Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Drevored
Label: Franklin Republic Records
Release: 2010
Length: 43:25
Rating: 3.5/5
Some thirty-odd years after forming, Drevored are finally putting out their studio debut. Their approach easily fills the hole gaping in the mainstream of the Slovenian rock scene. Drevored’s vibe is, from head to toe, compatible with the square footage of Slovenia’s territorial integrity. In other words, they’re aiming first and foremost at the musical taste of Slovenes. Abroad, there’s no bread for them! It’s that radio-friendly “little night music” that plays it safe, doesn’t want to offend anyone, is ready to please in general, especially the majority of Slovenian listeners who today can hardly find the time to dig “under the skin” into the narrower or wider artistic reach of individual acts, not just from the domestic scene but especially from the foreign one. Add verses packed into Slovenian lyrics with a touch of sad melancholy, a look of suffering staring off into the distance (the kind that lacks only a tear rolling down the cheek), and the whole thing goes down that much easier and is that much easier to relate to. A mirror of the general mood of the Slovenian character? Not so far off.
Drevored are seasoned musicians, grown men who’ve been through a lot and survived it. Once you get to that age, you’re no longer happy with a gig fee equal to the equivalent of a bottle of beer, and you don’t treat your own ears to the sound of low-budget garage production either. You get pickier, you set a higher price, you want refinement and a bit more elegance, you can even turn into a proper stylistic dictator demanding the best in your perfectionism. So the guys are long past being furiously screaming teenage punks, and when the situation forces them to pick from the possible musical solutions, they’d rather flirt with the closing contour of bluesy jazz finesse (Zunaj je zima) than embarrass themselves by wasting the potency a noisier, more direct rock approach demands.
Their easy-to-love approach admittedly comes across as generally friendly and harmless. At moments it’s mildly shallow in its trivial design and its hunt for the “Bambi effect”. The latter occasionally applies to the messages of the lyrics. The metaphorical expressive power of the lyrics is, compared to the Slovenian masters of the craft (especially from the singer-songwriter sphere), light-years away this time (see the avalanche of pathos in the chorus of Fant južnih krajev). What gives the whole thing the one important quality that withstands and deflects every attempt by music critics at nitpicking is the phenomenal production. When Vlado Meller steps in as the mixer, the man who shaped the sound of acts like Andrea Bocelli, Prince, Beyonce, Celine Dion, Shakira, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Miles Davis, Frank Sinatra, Julio Iglesias, Metallica and Duran Duran, among others, the Drevored story takes on a whole different dimension.
The production especially nails the guitar sound. Contrasts are clear, dynamics are up front. The building blocks, with the vocal placed in the center, coexist in balance and make excellent use of the spectrum of the sonic picture, which among Slovenian bands is still more the exception than the rule. As far as production goes, “Dekade” is certainly a new high-water mark for the Slovenian rock scene. The bass line, lively and active, adds a good bit to most of the simply built guitar phrases and is an important part of the charm of airing out the melody. Solid rhythms rock the listener into pleasant motion with a melos that could serve as the backdrop to any situation we move through in our daily lives. The songs carry the unmistakable Drevored stamp from head to toe. It would be interesting to compare their expressive power across the years the songs were written. All the songs are far older than the release year printed on the album. Over the years they grew richer in message and bigger in arrangement. Optimally, I’d say. Of course, we’re talking about the optimum of Drevored’s reach. Otherwise, the production masterfully exploits the natural sound of the guitars, which gladly make use of varying doses of reverb, stereo chorus, sustain and the like. These guitar moves are short, light and minimal. But that’s exactly where their strength lies. With minimalism they achieve the required effect. Concise and compact, all of the songs. Poletna noč is the ideal example, where this payoff is capitalized on perfectly. A song dressed head to toe in optimal fashion and ready for rotation on the radio waves.
As far as production goes, “Dekade” is certainly a new high-water mark for the Slovenian rock scene. The minimalism of short, simple yet concise moves, with melodically chiseled lead motifs, has found just the right address in “Dekade”. Middle-of-the-road pop rock will especially make happy the Slovenian middle-class moms and dads, who’ll gladly spin this album on the afternoon drive home, wrung out from the daily grind of work, using it to make the time pass while waiting in the sheet-metal queues on Ljubljana’s main thoroughfares.
Easygoing guitar pop: predictable, singable, simple, relaxed-sounding, close to the average Slovenian’s taste. Compositionally there are no great standouts, but it’s packaged in the studio with the required elegance and sonic splendor that stands out on Slovenian soil. The average consumer gets far more out of “Dekade” than you hear at “first listen”. And with “Dekade”, Drevored can throw the door wide open onto the field of Slovenian guitar pop rock “mainstream”. They’re fit for rotation on a radio station with more musical salt in its head than, say, Val 202. The only question is what the guys in the band enjoy most and how far they intend to push with this approach. In any case, highly commendable.
Lineup
Dušan Prosinečki – vocals, guitar
Tomaž Zorko – guitar, backing vocals
Tomaž Repinc – bass guitar
Alen Tibiljaš – drums, percussion
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Jani Hace – bass guitar (all tracks)
Janez Križaj – synthesizers, percussion, pre-production
Davor Klarič- track no. 10
Robi Pikl – tracks no. 7 and 10
Marjan Turk – track no. 3
Tomaž Maras – track no. 1
Production
Drevored
Tracklist
1. Balkanska dežela
2. Ko sem na dnu
3. Odhajal sem
4. Daleč od ponorelega sveta
5. To bila bi ljubezenska pesem
6. Zapri oči
7. Poletna noč
8. Potepuhi
9. Fant južnih krajev
10. Zunaj je zima
11. Tvoje mesto spi
