Dreaming of lucky number four

KNYSNA NEWS - For the fourth time in only two years, Canadian duo Neon Dreams absolutely rocked the stage during their show last Friday, 28 April.

The show was once again organised by Better Live and held at Blend Country Restaurant. It was another brilliant performance aided by Joburg-based duo Saxby Twins and fellow Canadian Coleman Hell.

The two additional acts did their part too, never failing to keep the energy up and going in the build-up to the main act. Neon Dreams' set was amazing as always, bringing their incredible energy to the stage and blowing the roof off the stretch tent at Blend.

The pair of Canadians brought Knysna to life on 7 May 2021 in a show that rocked the boat at a time when Covid-19 restrictions were slowly beginning to ease. Since then, they'd returned to Knysna and Blend in April and December 2022, and on each occasion Knysna came to the party ensuring this stop was one of Neon Dreams' favourites while on tour.

This cemented Knysna's spot in a very special place in their hearts, and they decided to make one last stop (for now) in Knysna on their final tour before heading home to Canada for the first time since October last year.

The crowd simply could not get enough of Neon Dreams during their show.

"We always love it in Knysna. Every time we come here there's always so much love and so many wonderful people," said drummer Adrian Morris. "It's such a beautiful part of the world, it's incredible, and we always really enjoy coming back here."

Since first arriving in South Africa in late 2020, the Canadians have fallen in love with our beautiful country, taking up a pretty permanent residency in Cape Town. Their latest album, Love Child Baby Dolphin, was produced in SA and they have featured South African artists on a few of their musical releases in the past few years too. It was this album that their latest tour, dubbed the Sunshine Tour, set out to promote.

Neon Dreams lead vocalist Frank Kadillac's energy was infectious throughout the show.

It's a very personal album on many levels for both Morris and lead vocalist Frank Kadillac, touching on many of their life experiences as they grew up together, as well as on Kadillac's upbringing amid the challenges his mom faced as a single mother.

This seems to really have struck a cord with their fans, according to Kadillac. "This album really means a lot to us in many different ways," he said. "So far it's already become our fastest growing album that we've released, and that just makes it all the more special."

While their music still refuses to be pigeonholed under the banner of one specific genre, it has developed a sense of maturity since their breakout album Sweet Dreams till Sunbeams was released in 2019.

It was this album that saw their incredible growth in South Africa, despite an initial slow get-go in their native Canada. Now, four years later, they've released two more albums and return to Canada having grown in popularity not just back home, but all over the world.

The Saxby Twins provided a much-improved performance from their first trip to Knysna.