John Wizards
{{Short description|South African musical group}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = John Wizards
| image = John_Wizards_Full_Band.jpg
| caption = (L–R) Geoff Brink, Tom Parker, John Withers, Alex Montgomery, Emmanuel Nzaramba, Raphael Segerman
| image_size = 250
| landscape = yes
| origin = Cape Town, Western Cape
| years_active = 2010–present
| label = Planet Mu
| genre = {{flatlist|
}}
| current_members = * Geoff Brink
- Tom Parker
- John Withers
- Alex Montgomery
- Emmanuel Nzaramba
- Raphael Segerman
| website = {{URL|johnwizards.com}}
}}
John Wizards is a South African band from Cape Town formed in 2010. They are currently signed to Planet Mu Records. The band consists of vocalist and guitarist John Withers, vocalist Emmanuel Nzaramba, drummer and percussionist Raphael Segerman, bassist and keyboardist Alex Montgomery, guitarist Tom Parker and guitarist and keyboardist Geoff Brink. The band released its self-titled first album in September 2012,{{cite web|title=John Wizards, ZIQ337|url=http://www.planet.mu/discography/ZIQ336|publisher=Planet Mu|accessdate=21 January 2014|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140214045521/http://www.planet.mu/discography/ZIQ336|archivedate=14 February 2014}} which includes the singles "Lusaka by Night"{{cite web|title=Lusaka by Night, ZIQ331|url=http://www.planet.mu/discography/ZIQ331|publisher=Planet Mu|accessdate=21 January 2014|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140331175125/http://www.planet.mu/discography/ZIQ331|archivedate=31 March 2014}} and "Muizenberg".{{cite web|title=Muizenberg, ZIQ337|url=http://www.planet.mu/discography/ZIQ337|publisher=Planet Mu|accessdate=21 January 2014|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140110195818/http://www.planet.mu/discography/ZIQ337|archivedate=10 January 2014}} The band's style has been described as a mix of R&B,{{cite news|last=Jonze|first=Tim|title=John Wizards: the band behind the year's most magical album|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/aug/29/john-wizards-john-withers-emmanuel-nzaramba-interview|accessdate=21 January 2014|newspaper=The Guardian|date=29 August 2013}} soukous, Afropop,{{cite web|last=Greenstreet|first=Morgan|title=John Wizards|url=http://www.afropop.org/wp/15179/john-wizards-john-wizards/|accessdate=21 January 2014| date = November 12, 2013}} reggae,{{cite news|last=Leonard|first=Charles|title=John Wizards's musical magic is no illusion|url=http://mg.co.za/article/2013-09-20-00-wizardss-magic-is-no-illusion|accessdate=21 January 2014|newspaper=Mail & Guardian|date=20 September 2013}} South African house, Shangaan electro and dub.{{cite web|title=Listen: John Wizards Quietus Mix|url=http://thequietus.com/articles/13022-john-wizards-quietus-mix-listen|publisher=The Quietus|accessdate=21 January 2014}}
Formation and signing
The band members of John Wizards mostly met either at school or at university. Three of the band members (Segerman, Montgomery and Brink) had previously performed with Withers on other projects. Thomas Parker, a mutual friend, would join the band several months after the others.
Withers met Nzaramba outside a coffee shop in 2010 and the two became friends. They subsequently fell out of touch for a period. In 2012 they happened upon one another in Cape Town and it turned out they were both living on that same street.{{cite web|last=Dombal|first=Ryan|title=Rising: John Wizards|url=http://pitchfork.com/features/rising/9148-john-wizards/|publisher=Pitchfork Media|accessdate=21 January 2014}} Prior to their reacquiantance, Withers had been working on recording and producing the set of musical ideas that would later become John Wizards's self-titled release of September 2013. Nzaramba added vocal recordings to some of the songs and began to perform with the rest of the band. John Wizards released a mixtape, in August 2012, that roughly sketched out the songs on the album. This mixtape was passed on to Mike Paradinas, owner of Planet Mu records. Planet Mu would announce the band as part of their roster in November 2012,{{cite web|title=November: Ital, Ital Tek & 2013 Signings|url=http://www.planet.mu/news/151|publisher=Planet Mu|accessdate=21 January 2014|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029181134/http://planet.mu/news/151|archivedate=29 October 2013}} releasing the album some ten months later.
Discography
All released by Planet Mu
=Studio albums=
- John Wizards (2013)
=Singles=
- "Lusaka by Night" (2013)
- "Muizenberg" (2014)
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://www.johnwizards.com}}
{{Authority control}}