Author: Sandi Sadar Šoba
Interview date: 09.02.2007
Saturday, seven in the evening. The weather decided to stay at a level of morbid gray, which the darkness that fell over our capital at least partly hides, so the three musketeers and a young lady set off from there toward Sežana. The reason for the trip away from the Ljubljana basin is a pretty good and well-founded one: Postojna’s Mary Rose have poured fresh creative fire into their engines and survived a break of more than ten years. Even better, their new second album Feniks came out last year. Before the gig at Sežana’s Piano bar, we made our way over to their table to check what the real pulse was. It immediately turned out that the guys aren’t just good musicians but also incredibly warm-hearted and totally up for an interview. The quick chat could get rolling, since the clock was already slowly pushing them toward the stage…
RockLine: Hey guys, welcome. You can hardly call yourselves rookies in this business, since more than ten years have passed since the record Rocks Off. What followed was an almost clinical death of the band, and now you’re back. The lineup is new. How does Mary Rose feel in the new millennium?
Eki: Right now I’m having fun playing, and the new lineup has poured new strength into the band. What can I say? The chemistry is great. The joy of making music is incredible and sincere, and fresh views and attitudes toward music only help and push us forward on the road ahead. In the past, back when we were only just figuring out what we wanted, in the days of the first record (Rocks Off, ed. note), we sang almost exclusively in English, which was total bullshit…
RockLine: In the past, back in the late heyday of Slovenian hair rock and bands like Šank Rock and Chateau, we know what the attitude toward rock in Slovenia was like. How does the crowd take Mary Rose today, and what’s your attitude toward it?
Eki: We honestly don’t pay too much attention to that, but the response from the crowd is mostly positive, which is very welcome. Especially when the only thing worth sticking it out for is a burning desire to play… A hunger to create. What we do, we do with love and from the heart. That’s what we really do in Mary Rose.
RockLine: We know what the success stories of your contemporaries, mentioned in the previous question, looked like. You, you could say, missed the perfect timing and the ticket on the success train by a hair. Does it bother you that your debut was unfairly overlooked?
Eki: Not at all. I don’t have that feeling. It’s about doing something you love. We were simply fed up. Times change. Not always for the better, either. OK… Not every gig is on a big stage these days, but it doesn’t matter. Today we’re in a little pub, but we wanted to play, because, like I said before, that’s what tips the scales in the end and matters most: that you play and enjoy it. Both on stage and in front of it. That’s why we struck a kind of compromise. We play quite a lot of songs. Some are for the crowd and their enjoyment, and some are for our own soul.
RockLine: Kind of a mixed-up commercial medley?
Eki: You could put it that way, yeah. Although… We still put a lot of emphasis on our own material, since Mary Rose are, after all, a living, honestly working thing, right?
RockLine: And you gave birth to a new record in that time, too. Feniks. A bird in whose fire the old burns away and something new sprouts from the ashes. Meaningful… What are your impressions?
Eki: Unlike in the old days, the work on this new project went very spontaneously and in a totally relaxed atmosphere. The results came by themselves and we’re happy with them. With the reception and everything, too. I think the public was also happy with the result of our work and effort.
RockLine: There’s quite a bit of freshness in the sound, but it feels like, in these times when real rock is getting rarer, it’s also a return to the roots…
Eki: Sure, you could say that. It’s a combination. Of the old and the new sound, which radiates energy, and that can probably be credited to this being the best Mary Rose lineup ever! I’m the only one left from the old lineup… The rest is fresh power and ideas, new people. What matters most is not crying over what was. Music is what matters most. In Mary Rose we share the passion for it, and at the same time we get along great. The sound itself represents what we feel most ourselves. Why would we change anything?
RockLine: Your arrival was a pretty big change, Žak. Why work with Mary Rose? Don’t Croatians have musicians like that?
Žak: Of course they do. That’s not the point. It’s about the uniqueness and dedication of Mary Rose. It’s a real pleasure to work with these guys…
RockLine: The record got good reviews. What’s the plan for the future?
Žak: I can say without thinking twice: constant growth. I really hope it won’t take another ten years or so until the next record. Maybe a DVD or something like that, but above all lots of good gigs, which are the best way to show people what Mary Rose really stand for. In short: action!
RockLine: I know the question is dreadfully worn out, but still: have you ever thought about breaking through beyond Slovenia’s borders?
Žak: Funnily enough, a lot of people in Rijeka actually know us. We even sold some of our records. About twenty copies, I think, even though the lyrics are in Slovenian. The vibe is what counts. As for bigger plans, we’ll see. Mary Rose can still do plenty. We’ll see!
RockLine: The stage is calling! Thanks a lot for the chat.
Žak: Thanks to you too, for the support, the real support. Thanks a lot and best wishes to all the Rockline readers!
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