Dave Ferguson – aka ‘Lonesome Dave’- is performing at this year’s Voorkamerfest in Darling for the first time. He spoke to MILLY BERTELMAN for Weekend Special about his music and what audiences can expect from his performances at the fest:
Q: Your music has a raw, stripped-down blues energy that feels both timeless and deeply personal. How did ‘Lonesome Dave’ come into being – what’s the backstory behind the name and your journey into music?
A: Well, I guess it all started when I was about 16 and was getting heavily into Blues and thought I’d get myself a guitar and learn to play slide like Mississippi Fred McDowell or Lightnin’ Hopkins but when I walked into the music store it turned out I didn’t have enough for any of the guitars there so I bought a harmonica instead. That seemingly random consolation lead to the formation of my first band The Mavericks (with my brother & 2 other mates) which lead to me sitting in with and jamming/learning from just about anyone else who would allow me the privilege.
As for the ‘Lonesome Dave’ thing, that name was kinda thrust upon me unknowingly due to somebody writing Lonesome Dave on a chalkboard behind me when I started out after returning to Cape Town in 2006/7 doing a weekly slot at the Biscuit Mill Neighbourgoods Market. I fought against it for a while but eventually I resigned myself to the fact that it doesn’t matter what people call you as long as they still call 😁…
Q: You perform solo with just a harmonica, a loop pedal, and your voice – a minimalist setup that creates a huge sound. What drew you to that unique one-man-band style, and how has it shaped your connection with live audiences?
A: The looping thing came about when in the early 2000s I found myself living in London after some travelling (I went over to Nashville for a while in the mid 90s & then London where I stayed until 2006). Whilst there I was working as a sound engineer/technician at the Barbican centre and became inspired by what my friend Benjamin Darvill AKA Son of Dave was doing with a loop pedal – he was incidentally the harmonica player & percussionist for that 90s Canadian band ‘The Crashtest Dummies’ having relocated to London after they disbanded. So when I saw what he was doing & when he asked me to customise an old vintage mic for him, I remember saying: “Man! There’s no way I am not gonna have to pick up on what you’re putting down, it’s too fucking cool” but at the same time I was determined to find my own sound using a similarly simple and stripped down format but keen to explore the sonic possibilities of replicating a full band yet keeping things somewhat raw. Resulting I suppose in my idiosyncratically retro-futuristic, hi-tech-low-fi sound…
Q: You’ll be playing at this year’s Voorkamerfest in Darling, for the first time – a festival known for its intimate, unexpected venues and cross-cultural vibe. What can audiences expect from your performances there, especially those seeing you for the first time although Darling itself is no stranger to you I believe?
A: Yeah I’m really looking forward to Voorkamerfest especially due to the intimacy and its novel way of showcasing live music. I plan to concentrate almost solely on my own songs, some old some new and some that I seldom ever do live.
Q: Your sound is often described as a mix of Delta blues, roots, and a kind of urban grit. Who or what inspires your music – musically and personally – and how do those influences shape your songwriting or live sets?
A: Hmmm, who doesn’t inspire me is possibly an easier way to answer but I guess I draw a lot from my lifelong leaning towards Roots Americana incorporating everything from Blues, Jump, Swing, Western Swing, Bluegrass, Country, Gospel, Zydeco and Soul. Another substantial influence has been early Rocksteady and roots Reggae as well as the madcap sonic pioneering of such legends as the late great and wonderfully insane Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry. But there’s also another oxymoronic influence on what has shaped my sound and which has a marked affect on how I approach songwriting and that is strangely the freedom one has musically within the ironically restrictive and chordally static format of looping where one has to almost suggest the chord changes over a somewhat unchanging groove where feel, timing and intention are the tightropes one must tread in order not to plummet headlong into mere repetition…
Q: Playing in a small town like Darling – far from big city stages – brings its own kind of energy. What do you love about performing in smaller, more intimate settings like this? Do they bring out something different in your music?
A: Every opportunity to connect with people through music is a blessing and a privilege (and ever more so since 2020) and honestly it matters little to me whether it’s a huge crowd or a handful or whether it’s in a bustling Metropolis or some Backwoods Burg, I am humbled and honoured to afforded the opportunity to do what I do and throw my heart out into the air and hope it entertains and enriches all who happen to be within range.
What: Voorkamerfest 2025
Where and when: Darling | Performance dates and times are Saturday 18 October at 11am and 4pm and Sunday 19 October at 11am. Tickets are R350 per person per route (three shows per route).
Tickets: Quicket
WS
