It was fantastic when Carl Maderthaner, owner of the much loved music and chill joint, Tings an’ Times, opened another branch in the east of Pretoria, about three months ago. Another Tings, yay!

The new branch in the east would serve as just a chill joint for older customers who just wanted a relaxed vibe, while the Hatfield one would maintain its live music feature.

But now sadly Tings in Hatfield (which many refer to as the old new Tings) is closing its doors. This is a huge loss to the city’s live music scene.

This place has had a major role in grooming some of the best bands in the city and the country for the past 16 years.

Pretoria is Tings an’ Times and with the lack of venues being a problem for the live music scene, this is sad.

But according to Carl, it was not financially viable any more. Cool Runnings which was also based in Hatfield, recently closed down.

“I should have closed about three months ago but I held on because I did not want to let go.

“The one-way system in Hatfield makes it difficult for people to come through. Lots of people don’t come to Hatfield any more. The location has changed. And with a lot of music festivals that have popped up in the past two years, bigger bands don’t want to play smaller venues – which Tings was,” he explains.

But all hope is not lost.

With the Tings in the east going strong, Carl is open to introducing small acoustic shows at the new joint at a later stage.

The charm about Tings goes beyond its rasta ambience and Bob Marley murals that exude warmth and positive vibrations.

It’s the kind of place that’s laid-back and where the colour of you skin is the least of your worries. It’s all about the music and the food – the pita meals are some of the best in the city. And a lot of memories have been made there.

I remember how packed it would always be whenever 340ml came to play, making it hard to go to the loo or for the waiters to do their job. The Oppikoppi Graphic Design competition gig was always fun too.

Carl has his own memories, “Boo! started at Tings and Ampie Omo used to do the juggling with fire at Tings before he spoke to me about starting a band.

“It was a special moment every time Tidal Waves played. It’s an honour that a lot of the big bands we have in this country started at Tings. Waddy Jones had his last Max Normal show at Tings. Shaun Morgan from Seether played at Tings two years ago and he’s a regular and humble guy.”

There have been some interesting funny stories associated with Tings. One is the urban legend that there is ganja in the food and that’s why people keep coming back for more. But perhaps it’s one that Carl likes to tell which takes the cake.

“There was this one time we got a bomb threat. We got a call that because the place was multiracial, there was a lot of blacks in the joint who might have planted the bomb there.

“When the police came, the hippier crowd panicked because they had weed. But the police found nothing, there was never a bomb. But I was touched by how every single person that was in the joint came back and every bill was accounted for.”

And it’s those loyal patrons Carl would like to thank. Not forgetting the waiters, some of whom had spunk. The two brothers from Architecture of Aggression (AOA), Van and Anton, used to wait at Tings and that’s where you got to see what lovely and humble individuals they were when they were not roaring their anti-religion beliefs on stage.

Looking back and looking ahead, Carl says: “I almost opened Tings in Sunnyside because it’s a buzzing area, but I saw an opportunity in Hatfield.

“I wanted to open a chilled, laid-back and 100 percent free zone area, the kind of place I’d go chill in. I opened in 1995 in the new South Africa and Pretoria was pretty conservative at the time and that was a brave move.

“I opened first in Burnett Street and later in Arcadia, where I built in a stage after the demand for bands at the first old Tings.

“Bands would queue up and I always had a lot of demos to listen to, some of which I never got to, and I apologise for that. I’m going to miss the old Tings, but I might make a comeback. I’m not closing the door on that.”

l Catch the last gigs at Tings: Bittereinder, Yesterday’s Pupil on December 1; Tidal Waves Namuh and December Streets perform on Dec 3 for the Tings birthday party; Shadow Club and Southern Gypsy Queen are playing on December 8 and the last night for Tings is on December 15.

Life and times at an iconic venue

l “For me Tings an’ Times is Pretoria! To illustrate: our last show in Pretoria wasn’t at Tings, it was at Arcade Empire, which is quite far from Hatfield. Like always, we drove chatting and listening to music… and guess what? That took us straight to Tings! This venue paved our career in Pretoria, and it was why people would sing one of our choruses while taking a super quick morning shower, extremely late for class, courtesy of the glorious night before. Some universities have radio stations, others have a “little den” close by, luring patronage with intimate performances from local bands, Jamaican Pita Bread combos (yes, they exist!) and cold beers. Damn, now we’d finally figured out a way of maximising that infamous backstage room! So Tings, in the timeless words of Ed Murrow, goodnight and good luck.” – Tiago (340ml/Tumi and the volume)

l “Tings an’ Times was the leading live music venue in South Africa. What was happening in SA was happening at Tings. The food was always great and as a vegetarian, I never had to worry. I was always sorted. This is where you’d find the rainbow nation and people of the world. Tings an Times grew our business.” – Jacob “Jakes” Wulana, Tidal Waves

l “Originally we played Tings for the chicken livers, which are better than any other we saw in over 800 shows in 17 countries. But then we got switched into the irie vibes and pretty soon it became our dirty little secret that we’d actually pay to play there if we had to.” – Boo!

l “Tings was one of the best venues in Pretoria and it always put original bands there to play. It’s wonderful how they spread the reggae message and the people there were like friends and family. I’ve had wonderful memories there and it’s a sad day for live music.” – Piet Botha, Jack Hammer.

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