It's been a fairly long time coming for Mumford & Sons and their South African fans to meet on home ground; however meet they did this past weekend and not just once, but three times over. Pretoria and Durban you're in for a treat.
And what a meeting it was, the Grand Parade in Cape Town played host and, in a rare phenomenon for Cape Town summer nights, the wind subsided from its usual tornado tunnel temperament. In fact, Friday night was one of those blessed summer nights where the sky is a dusty gold and the air particles seems to softly caress your skin - so balmy. Perfect conditions for a concert courtesy of the Gentleman Of The Road.
Playing a mix from all three full-length albums (however predominantly from the well-loved 'Sigh No More') the band often mentioned how happy and grateful they were to be finally playing in South Africa.
I Will Wait for You, Roll Away Your Stone, White Blank Page, Dust Bowl Dance and The Cave all received big cheers and much head bopping and foot hopping however it was the lengthy encore where the Mumford magic showed face the most. Appearing back on stage after a brief stint of "We want more!" The band huddled round one mike, under one spotlight. Even if somewhat contrived (really Marcus that's the only mike that is working?) they beautifully captivated the crowd with a pared-down rendition of a few songs. Even jestfully smack-talking a few vocal members in the crowd.
Following this, they see-sawed the tempo with the song that the majority of the crowd was hopefully waiting for. The opening chords of Little Lion Man opened to an appreciative roar. Friday night in Cape Town also saw the live debut of a collaboration with Senegalese artist Baaba Maal - a stirring tribal combination of Africa meets folk and a fitting ending to an entertaining and engaging concert.
Despite the painfully long queues for everything, Mumford & Sons at the Grand Parade was a beautiful long-overdue meeting of minds and souls.
Photography by Jono of Hilltop Live. View the full gallery here
