Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Nčodnč
Label: Self-released
Release date: 2017
Rating: 4.5/5
Nčodnč are a band from Kočevje made up of four battle-hardened, seasoned music tomcats, true pillars of the Kočevje music scene, or to be even more precise, the godfathers of the Kočevje rock’n’roll underground! Nčodnč already put out their studio debut, »Izlet v neznano«, back in 2009 as a trio. It’s sung entirely in Slovenian, and at that time Nčodnč were rattling out punk. Five years ago they grew into a quartet, and their sound started getting harder and harder. Nčodnč showed this gradual metalization on the »Kočevje špila« compilations too, which came out between 2012 and 2016, since they contributed a new track to every single one of them. But only one of those found its way onto »Children of Tomorrow«: Downrise, from the 2016 compilation. Which simply means Nčodnč aren’t living in the past. »Children of Tomorrow« is about as authentic an imprint as you can get of the creative whirlwind that has swept up the band over the last two years.
»Children of Tomorrow« is an interesting, truly one-of-a-kind-sounding and unusual blend of thrash metal, HC and, of course, punk rock. It’s incredible how well these three genre elements are mixed, how brilliantly they coexist and, honestly, how tolerantly they talk to each other on this album. With Nčodnč it really works like this: half of the lineup, the rhythm section, is more punk, while the other half, meaning both guitars, leans more toward metal.
The album »Children of Tomorrow« is a first-rate caustic, blazingly furious shrapnel blast to the forehead of the clueless that leaves no survivors. It slays everything in front of it and struts around with unbelievably aggressive punch. It’s played the way a live show would be, in the studio, and that liveliness, that sonic authenticity, is captured extremely well on the recording. Damn well transferred onto it. The chemistry of all four elements that build the picture of this album’s music works superbly, and through that chemical coherence it’s not hard to sense the incredible camaraderie that binds this quartet together.
The riffs are fat and »thick«, preferably tuned lower, the bass line rattles and cuts through concrete without compromise, the snare is stiff and as furious as it gets, and Bito’s rumbling, guttural, unmistakable vocal is literally tailor-made for the sonic charisma and compositional aesthetic of this album, which boasts a pure-blooded string of infernal rage-fests rolling one after another at high to top speed. Nčodnč, who don’t hide for a second the filthy underground grime they adopted from their punk days, do clamp in elements of old-school American-style thrash metal, while the groove kinetics, combined with the lead phrases, evoke memories of good old Pantera (Untouchables, Master of Blood) and early Metallica (Bigger Than Life), while the track Downrise even carries a bit of that good old Sepultura sentimentality. And through it all Nčodnč do a damn good job of conjuring up a predatory groove moment, on which the whole album rides high and vibrant. The band also has no trouble flipping the rhythmic key within a given song, slipping in elaborate instrumental passages, and swinging toward phrasing modulations, and the choruses themselves are sharpened with a ravenous dose of musicality. The most accomplished and detailed composition, one that pretty much merges everything I just described into an excellent conglomerate, would be, by this author’s pick, the track Humanoid (Time To Die), but with that I’m immediately doing an injustice to the other tracks. As much as Nčodnč come across as »thrown together in one take« when you listen, they’re actually not that at all. The songs have a whole load of details, and you can feel that the band spent a long time arranging them with dedication until they reached their final form, and that before this they played all the ideas and compositions together a ton and tested how they work in the real world! There’s no hide-and-seek among the band members, the coherence of the tracks is outstanding, and that’s just further proof of the incredible harmony and camaraderie in this quartet.
Roberto Bulešič, otherwise the drummer of the Istrian punkers Tito’s Bojs, also helped the band as producer and guide. Anyone who knows that band knows what kind of stuff Robi is made of. Given the heart and honesty that Bito, Rupa, Gagi and Seba follow so flintily on this album, they couldn’t have gotten a better collaborator, really a fifth member, than Robi. Robi did a superb job. It’s interesting that the Kočevje region is traditionally tied to its Croatian hinterland (and vice versa), and that connections with Croatian bands are essentially vital for the survival and development of the local rock’n’roll scene around Kočevje, which at the same time breathes a unique stamp into Kočevje bands, regardless of genre.
Nčdonč are anything but what their band name suggests. There’s a whole lot of tangible substance here, and even the Iron Chancellor himself and the late Lemmy Kilmister would have raised their eyebrows high at such a rock’n’roll attitude. The lyrics are incredibly sparkling and bitterly realistic, and with their message they radiate real rebellious anger, hold up a mirror to the general social and systemic decay, and of course bitterly herald the apocalyptic arrival of a new generation of »children of tomorrow«. After all, the »children of yesterday« screwed everything up, and it’s only right that someone puts an irreversible end to all human absurdities!
If any Slovenian rock and metal band has laid it all bare on their album in the past year, it’s first and foremost Nčodnč, who did their job with flying colors. »Children of Tomorrow« grabs you right away, and it hooks you right away. It’s such an authentic and honest record. At the same time, what makes it interesting and special is that it’s hugely varied in the structure of its compositions, and each of them has a pile of details that grow on the listener with every subsequent listen. So, simply put: the more you listen to this album, the more you love it. In the end you decide you absolutely have to catch Nčodnč live on stage as soon as possible! There’s no need to stress that with »Children of Tomorrow« Nčodnč have achieved what matters most in any band’s artistry. They’ve presented themselves as an entity with a homegrown musical profile that sounds unique and one of a kind. A job done with great virtue, and one of the most convincing albums on the Slovenian underground scene this year. I hope it gets a proper presentation on concert stages, because that’s the least these big-hearted guys deserve!
Nčodnč – Downrise (official video):
Lineup
Rupa – guitar
Bito – vocals, guitar
Seba – bass guitar
Gagi – drums
Production
Roberto Bulešić
Track list
1. Guillotine (05:12)
2. Ratking (03:40)
3. Big Bad Wolf (04:55)
4. Children Of Tomorrow (04:26)
5. Downrise (03:01)
6. Humanoid (Time To Die) (03:29)
7. Bigger Than Life (04:40)
8. Pray For Devil (03:53)
9. Untouchables (04:33)
10. Master Of Blood (05:20)
