebrations. Beneath the fun and the current trend, there is still the element of creating a peaceful community where everyone cares for each other.

This day brings siblings close together as brothers visit their sisters for their rakhis. Even when siblings are cities or countries apart, they still send a letter or have a telephone conversation and remind themselves that they can still count on each other. Although this is a Hindu tradition, it is worth pondering over no matter what your religious or cultural background is. We’re, often, too consumed with our own lives as we grow older that we forget the importance of family. On this auspicious day, I wish you an eternal bond of love, laughter and happiness between you and your siblings.

A new appreciation for the Big 5

Everyone knows I do not like the outdoors. That’s why even I was surprised at how excited I was during the game drive I went on this weekend. It really gave me a new appreciation of the Big 5.

We took our time and armed with a tracker, we were off to find the lions in their massive enclosure. The longer we spent finding the lions meant the less time we had to look at the other animals on the reserve. I suppose it’s worth looking for the lions as everyone wants to see the king of the jungle on a game. The ranger explained that the lions on the reserve are wild and not hand reared like the ones at the lion parks I’ve been to. The 4 lions have 1000 hectares of an enclosed area to run around, catch their own prey and laze about all day. I hate hearing about animals kept in captivity but this certainly doesn’t feel like captivity. The lions could be set out in the true wild and be able to fend for themselves.  

Eventually we spotted the lions about 20 metres away from us. The ranger took us closer to get a better view. I didn’t realise that “closer” meant a terrifying three metres away from the three lions basking in the sun. I have been in close proximity to lions in a lion park before but it always feels safer knowing that hand reared lions are comfortable with people around. These lions are truly wild and it was overwhelming to know that although they were lazing about, their senses are still so sharp that they could respond and attack us within seconds if we posed a danger to them. It was by far the best game drive I’ve been on knowing that the lions weren’t just kept in captivity being fed daily but they were in their natural habitat with their hunting skills still intact.

After leaving the lion enclosure, we drove through a herd of African Cape buffalo. Scary looking animals that are known to have killed more people in Africa than the rest of the Big 5 combined! A female buffalo came right up to game drive vehicle to sneak a cute peek at us whilst the baby buffalos just ran along with the herd. The male buffalos watched us intently and I was far too scared to even take a pic of them. The animals don’t just charge at humans for no apparent reason unless they pose a threat to the heard however as these buffalos age, their eyesight and hearing weakens so the old buffalos are extremely dangerous as they are easily scared and attack to protect themselves from danger. With an old buffalo in the herd and one of the male buffalos looking me in the eye, I felt scared even in the game drive vehicle.

My favourite part of the game drive was the drinks break where we could get out of the vehicle and stretch our legs...right alongside a herd of rhinoceros. The experience was truly marvellous and realising that I was standing next to critically endangered animals was overwhelming. They looked like a bunch of inquisitive animals, gossiping amongst each other about us before approaching us to see what was going on. They have excellent hearing but really bad eyesight which is why they curiously approach the sounds that they hear. They were such playful, innocent animals so harmless that we could walk amongst them. I didn’t really care much for rhino poaching but after seeing these social creatures, I can’t help but utterly detest the cruel crime of hunt an animal as easy to befriend as this one. Interestingly enough, rhino horns are made of keratin – the same substance as our fingernails. Keratin hasn’t been proven to have any medicinal qualities and still the rhino horn value is high enough to bribe veterinarians and experienced trackers to hunt these animals down.

The game drive didn’t cover the African elephants because the game lodge had a separate elephant experience but their watering hole was just metres away from the lodge we stayed in. It was wonderful to have lunch and spot two elephants walking along the boundary. The pool was at the boundary just over a high bank but that didn’t stop one of the elephants playfully stretching into the pool area and actually sucking in some chlorine water through its trunk for a drink. The elephant eventually found its own watering hole and stopped for a drink before moving along with his pal. Such massive creatures yet still so playful.  

The only Big 5 animal I was disappointed that I wasn't able to see was the leopard. Due to their nocturnal nature, leopards are very difficult to spot during the day. Although they rarely kill humans, I don’t think I’m brave enough to want to drive out in the middle of the night just to see a leopard in its natural habitat. 

This game drive gave me a new appreciation for the Big 5 – the five most difficult animals to hunt in Africa on foot. With other tourists on the game drive, I really feel lucky that these animals are practically on my doorstep for us to look at in awe. It’s also incredibly heartbreaking to know that these animals are endangered many of which are kept from extinction because they are kept in captivity by humans. I cannot imagine now why anyone would want to hunt these animals – be it for sport or for money. Perhaps game drives like this need to be more easily accessible for people to understand these animals so that we can give them a louder voice against atrocities like poaching of endangered animals.