Zagreb in Summer

I love Zagreb during summer

I love its clean, hot and powdery smell. I love its vibrant green in parks and meadows and dense pockets of shade emerging in the yellow gold of sunshine.

I love how the heat is intense and burning
and how the air shimmers to let you know this heat is no joke.

I love going to the store without a car and the rich yellow sun pouring over me like honey.

I walk slowly and breathe slowly and I drink double the water I usually do.
Coming to my dark and pleasantly cool lair I am both happy to feel the relief and pleasantly tingling with anticipation of yet another outside trip.

I yearn sex more during summer. I find it most sensual.

I wake up, get alive, speed up in the evening.
Spend my time outside, roaming the streets.
Swish of the wind and pervasive smell of hot tar coming off the asphalt is so inviting for a bike ride I do not even try to resist.

Running also changes;
it feels slow and I have to breathe a lot and huff and puff and I sometimes wish I had wet hat as soon as I exit my place for a run,
but soon my hair is wet from sweat and wind picks up near the railroad
and wind cools my head as I smile (and sometimes laugh from pure joy) and do some intervals.

Being happy in summer is easy.

People are usually annoyed from the heat and nervous so they keep out of the way so the city is free.
For me.

Rodin @ Art Pavilion in Zagreb

I do not see myself as stingy
but I’m definitely not a squanderer.
It may seem from my lavish lifestyle here on the blog that I easily part with money when tickets are in question
 - and also there’s that notion of spending on experience vs. spending on stuff -
but the narrative usually goes like this:
there is no amount too small not to ask myself: “Do you really need that?” over it.

So, there is Rodin exhibition in Art Pavilion in Zagreb.

Even though there is "NO photos" policy I sneaked one from the bag. Hence, blurred.

I enjoy seeing a nice art show
and I also enjoy sharing that experience with friends
so when I spoke about seeing the show
my friend immediately jumped on a wagon
and when she does very often this is a done deal so I always take good care NOT to lay out my plans prematurely.

But even so, when we arrived to Art pavilion last Saturday and were confronted with being able to see the entire showroom in one line of sight on one side,
and price of 50 kn (approx. 7.5$) on the other
my determination to see the show became week at the knees
and I asked myself: ”Do you really need this?”
and the answer was: "Yes, yes I do. I really do need to take this time to see this stuff in perspective and I am willing to give this dough to make it happen."

So I coughed up some minks for my ticked and we went in.

This was one extremely well thought out and presented show.
In the beginning there was this digest of information
in chronological order
but also in very layman-audience-friendly order
with not many academic references
and A LOT of real life references
putting his life and his work into perspective
thus making us empathize with the artist and see him as a fellow human being.

After reading this panel I went around and paid a short visit to all the works there
and there weren’t many
but they were chosen with care,
especially care to see the details from his biography on the wall made into metal and stone.

What I loved most:

Busts of his two lady friends
- Camille Claudel and Rose Beuret -
presented one next to the other.
It is not difficult to imagine one being attracted to same face at two different ages - all at once.

“I am beautiful” statue.
Strength, passion, attractiveness and juxtaposition of sexuality and emotion.

Balzac - nude study with protruding belly 
(Nude Study of Balzac (Type C))
This is such a wonderful piece I cannot begin to describe it.
Maybe it is best said that it was extremely hard for me not to grab this perfect, virile,
muscular yet also indulgent but cheek.
I think this nude embodies all that Rodin’s art was/still is;
a provocation at first glance but actually celebration of earthly beauty.
I can imagine the artist pondering over lunch
or some other seemingly insignificant time of daily existence
some elbow or but cheek or spine ridge
chiaroscuro
from his mind into reality.

Magic.

Exhibition is open until September 20th. Go see it.

Update 25Jan2017:
Until  some new Zagreb exhibition here is one lovely link with additional resources on Rodin's bio, works and up-to-date Rodin exhibition listings. Check it out!

Mika Male at Prostor Do 22Jun2013

Sometimes the music is not only music.


                                                   x                          x                           x


I went to see Mika Male play at Spunk on Saturday, June 22nd 2013.

I have listened to them already before, last time being on ALU Cash&Carry day (Academy of Fine Arts open doors day) in May and it was very nice and I enjoyed their music but still I didn't like the very idea of hearing them in the daylight, in the afternoon shade and as a side show to Art exhibition, displaying music like craft - not that it wasn't great (because it was!) but because this felt inappropriate to ME - that whole assembly carried just too much normalcy and usualness and this are not adjectives I commonly associate with work of Mika Male.

Sometimes the music is not only music.

Harrison Wintergreen, Friedrich Nietzche, Sosuke Aizen, James Sidas - they all have something in common and I feel that I also participate in that something. I feel their soul-search and their imminent conclusions as my own. On the scale of life inevitability they have reached the furthermost step, the highest point of ability and excellence - and they just kept on going toward more, the invisible, the unfathomable, in the process of losing by winning.

One step back on that perilous ladder there is Samuel Vimes and he seems to have managed not to overstep. His knurd, property that they all share, is somehow - only just - big enough to bring him to higher most step but to somehow keep him still capable of social contact. That awe inspiring, precious spot, Sam Vimes in my mind shares with Mika Male Narrator*.

Mika Male make music so beautiful it really qualifies as music only to most simple layman. It is so rich, so simple in its complexity, so full of organic sound it really is more vision than sound. Picture, rather than musical composition. Listening to studio produced pieces with sounds of instruments interwoven with raindrops sounds and fragments of stories is just complete bliss. So that is why I wanted to hear them again, at night and in closed space, as main event, center stage.

So I went to see them play in Spunk.

But they did not really play in Spunk. As I got there I saw their gear already set in Prostor Do. I inquired on what brought on the change ("But sound is so much better in Spunk!!" ) and was explained that Spunk was too constrictive space for the band. I was already ready for everything after that explanation and few minutes later it was time to see if expectations match to reality.

They didn't match. The sound was great.

It was just beautiful. Orlan's wonderful voice. Dancing violinist. Passionate bass. Support guitar coming and going off stage. Exquisite jazzy drums, temperate and with brushes. Getting up and sitting down, going around picking up other instruments. Cooking with fire.

I loved how at one moment Orlan, in the middle of the song, said: "I don't hear keyboard." and he just got up and walked back to the mixer and adjusted the tone while music paused and audience cheered him on and clapped. And later on we could really hear the difference and it was better.

I love how he laughed to himself performing one of two new songs as he (seems to have) forgotten the lyrics for a moment.

I love how the music was so captivating I could not tell how long they were playing at all. I love how they played Nisam te pustio na vrijeme in the beginning of their set so the sadness will be already forgotten by the end. I loved Već smo bili ovdje as it rang in my soul pulling my hurt chords. I love how my friend that was out on a gig with me for the first time turned back to me in the middle of the set and told me: "I'm definitely coming along for more gigs!"

And it ended, beautifully and organically, just as it started - appearing and dissolving like a mirage it is - and later we stayed there, sitting on the terrace in the cool breeze after a hot summer day.

And I even got memento of the evening:

I loved how energetic the words "u ovih 14 katova smo sami" (in these 14 floors we're alone) sounded in Večeras smo sami that they performed for an encore.


                                                 x                              x                          x


Sometimes the music is not only music. Sometimes the music is no music at all.


Just the void in my heart ringing with emptiness.


                                                 x                              x                          x



* - "Mika Make Narrator" I consider the person sharing his stories through song lyrics. This does not have to be the lyricist, but I have not got enough information to confirm nor deny that this is the case. Instead, I'd rather hypothesize that Narrator persona contains described characteristics, and that actual lyricist can still be more rounded up, complete person, that can still be to a fairly high degree different from description above.

Trapula - Zagreb premiere

Official movie poster by diverzant.org

Last night at 8 o'clock in Tuškanac movie theater in Zagreb premiere screening of new Ramljak&Škobalj short film Trapula was held. Far from red carpets and usual movie-style shenanigans this was an intimate, friends-and-family celebration, that was so utterly satisfying it is not hard to imagine many authors would wish they could have.

I haven't been to Tuškanac for a decade or two and I was wondering about the condition of the venue itself but I was pleasantly surprised by functional and comfortable interior of the place. It has everything avid moviegoer would need and it was nicely cool from deep three shade surrounding the theater. I feel that it wouldn't take much to restore this place to complete beauty this building already has and I hope community consciousness will only grow in future decades and make sure we keep investing into community and this kind of places that we would surely love to preserve for our children.

After short settling in, the authors; Ivan Ramljak and Marko Škobalj got out and greeted us and told us a few words of the feature itself. They told us of their work, of timelines they had and scarcity of funds. They wished us happy watching and us eager observers were engulfed in pleasant darkness of suspense.


The movie started.


From the first few moments it was apparent that this feature is something special. It has everything; the tempo, the sound, stunning and captivating visuals, ambiance - e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g - utilized in a purpose of engaging the watcher. This is a movie that cannot be watched as a side show to smart phone indulgence, to ego-porn of social interaction, it leaves no space for shallowness and napping. Openness of the scenes engages the watcher in so many levels; you can clearly smell bitter saltiness of the sea, feel the warmth of the blistering heat, taste the mouthful of hollowness and despair, get aroused by beauty of the unshroud-ness. It is a great feature and a great tool of accessing your own inner world, by interpreting the seen and the unspoken through a fine (or coarse) mesh of your own referential frame sieve.

It went on for minutes and I was sorely shocked seeing it finish - I wanted more, and more and more! If only a scene more... but it was over and it was wonderful.

I clapped my hands as hard as I could (we all did!) and authors and cast and crew - whoever was there last night - came out and took a bow for us and we clapped and it was wonderful.

Later on we went for a drink and we chatted, exchanged opinions and we listened to makers and the actors and the crew. There was laughter and admiration and it was exceedingly enjoyable to be there as this is such a brilliant group of people, unpretentious and sociable and smart and beautiful and humble. To say I was impressed would be to underrate greatly.


Trapula is a movie made from creativity, persistence and love and it was funded exclusively by authors, cast and crew. Go and see it wherever and whenever you get the chance!

Elephant and The Moon @Rockmark 28May2013

I'm kinda slow sometimes.

In about a year since I've moved with my daughter to our own place I was bestowed by a sense of peace of mind and mental fortitude to suddenly enjoy life instead of just enduring it and there has been a monumental change in perceived multitude of daily options. Suddenly, it became apparent that the world is a veritable cornucopia of experiences and I chose to peruse  much of its musical section. In this exhilarating overabundance I sometimes lose track of stuff happening right in front of me.

Like with Elephant and the Moon.

I've met Petar some months ago, during one indie event at which we gave our love and support to Felon, Marshmallow and Lolita and we mingled in the same crowd. Since so many things were happening with the scene, things that would subsequently bring to the release of Bistro na rubu šume Vol1 (free download here) somehow I just neglected to make connections at that time. Time went by and gigs were attended and we met on quite a few of them but it always just stayed on nod of recognition and a bit of chitchat level until last week when we listened to Eddie Would Go featured during Žur at Spunk and in the pause Petar talked to my good friend about tour plans. I smiled and nodded and soaked in information and when he went away I asked her:

"What does he do?"

"What do you mean - what does he do? He's 21, he can do whatever damn he pleases." 

I laughed. "Not that - you crazy woman! [more laughter] - I mean: WHO is he?"

"Oh that!", she said, "He's Elephant and the Moon".

And then the clouds in my head parted and sun shone on the heart of the information. Two short days later I went to see him play live in Rockmark music bookstore.

I just love this indie crowd and organic tranquility bubble they produce wherever they reside.

As it was to start at 7 pm I could also bring my daughter along so she can see and hear and learn and enjoy. I love that there are more happenings like that every day in Zagreb and that they give an opportunity to show our kids both proper etiquette for social events and serve as a demonstration window how to be an artist with both pride for his craft and appropriate dose of humility to make the art and not the person center of attention. It was heaven-sent that Petar was the person to show this to my offspringess as he is true embodiment of both mentioned artist traits.

And then the magic started.

I've listened to Elephant and the Moon records earlier (and so can you if you download them here, free of charge) and they are nice and promising, lest technically not very good - but being here and listening to the same songs (and many more new ones) was incomparably awesome. I love how his voice completely changes from his youthful, casual speaking voice into a masculine and determined voice of storyteller when he sings.

It is a small and private space in Rockmark and the acoustic properties are wonderful. Crowd was attentive and beautifully quiet and it was pure pleasure to be there to tap into that beauty. There were a few musicians in the audience and some of them quietly sung backup vocals (I'm sure for Dunja Ercegović and I think also Ivana Lulić) and it was so touching and cute and the implication of them knowing colleague's songs by heart was just something that fills my heart with hope and pride to know these people and live in a society that contains them.

Elephant and the Moon also did some talking for us and he was so nice and funny and spontaneous it was great to be there...

... and the 10 songs he sung for us flowed by so quickly. I was glad I took notes because now I will not forget that my absolute favorite was "Driver Please" so I could keep and eye on its hopefully quick release.

As a singer and performer Elephant and the Moon is already persuasive and excellent but I feel that his stellar quality is that of a lyricist. His songs are already so vivid and his mental pictures so well chosen I feel age will further sharpen this ability, to act like a sword for cutting down and clearing the ambiguities of life.

The force is strong in this one. We'll see where it will take him.

MIMO 4 - Lovely Quinces and Druyd @MSU 12Apr2013

Fourth MIMO (Media Inventory of Music Originals) was held on April 12th at usual place in wonderful Gorgona hall of MSU Zagreb and it brought us Lovely Quinces and Druyd. Organization was impeccable, as always, and there was online streaming for international audiences as well as broadcasting on Radio Sljeme. Audience changed considerably from my last visit and there was noticeable lack of young urbanites of Pitchforky persuasion and considerable increase in organic cotton wearers with subtle hints of religious nonconformity among intoxicating preservative-free cosmetics smell. I fancied seeing that very much; it adds to the spirit of "Inventory" part in MIMO and noticing that diversity and yet "sameness" appeases my sense of security and consolidates the impression that all is well.

It is no accident that "Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations" was imagined to be the basis of Vulcan philosophy.

So, how was it?

I came forwarned that Dunja Ercegovic a.k.a. Lovely Quinces turns to primeval goddess as she starts to sing and that was stone chiseled truth.

She was frightened and confused and she was so cute in her stage fright I bet all of us had the irresistible urge to hug and comfort her... and yet, she bravely plowed on. She talked between songs and she told us titles and bits of stories about every song and she was both youthful and unmistakeably experienced and it was at the same time heartbreaking and heartwarming to see this lovely, young (21) creature transmute these experiences (seldom pleasurable) into wonderful songs. I was especially impressed by her powerful singing voice which she used with enthralling ease to sing emotion-ridden passages and it felt so calming, so matter-of-the-factly convinced that all will turn out for the best that I was and still am in awe.

And... I'm not really sure how to put this... it was an overwhelming feel of Sandman's sand in that voice, not so much the mythical character from Northern Europe but Gaiman's sexy and lethal Lord of Dreams facing the fact of life: "The Lord of Dreams learns that one must change or die, and makes his decision."

You can sample that wonderful voice through this clip:

"Band part" of the evening went to Druyd:

 They are, and that can plainly be seen and heard here on their bandcamp page, world music at its best, that can go hand in hand with best of them in the business.This music is not something I really enjoy as it unnerves and troubles me to listen to it at home but it was a thrilling and enlivening experience to hear them live. I have not been aware that didgeridoo could be used as de facto percussion section; I always felt that it is a wind instrument and that it adds melody rather than rhythm - which did not appear to be the case here.

Druyd also have strong sense of knowledge and respect for world music lore and they were a sight to be seen and remembered; they wore stage clothes, had painted themselves with intricate nature-like details (singer wore wings!), performed bare-footed, were surrounded with the aura of obligatory nonconformism (to mainstream culture, that is) and wore perplexing smiles of deeply satisfied people.

Lot remains to be said about popularization of knitting through their work.

There is lovely photo gallery here on MIMO facebook page where you can see more clearly happenings of last Friday. More will be served in two weeks time, on Friday April 26th, presented by MIMO at wonderful Gorgona hall of MSU Zagreb.

MIMO - Rokambol and Marinada @ MSU 29Mar2013

MIMO or Media Inventory of Music Originals is a recent project in Zagreb that brings forth Croatian most original quality music through the (back) door of Croatian mainstream media. Every second Friday beginning 01Mar2013 they arrange concerts in MSU (Museum of Contemporary Art) Gorgona hall that are transmitted by online streaming on the Internet, broadcasted on Croatian radio HR2 and can be viewed and listened to live at Gorgona hall. As it is an interesting place and I was curious how "the indie people" are going to pull this off I went to see it.

First MIMO on March 1st 2013. featured Nina Romić and Olovni ples and they were all terrific. You can see photo gallery here and there are many reviews (in Croatian) available. Hall was full and we ended sitting on the steps but it was great as timing was perfect and acoustics in Gorgona hall so wonderful it brought tears to my eyes.

Nina was magnificent opening for this project and her velvety voice had just perfect timber there.

Olovni ples were vibrant with passion and their act had nothing of the darkness inherent to their studio albums. They also benefited immensely from brilliant acoustics as they performed last song walking around across the stage in kind of "every-man-for-himself" way and the sound was so wonderful that you could "see the movement in the sound" even if not looking at the stage.

No extraneous noise, no microphonics, no audio junk of any kind. Just bliss.

Second MIMO was held on March 15th and sadly I could not attend it due to other engagements. If featured Sara Renar  and Chui and I was later thoroughly briefed on excellence of their show by music-lovers and confidants so my heart ached (they did rub some salt there with diligence).

I went to see third MIMO featuring Rokambol and Marinada last Friday (March 29th 2013) and it was a bittersweet experience.

Rokambol was great.

He imagined his part of the show as very theatrical experience, from chosen attire to self-confidence he applied to direct the audience whether to clap or not. He greeted us; ones on the internet, ones by the radios and ones in attendance and then he just played and sung and went on playing in one awesome, super-practiced flow of songs one after another. Crystalline sound made for wonderful opportunity to discern his lyrics and stories just streamed forth from his lips and his fingers into darkness that contained the audience.

There are quite a few videos for his songs on his YouTube channel and his first studio album is apparently due this spring so I'll definitely keep my eye on Rokambol FB notifications.

And then, there was Marinada.

As many of you already know I'm in eternal love with all things from Rijeka and that heavy Fiume accent that the guy on the keyboards used to announce names of the songs and albums they were from was just a perfect ointment for my troubled soul on that fateful Friday. Every word and sound was just perfectly clear and wonderful acoustics of Gorgona hall was once again ideal partner for minimalist style and superior artistry. They played my favorite song - Instrument - in the middle of their set and that lifted my spirit and made the world bearable again.

I loved how they were just marginally connecting with the audience and I loved how the whole show was organized and orderly like browsing through books in a library: you read the label on the spine and take it out, you smell it, leaf through it, read a paragraph here - sentence there - get the feel by merely scratching the surface and then tidily return it where you found it, and pick up another. I love it because they say nothing in their songs and they say everything, they say all that matters. I love it because music, comprised of both instrumental sounds and sounds of their voices, enhances the experience. Information is added but message stays beautifully simple and intuitively understandable

Einstein once said that "If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough". These guys can and they do. I'm in awe.

So where is the bitter part of "bittersweet experience" mentioned above?

Well, novelty already wore off and there were far fewer people there that I would imagine at a show like this one; perfectly organized, at a beautiful and clean place where there is no smoking and refreshments are available and that takes place so early in the evening that you can even go to with your kids or go clubbing after it. It is not expensive and there are lovely things to buy if you feel like having a memento of the evening. I would love if more people came to these events and listened and learned how to listen and to behave. It saddens me that this stays in the long tail and that it remains in the realm of "preaching to the choir".

So, prove me wrong - come and see MIMO 4 featuring Druyd and Lovely Quinces on April 14th!

Mark Lanegan @Pauk

With first news of Mark Lanegan playing in Zagreb I binded myself to seeing that show. Now, after being there to testify to that experience I am rather irresolute writting about it.

It was a mixture of pleasure and pain, scintillating bitter sweetness of rapture and regret, missfortunate chain of events attesting to nothing more than to current sociocultural era of vapidness, vanity and poverty that leads to having strange bedfellows.

Maybe I am snobbish in my approach to concerts but me being a snob does not change the facts and the fact is PAUK should never ever be used as a house of music. It is too disjointed, has too much reverberation points and distorts even the simplest and clearest sounds. It does no favors to artists and it tramples the experience for a listener. This concert was not announced to be at PAUK but, awkward enough, concert was sold out and moved from NKC Park (400 tickets) to bigger venue, horrible PAUK club (1300 tickets).

I am very sad this happened because of two things: because I am absolutely sure Žedno Uho would appreciate better venues for their concerts as Mate is nothing short than true connosseur of music and also artists' promoter, caring deeply for artists and treating them as dear friends, but I'm also aware that there are non-insignifficant financial and other reasons behind concert ending up where it ended. Second thing that bugs me is the situation behind this concert being sold out.

I would love nothing more than concerts being sold out to fans, friends, simpatizers and people open to new experiences but being there I would not dare to say that 30% of people in PAUK ever heard Mark Lanegan's music, no matter which his career era we're talking about. Rather expensive tickets these days in Zagreb go mostly to people of all ages who know (or care) nothing about music but like to be seen attending events, people who cannot find their place in slim to nonexisting 30+ club scene, misfits who use concert-night as an excuse not to be somewhere where they think they ought to be.

Sad but true.

On the other hand, there were upsides to this story also.


Creature With the Atom Brain were very interesting  and hearing them there I immediately wished to know more about them and listen to more of their songs.

Mr. Lanegan was Dr. Cool.

He was so cool he stood in his own coolness bubble and he owned the space spreading five meters in every direction. He hardly moved and scarcely emoted and he was utterly magnifficent. When he started singing I had such visceral feeling of content and excitement that small hairs on the back of my neck rose with tingles...

... and as my ears hurt and my soul bled I scoured PAUK in search of a better listening spot and I found one, just behind the sound station.

This is the only spot without awkward echo because it has extremely low ceiling and I stayed there for the duration of the show. They played my current favorite, "Grey goes black", while I was already "in the den" and I was grateful and pleased I did not stay at front.

After the encore, guy from CWAB came on stage and said: "Just one more announcement, dear friends: after the show Mark will be at merch stand talking to fans and signing whatever you want signed." and this was so warm and welcoming I loved the sound and the idea of it.

In the end I thawed a bit to this experience and went home pleased.

I'd like to see him sing again.

Violet violets

Last couple of weeks I've been so tired at evenings when I got through my usual and extra chores I used to fall asleep sitting up and I was so anxious I used to wake up at night and could not sleep.

Last night I read a book in bed and went to sleep and I woke up from a dream when the alarm clock sounded morning.

I dreamt an ordinary day.

I dreamt getting work done, coming home, talking to family, cooking dinner, sounds of chattering in the background. I dreamt reading a book in bed and falling to sleep and waking up when the alarm clock rang and getting and giving a good morning kiss.

Snowdrops, finally

I realize I'm too quiet last couple of days, but I'm hoping to catch up once life changes I'm going through right now tide over.

I'm knitting Gemini.

I'm enjoying 20 Celsius in Zagreb.

Air is sweet with life and sun warm and rewarding. There is fondness and pride and truth revealed in words and deeds around me.

El Stonero at Željezničar 03Mar2012

Last night I went to see El Stonero programme at Željezničar in Zagreb.

Envisioned as a three band stress relief concert it was advertised as the cure for all present day illnesses: low salary, disconnectedness, lousy work environment - and I was intrigued to say the least. Of course, one of those three bands being brilliant She Loves Pablo I watched play before Been Obscene also pushed me in the direction of "definitely going".

Allthough the gig was supposed to start somewhen after 9 pm, it was a long, loooong wait before first band climbed the stage.

Husta - "Happy three friends from Croatia trying to riff & psych-out their riverside atmosphere.", as they say on their Reverbnation page started just before half past ten and  they kicked it off heavily from the very start. It was plainly visible Nino, Tomislav and Igor are good friends that have fun playing together and their well rehearsed  bravuras put them right next to any foreign band in the drone/sludge business but it seemed to me that the set-list could use some tuning as it was uneven, chaotic and vapid at times. Nevertheless, they make very good music and you could sample it here, on their Soundcloud profile.

After a short settling in and equipment check, She Loves Pablo started at quarter past 11...

... and I am glad to say they fulfilled all my expectations and then some.

The audience changed - surely quadrupled in number and proportion of women in the crowd skyrocketed - understandable as guys make music imbued with sex and energy.

Confident showmanship at its best; relaxed, in good spirits, fun and funny they played through fiery set-list of mostly new songs in front of a crowd that knew old ones by heart and danced, danced, danced. There was passion and enjoyment all around and their 45 minutes flied by too quickly.  At this time they could easily be the best, both music quality and entertainment-wise band Croatian demo/small scale scene has to offer. I feel enormously proud they got even better since the last time I listened to them and that their audience got bigger, more committed, more of something a band can rely on. You can still download their first album for free from bandcamp.

And right after their set, the crowd dispersed.

Three bands are often too much for an evening, but late hour was not favoring Concrete Sun's first live show in Croatia.

Not exactly my cup of tea, being too old-school for my taste, Concrete Sun gave its best to show us "how it should be done". Praised by critics they surely delivered for average listeners too. Styled appropriately, with whiff of professionalism around their act, they even came prepared carrying merch; T-shirts and Cds - process that often eludes Croatian band priority lists. You can listen to their music here, on Reverbnation, to get a taste of what we had last night.

El Stonero delivered as promised. I am pleased.

Krum Bums at Attack! 23Nov2011

Going to a punk gig the night before two-day business trip of course has its benefits, yet it also fills me with ominous sense of being behind on some concert reviews - so I'm up and on to rectify this immediately.

There was  Krum Bums concert at Attack! in Zagreb on Wednesday night, 23rd November 2011.

My most noticeable ailment being nosiness I came early to watch the crowd gather and musicians adjust and prepare. I found it lovely how there is always something cute to look at and interesting stuff to admire and also food for thought to tuck away for slow digestion later.

The task of being local support went to Passive Aggressive, fun and surprisingly well-sounding hardcore punk band who performed with new drummer - and I could have sworn that their new drummer is, in fact, Black Gust guitarist. It could be that I'm developing some weird recurring motif illness but it seems to me Black Gust have somehow inexplicably found a way to infiltrate my every punk-gig-post so far. In either way - Passive Aggressive were pretty good - their sound firm and assertive, frontman cute and confident and when they finished their set I could honestly say I could have listened to them more.

As for Krum Bums I was both honored and humbled by their act and I feel I should digress a bit to describe the situation: they seem like a big and important enough band, who gets good reviews and has enough (even new) material to be interesting to Zagreb audience yet Zagreb audience chose to sleep in on this November Wednesday. And that is sad and humbling because I almost felt ashamed with our low turnout and tepid reception - especially because Krum Bums kicked ass!!! It felt as if they were shaken by fact that there were around 40-ish people in the audience but after initial dragging of feet they played for 40 of us like they would for a thousand. And it felt good and their music sounded great and I enjoyed their act and a sense of professionalism it was fueled by.

And it is a really nice professionalism as you can see in this great video for song Gasoline from their new album Cut the Noose:

Also, you can check out this clip - for S.O.S. from American Streetpunk and Oi! (the movie):

Filigrain Mushrooms

For a walk

Morning came with the sun.

We went for a walk, my friend and I, and nature was sonorous and serene. Air smelled of dry grass and fallen leaves ruffled under our feet.

Windy day

Today it was substantially cooler than usual 35 degrees centigrade we got used to this month but I loved the change because I got new autumn shoes I wanted to take for a ride. I tried them on before Amsterdam and did not buy them then, but I kept thinking about them so I finally bought them when I got back. Tomorrow I'm going to Boris concert at Mocvara. I have been waiting for that since they first announced it months ago. I feel like... tingly all inside.

Mercury Rev at Tvornica

That was one wonderful concert last night at Tvornica in Zagreb. Mercury Rev were in high spirits and the crowd pleased to see them play. I danced and danced and danced and smiled and smiled and smiled. I was so tired and so distressed I can hardly remember when I felt so low and the performance was so beautiful it was giving me pleasure chills. I overdressed for the occassion and I wore shoes so high-heeled that I towered almost all women and many of men there and I was noticed. I wished I could dance and smile and drink 'till I go blind and forget all that ails me but as I am all grown-up now I didn't do that in the end. And then there was Snowflake in a hot world and then there was Senses on fire and then I almost felt as my old and hedonistic self and my faith that all will be well was restored. Going home, I took off my shoes and felt the road and stones and gravel beneath my feet as Zagreb slept and scent of cut grass covered every nook and cranny of my soul.

Clouds Brewing

My little vacation is at its end. Tomorrow morning we return to work and preschool. I had a wonderful time; playing, going places, cooking, knitting, eating well and celebrating.

Jambrisak spring

There is something utterly enchanting in the notion that there is fresh, lovely, consumable water coming out of the ground, incessantly, liter after liter. The spring on the photo is Jambrisakovo vrelo on Ponikve meadow. It is really quick pleasurable walk from the road and water is very cool.

Ponikve Panacea

It seems there is no downheartedness nature walk cannot heal. Weather was nice and warm and my friend and I walked through the woods followed by bird song and rustle of the leaves. We got as far as Sopot waterfall and enjoyed drinking fresh and cool water from two springs along the way. Going back up to Ponikve I found four leaf clover.

Stop and roll in the new green grass

New leaves have grown over night. Everything is blossoming. Grass looks so wonderfully delicious I cannot decide whether to roll in it or eat it. I love spring.