Tag Archives: Elektricni Orgazam

Flashlite #536

Zvonka Obajdin, Svemir

We have plenty of new surprised from the Yugo rock scene this time. We start off with Svemir from Zagreb, lead by Zvonka Obajdin. Then we go to Serbia and we check out the new collaboration between Eva Braun and Elektricni Orgazam. Also, from that scene, the old 80s attraction called S.T.R.A.H. is back with the new single. On the US scene, we check out the new stuff from The Dream Syndicate and Guided By Voices. We introduce a guitar slinger from Philadelphia Chris Forsyth.

STRAH – Mesec;
Svemir – Zadnja djevojka atomskog doba;
Eva Braun & Gile – Put za Lisabon;
Elektricni Orgazam – Zagreb;
Bevis Frond – Old Man Blank;
Lemonheads – Old Man Blank (Live in CLE);
Dils – It’s Not Worth It;
Chris Forsyth with Rosali – Dream Song;
Rosali – Rise to Fall;
Dream Syndicate – You Are My Friend;
Dream Syndicate – The Way In;
Guided By Voices – End It with Light;
Guided By Voices – They’re Not Witches;
Guided By Voices – As We Go Up We Go Down;
Sad Planets – Yesterday Girls;
Suicide – Cheree;
Sparrow Steeple – Your Mom’s Twin Sister’s Daughter’s Twisted;
STRAH – Deca Rade.

Drazen Vrdoljak 1951-2008

Drazen VrdoljakDrazen Vrdoljak wore the most recognizable moustache on Yugoslav TV, he had the strangest accent on the entire radio scene, but those are all just small funky things about him that don’t really matter at this point in time… The news comes to me that he had passed away recently at the age of 57, leaving a great legacy of rock journalism and rock enthusiasm that is rarely seen anywhere. He started off in the late sixties/early seventies by publishing eloquent and analytic music press texts raising a bar in that branch on the local scene. He moved on to television, but his most important influence lied in his close and friendly ties with musicians. Here is the list of five greatest Drazen’s contributions that made the Yugoslav rock scene the better place:

1) His participation at Buldozer’s 1975 LP Pljuni istini u oci. This LP was by far the most unexpected, the most outrageous LP recorded in Yugoslavia before the new wave. The band was greatly influenced by US avant-garde groups such as The Fugs or Mothers of Invention. Conceptually, it was designed as a tabloid newspaper and each song was one bizarre “article” in it. The LP also caused quite a stir with a controversial cover-art. Drazen helped coming up with the ideas for it.
2) Drazen organized and announced new wave concerts at the height of the Yugoslav new wave. Two greatest live albums ever recorded in Yugoslavia, Film’s Uzivo u Kulusicu and Elektricni Orgazam’s Braco i sestre open with his unforgettable announcements.
3) Drazen made country music cool back home in several ways, he wore publicly western outfits and cowboy boots in the middle of Zagreb, Croatia, he played the coolest country acts in his shows and encouraged formation of local country bands in Zagreb.
4) He helped Haustor record one the greatest new wave singles ever recorded in Yugoslavia Moja prva ljubav and
5) He interviewed Frank Zappa on Yugoslav television back in the early seventies as if he was a regular pop star.

Every local scene needs people like Drazen!