RAMFest

RAMFest
GenreVarious alternative genres including metal, rock, punk, hardcore, drum and bass, electronic
DatesAnnually in February/March
Location(s)Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth.
Years active2007–present
Founded byDawid Fourie
Websiteramfest.co.za

RAMFest is a music festival that took place a couple of times in South African cities. RAMFest caters to electronic and indie rock music, that offers local acts.

Background

RAMFest was started by Dawid Fourie in 2007 in Worcester, Western Cape, South Africa featuring 20 local talents. Since then RAMFest has grown to multiple South African cities and was one of the largest music festivals in the country. The "RAM" in RAMFest stands for Real Alternative Music according to Fourie, thus making the full name of the festival the Real Alternative Music Festival.

Previous editions

  • 2007 – Twisted Playground (2 – 3 March) in Cape Town only.
  • 2008 – Beyond Boundaries (29 February – 2 March) in Cape Town only.
  • 2009 – Nekkies (27 February – 1 March) in Cape Town only.
  • 2010 – The Real Alternative Music Festival (26–28 February; 6 March) in Cape Town and Johannesburg respectively.
  • 2011 – RAMFest (4–5 March; 9 March; 12 March) in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg respectively.
  • 2012 – A Day of Thunder (2 March; 3 March; 9 March; 10 March; 11 March) in Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein, Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town respectively.
  • 2013 – Red Heart Rum presents: RAMFest (7–10 March; 8 March; 15 March; 15 March; 15–16 March) in Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Durban (again) and Johannesburg respectively. It is to be noted that the first Durban show was for electronic acts while the second was for rock and metal acts.
  • 2014 - Red Heart Rum presents: RAMFest (6–9 March) in Cape Town and Johannesburg.
  • 2019 - Halloween presents: RAMFest (16 June) in Pretoria.
  • 2020 - Standard Bank presents: RAMFest (13 March) in Cape Town, RAMFest (14 March) in Pretoria.
  • 2023 - RAMfest (1 September) in Cape Town, RAMfest (2 September) in Pretoria.

Performers

Rise Against live in Johannesburg, South Africa as part of RAMFest 2013.
Taxi Violence live in Johannesburg, South Africa as part of RAMFest 2014.

The following table lists the notable artists that have performed at RAMFest.

Artist Year Performed References
Fokofpolisiekar \|
Battery 9 2007, 2008, 2009
The Awakening 2007, 2008
aKING 2008, 2009
Die Antwoord 2009, 2011
Foto na Dans 2009
Van Coke Kartel 2009, 2011, 2013
Isochronous 2009, 2011
Pendulum 2010, 2013
Jack Parow 2010, 2013
The Narrow 2010, 2012
Mind Assault 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013
Boo! 2010
Johnny Foreigner 2010
Die Heuwels Fantasties 2010
Alkaline Trio 2011
Funeral for a Friend 2011
Zebra and Giraffe 2011
Awolnation 2012
In Flames 2012
Infected Mushroom 2012
Netsky 2012
BEAST 2013
Man As Machine 2013, 2014
Rise Against 2013
Bring Me the Horizon 2013
Taxi Violence 2014
Biffy Clyro 2014
Trivium 2014
Foals 2014
Killswitch Engage 2014
Camo & Krooked featuring Dynamite MC 2014
Junkyard Lipstick 2014
Atilla 2019
The Black Dahlia Murder 2020
Enter Shikari 2023
The Ocean Collective 2023

Controversies

In 2012, a chain mail was circulated, implying that RAMFest had a Satanic involvement. As a result, RAMFest had trouble organising another venue for the Bloemfontein leg of the fest and it was cancelled there due to pressure from religious groups.

In December 2012, the metalcore band As I Lay Dying pulled out from the RAMFest 2013 line-up due to being double booked to support The Devil Wears Prada on their tour. The Devil Wears Prada's tour dates conflicted with RAMFest 2013's dates, making it impossible for As I Lay Dying to have performed at Ramfest 2013.

During Bring Me the Horizon's set at the Johannesburg leg of the festival for 2013, tear gas was thrown into the crowd which caused fans to cough and tear up.

RAMFest announced that the 2015 edition of the festival was cancelled, citing the lack of suitable acts for the line up as the reason for its cancellation.

RAMFest announced that the 2016 edition will not feature any international acts, and cancelled the festival.

See also


This page was last updated at 2023-11-12 16:20 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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