Music Nights at Alexander Bar's Upstairs Theatre with The Swing Collective, Brynn, 0:9 and Lance Herman

The Alexander Bar and Cafe has announced an eclectic music programme for their Upstairs Theatre in January. The Alexander Upstairs will rock to the sounds of swing, pop, jazz, folk, contemporary classical music and EDM in four different concerts.

On 16 January at 17:00, The Swing Collective will play a set of swing, pop and jazz classics. With vocals by Lana Crowster, the Swing Collective also features Claire de Kock on saxophone, Marc Rontsch on guitar, Luke Otto on bass and James Lombard on drums. The group plays swing classics and pop tunes with an old-school swing twist, mixing together vintage and retro to create an interesting and distinctive sound. Swing Collective promises to provide audiences with a classy and enjoyable night of toe-tapping swing music. Tickets for the gig cost R80 - R90.

Later that same evening, at 21:00, Brynn will take the stage with a programme of alternative folk music. With vocals by Frances Sholto-Douglas and Julian Place, with Place on guitar, Joy Millar on drums and Robert Fowler on bass, Brynn is inspired by the likes of Damien Rice, Jeff Buckley and Ani Difranco, Brynn plays a poetic blend of folk and alternative rock. Gathering a positive following through their performances at varieties of venues and festivals around Cape Town, including the Cape Town Fringe Festival, The Alma Cafe and Straight No Chaser, Brynn delivers powerful and emotional performances that linger in the hearts of it's audiences long after they have ended. Tickets for this show - Brynn's last ever in Cape Town - cost R50 - R60.

0:9 is a collaboration between two of Cape Town's alternative music ensembles, The Sh.Art Ensemble and The Phax Trio, coming together with Brydon Bolton and Jay Latter to form a noxious, no-nancying-about 9-piece micro-orchestra. On 24 January at 19:00, 0:9's contemporary classical, rock, jazz, and EDM setlist will include a variety of new experimental music composed by the group - including "A Room Full of Pop" (composed by Galina Juritz), "Of Last Rounds and Samples" (composed by Matthijs Van Dijk), "Adamastor" (composed by Brydon Bolton), "8" (composed by Shaun Acker with text by Harold Pinter) and "Prieska! & Agathokakological" (composed by Andrea Fisher-Jeffes) - as well as a cover of "Knights of Cydonia" by Muse, arranged by Matthijs van Dijk. Tickets for 0:9 cost R90 - R100.

Cape Town-based singer-songwriter Lance Herman will appear on 28 January, playing as part of a trio with drummer Jonno Sweetman and bassist Ryan McArthur. Their sound as a trio is sonically more expansive than the minimal guitar-singer-songwriter set up of Herman's previous performances at Alexander Upstairs. There is a beat beneath everything, with rich bass chords underscoring an all-encompassing sonic range. Herman comments: "Kinda like if I was shooting video clips on my old cell phone before, things are more full-scale almost cinematic now, and the intention is to take the audience on a trip, not just recite songs, but allow ourselves as musicians to go on a journey with the audience, through the music - to somewhere only the night will find out." Tickets for the evening cost R90-R100.

Tickets for The Swing Collective, Brynn, 0:9 and Lance Herman can be booked online at the Alexander Bar's website or purchased at the bar, which is situated at 76 Strand Street in Cape Town's city centre, anytime during its regular opening hours. Under 18s must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. Keep up to date with events at Alexander Bar on Facebook and Twitter.

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