Rhythm of Grace

Photos by Ett Venter

Ryno Olivier, guitarist of Rhythm of Grace tells us more about the band.


When and how did the band start?
The band formed in early 2009 when five friends wanted to share their passion for music. It just made sense; we all had this burning desire to release all the music that’s been poured into us. You can’t just take and not give back, we believe.


Have you gone through quite a few members to get to the final 5 you are now? 
We did lose a few members along the way but luckily we didn’t lose any friends in the process. We are really happy with the line-up right now; each member has the same passion for music and the same vision for the band. Members include: Herman Archer – Bass, Ryno Olivier – Guitar, Thinus Mentz – Guitar, Joggie Mentz – Drums and Armand Fourie – Vocals.


In a few words describe your music?
Our music can be described as melodic hard rock mixed with a hint of folk. We’ve been influenced by very different bands and it shows in our music. I believe there is something for everyone and the difference between each of the songs is one of the things we like most about the album.


Describe your lyrics, what do you guys write about, who does most of the song writing?
Armand, our vocalist, writes all the lyrics. He is currently studying Creative Writing so he’s very into poetry and lyrics, which should be a good thing but he gets really fussy about ‘the balance’ of the song. The balance between the melody of the vocals and the lyrics must be perfect, they must fit the tone of the song otherwise he won’t be satisfied. So writing can take weeks, even months!

For our latest album Capital of Man, Armand tried to look objectively and holistically at where human beings find themselves at the moment. He wrote around the theme of two things; firstly, looking at what the capital (city) of man has turned into. It addresses the pitfalls we’ve fallen into and the current state humans find themselves in. Furthermore, what should be done to escape this state of limbo they find themselves in. Secondly, ‘Capital of Man’ refers to the capital letter of Man as opposed to the capital letter of God, asking the question: “to what extent are human beings glorifying themselves?” Basically it explores human nature and our status quo. 


Who are your musical influences?
Bands that have inspired us to make music, and who, in our eyes, have made a huge impact on the international music scene are; Thrice, August Burns Red, POD, Haste the Day, As I Lay Dying, Maylene, Sons of Disaster and Gaslight Anthem. Although they aren’t on MTV or on most radio shows their music has made a big difference in the world. 


Has your album Capital of Man been released already?
No, it will be released in September; date to be confirmed. Keep an eye on our Facebook and Myspace pages.


You guys have been recording this album since 2009; tell us about the recording process and what makes this record different?
We are lucky enough to have a drummer who owns his own recording studio. So as soon as ideas are formed we can lay them down and tweak them until we’re happy. Then we can pick and choose which songs actually get to go on the album.

This album won’t be like most of the music you’ve heard from South African rock bands, because it’s been a very self-conscious recording process. When we set out and gradually found our style we knew we had to be more progressive and experimental than other bands and we’ve been very conscious about that while writing the album. More than anything we knew we had to bring out an album we were proud of; the way people may respond to it will not affect our writing. We try to stay true to ourselves and our vision. I believe the best albums are made that way.


Where can fans get a copy?
You can get a copy of our album Capital of Man at any one of our gigs, we post all our gigs on our Myspace and Facebook pages.


So twenty percent of your album sales go to the non-profit organizations; To Write Love on Her Arms and The Whosoevers.  Tell us more about these organizations?
Both of these non-profit organisations have influenced our lives greatly and have been powered by music and some of our favourite bands. The Whosoevers is an initiative by Sunny, from POD and Head from Korn, their aim is to spread the love and acceptance of God among the youth through their music and their conferences. To Write Love on Her Arms is a cause also organising music festivals and conferences worldwide to fight depression.

We are really amped to support these international causes because they represent exactly what we stand for, but we are also looking forward to supporting local causes in the future too. They are making a difference over there; we should be doing the same over here! We really want to serve the community with our music. Besides the Come Alive festival which is all about collecting clothes for the needy, we’re also looking at helping a couple of primary schools in Pretoria West. We want to organise a fundraiser and help out by painting some of the buildings etc.


Are you guys signed with a label?  
We are not signed with a label and I doubt we will sign with a South African label, if we do get signed we believe it will be with an international label because the market here for this type of music (although it is growing) is not big enough.


What would you say are the biggest obstacles for bands in S.A.?
What I think the biggest challenge for bands in the hard rock music scene in South Africa is the fact that you can easily get discouraged because you don’t get the amount of fans or influence you want no matter how hard you work, but we tend to forget that the fans we do have are usually quality fans; ‘die-hard’ fans to whom the music really means a lot. . Yet, now and again it does happen that a quality hard rock band does become semi-commercial, like The Narrow and Straatligkinders. We are also hoping to be an exception. All we know is that we’re going to take this as far as we can. Being famous has never been important to us, but we do want to be as influential and as inspiring as we can.


Where would you like to perform someday?
Our dream would be to play at Cornerstone Festival or Vans Warped Tour. We’re just planning on taking every opportunity that comes our way and giving it our best shot. We’ll be dreamers till the day we die!


How did you come up with your name?
We got our name from a Bible verse that really spoke to us all at the time. It’s from Matthew 11:28 in the Message translation where Jesus speaks about his yoke being easy and light, and to us it means two things: firstly, that every note that comes from us is by His grace, and secondly, that it is not through our effort and striving that we will succeed but by following his “unforced rhythms of grace”. We believe that serving God should be effortless and come naturally if you accept His grace, His empowerment.


You guys played at the My Culture Resurrection Jam this year, what did you think of the event?
We loved playing at the Resurrection Jam - we were honoured. I think it’s a one of a kind festival, and I definitely think it has tremendous potential.  I wouldn’t be surprised if it more than doubles its attendance next year. Extreme sports, hard music, friends – it’s just a good mix.


Tell us about your next shows and why we should be there?
The next show will be at Rock My World Festival in Rustenburg on the 29th of October but there will be a lot more gigs coming up before that which are yet to be confirmed. We will put the details up on Facebook, Myspace and Twitter closer to the time. We think people should come watch us because we work hard in the studio and it shows on stage. If you’re open-minded about music and like listening to passionate songs, then I don’t see how you can be disappointed. We’ll be there to rock out and we hope that the people reading this article will come rock out with us.


If fans what to hear your stuff or get in touch with you what links can they go to?
http://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/92414390992
http://www.myspace.com/rhythmofgraceband
http://twitter.com/#!/rhythmofgrace