The Members, #6: Arjuna Kohlstock

Next up on in our Member's series is the latest addition to The Plastics, Arjun. No, he's not Indian. The Plastics decided to become a "real band" by adopting another member to their ranks. Read below and get to know a little about the last quarter.

1. How did you come to be apart of The Plastics? And, how does it feel being apart of a band that seems to be going places?

I have been really good friends with Sasha and Pascal (drummer and vocalist) since the year 2000 as we used to gig together at the Purple Turtle and other seedy clubs in our respective punk bands ie. Hoax and War On Salt . Since then we have remained tight and share the same love for music and partying. I first got to know Karl (bassist) on “The Joint Tour,” which consisted of The Plastics and my previous band, The Allstar Funk Four, touring a couple of venues down the West Coast. When Allstar broke up I went to work in Australia for a couple of months. Before I left there was talk of me joining The Plastics when I get back. The guys said they would “wait for me,” it was quite romantic actually… While I was away I kept up with what The Plastics where up to on their myspace, facebook etc. and grew quite excited when reading all the good press, cd reviews and news of all sponsorship deals and competitions they were winning left right and centre. When I got back we got straight into jamming and I felt right at home in the rehearsal studio with these three down-to-earth guys. After only 2 weeks of practising we were inside Sound and Motion Studios, recording tracks for the upcoming EP. This was due to another sponsorship deal they had landed for themselves while I was abroad. So yeah, I’m super amped and feel really fortunate to be joining such a talented band.

2. What do you do in the band?

I play guitar and do backup vocals

3. What are you adding to the band that they didn’t already have?

Second guitar parts, duh!

4. Have you ever played in a band before?
   

I used to play guitar for the Rap/Funk/Rock/Pop band, The Allstar Funk Four for about 3 years and before that I played guitar and attempted to sing for my punk band War On Salt (not really worth mentioning, but hey)

5. What do you outside of being a musician?

I love vegan and vegetarian cooking, chilling with Mary Jane and going to all the beautiful naturist places we have here in Cape Town.

6. Who are your biggest musical influences?

My influences change daily, but the ones that have stuck are probably Gwen Stefani, Michael Jackson (mainly Jackson 5 stuff), The Bloodhound Gang, Air, Daft Punk and Dr Dre.

7. Who are you listening to at the moment?

Coldplay, The Ting Tings, Aerosmith, The Plastics, Moloko, The Beatles and Goldfish.

8. If not The Plastics, what other SA band would you have liked to join? Why?

Max Normal TV. Because they rock. Not sure where I would fit in though… Or maybe Gang of Instrumentals.

9. When will you begin performing with the band? When and where can we expect to see you on stage for the first time?

My first gig with The Plastics is coming up this weekend (Sat 22^nd) at The Assembly. We will be playing with Kidofdoom, Yesterday's Pupil, Jax Panik, and ETC crew – its going to be an awesome show!

10. What is the next big thing on the music scene in Cape Town?

Finger Clothing (available at the Finger store on Kloof Str)

So, there's Arjun. I think this band has a little way to go (as do all SA bands) but they are headed in the right direction and taking the (or a) right approach. As Arjun said, they are currently recording another EP. Good stuff lads. I reviewed their first EP. Check it!

Again, as Arjun mentioned they are playing this weekend [Saturday] at The Assembly with a host of exciting acts from other parts of SA.

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