By Tiaan Booyens
The Stinging Rogers is a curly, acoustic, folk-rock duo from Stellenbosch, consisting of Storm Opperman and François Roux. They are steadily cruising their way into the international music scene, topping worldwide New and Hot charts on SoundCloud with the release of their first few covers of artists like The New Basement Tapes and Sticky Fingers. Now, with an upcoming original album, they’re ready for the next big thing.
Biding their time in South Africa with corporate gigs, weddings, and performances in small franchise restaurants, news of The Stinging Rogers has been spreading locally by word of mouth. But with a sound inspired by big names like Jack Johnson and Neil Young, they’ve always had plans to go global. They already have a bigger Spotify and Apple Music market in Australia than back home. “I definitely feel confident that we could do that in a few spots in Europe too,” says Roux, “Our plan for the next two years is to go bum and play residencies, see Europe and grow our following.”
Roux and Opperman met in high school and musically found each other, and themselves, a few years down the line. “Playing guitar and singing – it was his thing since he was a klein tjokkertjie (young boy),” comments Opperman about his bandmate’s journey with music. “And probably in grade ten, music found me, when I picked up the ukulele and later started singing when I was a lifeguard.” The natural blend of their voices and strings make them a must-see live performance. Listening to them is reminiscent of a beachside jam session, where you slow down and enjoy the moment. They describe their sound as something that makes you “stop and listen”.
The Stinging Rogers’ upcoming album is currently in the works and they’re incorporating an alternative-indie sound into their list of original songs. As their name would suggest, this duo only gets better the longer they hold on. “The Stinging Roger is the end of the Cornetto,” says Storm with a smirk, “That little chocolate bit.”
Link to youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqxvXEnFyNw&ab_channel=TheStingingRogers
