A few days ago saw the release of “Bowsie”, the 5th song from Shortstraw’s Those Meddling Kids Collective. The song is all about Bowser, Alastair’s beloved part Rottweiler, part Labrador who passed away last year while the band was on tour in Europe.
From the start, Alastair’s love for his dogs led to the use and mention of dogs in so many aspects of the band’s image and creative output. For many years they practiced at Alastair’s house, and so the dogs were a big part of their lives. Alastair never got to say goodbye to Bowsie, so now a few months after her passing, she gets honoured with a song about her and the loss felt now that she’s gone.
“Bowsie is signature to Shortstraw in the sense that our same energetic spirit is felt throughout the song. Even though the context has the potential to be saddening, the song is upbeat and strong.”
With the release of “Bowsie”, Shortstraw is also launching The Bowsie Foundation
This is an initiative set up by the band as a means to support animal charities in South Africa. The aim of the foundation is for the band to do their part in making sure animal charities out there can receive whatever money and aid they can give them.
The band often gets asked to do charity shows, and wish they could do them all. Instead, with starting their own foundation, and their annual Mandelapalooza, they can rather focus their efforts on making sure the charities they believe in receive the right funding, and that they know they are doing everything in their power to make a difference.
For a long time, the band has had the idea to match YouTube views of a video with a brand that would donate money to a charity based on how many views we achieve in a certain amount of time. They never acted on it because there was never the right song for it. With the love and celebration for dogs mentioned earlier, it only seemed right that the charity of such an idea should be a dog-related charity. When the song “Bowsie” surfaced, they knew they had to make this idea happen.
Shortstraw is proud to announce that Montego has come on board to pledge money for The Bowsie Foundation’s first project – the #BowsieChallenge. Montego will be donating R1 for every view of the Bowsie video received within 15 days, up until R15 000, so the band is setting out to achieve 15 000 views in 15 days. The Bowsie Foundation will be donating the money to an animal charity of the band’s choice. The bands are also giving fans the chance to recommend charities.
Montego Pet Nutrition, one of South Africa’s largest pet food manufacturers, is a family owned business based in Graaff Reinet, in the heart of the Karoo. Today, Montego’s aim is as it has always been; to provide South African pet owners a wide range of high quality pet foods at affordable prices.
From super-premium to economy, dry food and wet food, as well as treats and sauces, Montego has earned its place in the homes of many, many South African families. Click here to get more info about The Bowsie Foundation.
The music video for Bowsie features the band performing inside a dog kennel, at the bottom of a garden. They are also celebrating all the beloved dogs (or cat in the case of Tom) of each band member. They also show their grief for the loss of their good friend, Bowsie. Check it out below:
The video was shot by cinematographer, Fred Wollner. It was shot in one night inside a Wendy house that was made to look like the ultimate ‘dog cave’. After that the band dedicated a day at Tom’s house to bring all their dogs and shoot the portrait scenes. Tom’s cat, Spliff kept his distance throughout the shoot until they needed him, and Russell’s dog, Smirnoff seemed to get on well with the others until his excitement got the better of him. Apart from one brief squabble and an awkwardly positioned defecation, the shoot went off without a hitch.
Fallen Heroes tattooist, Lauren has been involved in art for as long as she can remember. Art is all she does and all she has ever done. Shortstraw is excited to have her design Bowsie’s artwork and welcome her to the Those Meddling Kids Collective.
Nick Hamman, a longtime friend and supporter of Shortstraw is also part of the Those Meddling Kids Collective. Nick is the host of a morning show on 5FM, one of South Africa’s biggest commercial radio stations. He has very kindly given Shortstraw some needle time on the first Friday of every month to debut and talk about each single as they are released. Listen to the latest Shortstraw single from the TMK Collective every first Friday of every month at 8:20 AM on Nick Hamman’s show on 5FM.
Shortstraw is also proud to have all their music equipment provided and endorsed by Toms. With branches around South Africa, these guys run a great ship, and help out with all Shortstraw’s instrument needs.
Watch this space for regular updates in the Music Videos category on SA Music Zone.
To stay in the loop with all things SA Music, Subscribe to our newsletter.
Looking for something to do? Check out our Upcoming Events section or the SA Gig Guide.
Want to explore the SA Music Scene? Check out our Artist/Band/Group Profiles section.
Want to discover fresh music? Follow our editor's 2025 playlist on Spotify.
