Beatenberg

Cape Town-based trio Beatenberg stand at the forefront of South African mainstream pop, thanks to their savvy fusion of indie and global influences. Formed in 2008 by Matthew Field, Robin Brink and Ross Dorkin, the band took the Beatenberg moniker from a sketch of the namesake Swiss town by artist Paul Klee—a move that anticipated their cross-cultural approach to music. Melding more traditional Afropop sounds alongside touches of house and reggae with bright acoustic guitar and bouncy piano chords, Beatenberg have used their songs to explore themes of heartbreak, friendship and youthful disillusion. This classically trained band have continued to push the boundaries of pop on albums like 2014’s beautifully breezy The Hanging Gardens of Beatenberg and 2018’s richly atmospheric 12 Views of Beatenberg.