From humble beginnings of jam sessions in Sundowner, Jasper Dan has risen to become a passionate force with a sound that demands to be heard.
Originally, when the band first performed in March 2012, they were called ‘Flippin’ the Bird’ but changed their name after the first year. The band was named after weekend nights when vocalist, Jamie Hendry, and his father would listen to Lynyrd Skynyrd and sip Jack Daniels whiskey, which was affectionately referred to as Jasper Dan. “Calling the band Jasper Dan just seemed to fit and the other boys loved it too. We also still enjoy a few ‘Jasper Dans’ to keep up the tradition,” Hendry added.
When he moved back to South Africa from Dubai in 2011, Hendry became neighbours with Paul Harley and they soon discovered each other’s musical talent. Harley, the band’s drummer, had been playing with guitarist and Fourways resident, Daz Roux, for a few weeks and the last member, bass guitarist and Bryanston resident, Neil Scanes, was a mutual friend. Through the band and their music, great friendships were formed. The band started out playing covers of songs but in September 2015, they shifted the focus to their own music, which can be described as southern rock.
Jasper Dan can be seen live at Rumour’s Lounge in Weltevreden Park and Smugglers Pub and Grub in North Riding. “At the moment though we are trying to grow ourselves throughout Joburg,” explained Hendry.
Last month, Jasper Dan won their first competition, the Road to Splashy Fen competition, and had the opportunity to perform at the annual festival in Underberg over the Easter weekend. “Splashy Fen is a massive event on the South African music calendar and it was an experience second to none for us,” said Hendry. They are competing in the Battle for Iron Maiden, where bands are laying it all out on stage for an opening spot at the Iron Maiden concert in May this year.
When it comes to their future plans, Hendry expressed that the band wants to play all the venues it can and would like to perform at other big music festivals. The band has turned all their original songs into acoustic tracks and looks forward to the Jasper Dan name being on an acoustic platform as well as rock. “We will be recording over the winter too, which we are all really excited about,” added Hendry.
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