South African hipsters rejoiced when The Lumineers, the musical duo behind the worldwide hit ‘Ho Hey’, announced their tour was coming to South Africa – performing in Cape Town and Pretoria at the end of November and beginning of December respectively. Of course, they’re most likely going to perform your favourite song, but there’s so much more to them than that – let’s take a look at a few facts about The Lumineers you need to know in preparation for their concert!
They started out as a cover band called “Free Beer”
If you were handed a bar’s flier with “free beer” written on it in large font, you’d consider it, right? That was the thinking when Wesley and Jeremiah first gave their band name to the bar they were performing at. They’ve since gone through a few names, and the covers are most certainly a thing of the past given that they have a library of award-winning hits to pull from.
They only recently quit their day jobs
Surprisingly, up until recently they’ve been working service industry jobs that allowed them the flexibility to tour and perform. Imagine bumping into one half of The Lumineers in the lobby of your hotel or taking your drinks order – wild!
The band received their name by mistake
For up-and-coming bands trying to make a name for themselves, to be called a different name would be devastating. But for Wesley and Jeremiah, a happy mistake led to a rebranding for them. You see, they were playing a gig in a small bar in New Jersey. The host welcomed them to the stage but got confused with a band that would be playing the same slot in one week’s time. They embraced this and the rest, as they say, is history. Just can’t be fun to be the OG Lumineers and not have much to show for it!
Searching for Sugarman inspired the band’s first visit to SA
After watching the famous documentary, Wesley spoke to his manager about the possibility of coming out to play here. He felt inspired by how made-up the South African public’s mind is about music – they like what they like and can’t be force-fed whatever seems popular around the world. This was a gamble, given that they only had one album released when they first came to SA in 2014. Seems to have worked out for them though!
More than a “one-song band”
Outside of the crowd-pleasing “Ho Hey!”, The Lumineers have much more in the arsenal to get you tapping your feet and singing along. In fact, they’ve earned two Grammy® award nominations – for Best New Artist and Best Americana Album. To say it a different way, they’re the kind of band that has hits you know but don’t attribute to them – such as ‘Ophelia’, ‘Cleopatra’, ‘Stubborn Love’ and ‘Angela’. These are the best bands to see live, since the whole concert will be a realisation of just how good The Lumineers are.
The only downside is that The Lumineers are only here for three shows (and not everyone lives in Cape Town or Pretoria). But we know dedicated fans love a good road trip, almost as much as we love being your convenient place to stay at the end of a great night!
If you’re going to be rocking out in Cape Town, we can highly recommend City Lodge Hotel GrandWest – it’s literally right there! Remember to book as far in advance as possible to avoid disappointment!
For the Pretoria show, you’ve got some great options for accommodation. Courtyard Hotel Arcadia, City Lodge Hotel Lynnwood and Town Lodge Menlo Park are all within a fifteen-minute drive from the venue and each offers a level of comfort to suit any budget. We know how expensive those tickets were, after all!
So, there’s something for everyone, including a home away from home to greet you no matter where you’re coming from to see your favourite band!