Watershed celebrates 20 years by going international… again

New record deal, new album, same Watershed!

One of South Africa’s most loved and enduring bands, Watershed have clocked numerous platinum and gold albums, as well as awards to their name since their debut single “Indigo Girl” surged up the charts in 2000.
Twenty years later, the acoustic rock band is more relevant than ever, so much so that independent European record label On-Stage has signed the band. The German-based label had their eyes on the band since they picked up on Watershed’s 2015 album Watch the Rain, followed their progress into Harbour, and decided to sign them for their next studio album. For the band, this means that they will be able to leverage an international market that will put them on equal footing with the rest of the world.
“It’s great to be back in the European market again,” says lead singer Craig Hinds. “We’ve always had a fantastic fan base in Europe and the more people we can reach with our music the better.” It’s no surprise that the band has made such an impact on the European market, having performed alongside some of the biggest names in the music industry; U2, Peter Gabriel, Beyonce, Queen, Bob Geldof, Roxette, The Corrs and The Cranberries, to name a few.
Their honest music and thoughtful lyrics have resonated with people the world over and this latest coup, is testament and recognition to the timelessness and excellence of this home grown South African Brand.
The very real struggles of the music and entertainment industry through the Covid pandemic has forced people to get back to basics, the band is no different and has embraced this opportunity to write and record music that they are truly proud of. “We were planning touring 2020 alongside an album to celebrate 20 years in the music industry. Lockdown forced us to focus on just the creativity with no distractions.
"Elephant in the Room", the eighth studio album, is filled with songs that address the increasing polarity of people and the choice not to identify individual failures and thoughts on real issues whether they are personal or political.
Too much information and too much noise everywhere but no attempts at real solutions. “We’re keeping it as raw as possible, focusing on our instruments and giving the songs space to tell the story,” explains Craig.
Fans across the world will also be excited to hear that Watch the Rain and Harbour will also be released on vinyl. “We see these two albums as well as the new one as part of our second phase in music,” explains Craig, “Watch the Rain took us down a road we feel really comfortable with, which was followed by Harbour which has cemented our sound.”