Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: 2B
Label: Nika Records
Released: 2017
Running time: 55:07
Rating: 4/5
If I’m counting right, »Koromandija« is the third studio album from the White Carniola trio 2B, and it lands two years after its predecessor “B2”. In that time the band has moved under the Nika Records roof, and their musical vision is still all about radio-friendly music, where rock guitars shake hands with the lightness and melodic catchiness of urban pop culture.
With the new record, the Mihelič brothers’ trio prove they’ve grown even more mature in their ideas and songwriting. Compared to what the solid, well-crafted predecessor »B2« had to offer, they now slot even more proudly into the middle ground of Slovenian mainstream music, the kind that’s supposed to rule the airwaves and frequencies. The band has once again put together a nice batch of songs for the new album. There are a full thirteen of them, with the last one, Privid, as a bonus.
The band is devoted to the pursuit of musical catchiness. In fact, they subordinate every creative move of their artistry to it, and on the new album the trio go at it even more deeply, with more dedication and commitment. Hence a result that boasts even more overall arrangement tightness and songwriting flair in how the verse-chorus pairings play out across songs that are mostly optimistic, though they’re occasionally gripped by a feeling of melancholy. »Koromandija« radiates the real geographic imprint of an album born in Bela Krajina. The lyrics touch on cherishing traditional values. There’s a sense of homeliness and warmth, plus a pile of stories about love of one kind or another between two people… In the band’s artistic maturing phase, hanging out with Gal Gjurin and the members of Čedahuči was a big help. Drawing on the fresh experience they gained, the band really did take a nice step forward, upgrading their artistry and defining a sound and style of their own. The result of all that is the album »Koromandija«.
Alongside all the pop catchiness and the rock “sting” of the guitars in the production, the sound picture also carries a lovely helping of organic warmth, brought into the album’s sonics by the low tones of naturally pulsing bass lines. The opener Viniško nebo already underlines the album’s indie rock label. The band also makes extremely skilful use of harmonic vocal melodies, with all three brothers weaving together triple vocal layers at once. Gašper Mihelič’s vocal approach has also grown noticeably more mature, more confident and even more convincing over the last two years, compared to “B2”. Instruments and vocals are contrasted with great skill, and as a result the sound picture of the songs and the album is better used and conscientiously filled out.
On »Koromadija« you’ll find a nice bundle of candidates for heavy radio rotation, which throws the doors wide open for the band to reach its target audience and put its name on the list of the hottest, youngest, most talented “new wave” bands in Slovenian mainstream. There’s no point singling out highlights, because all thirteen tracks stand side by side at the same quality level. There are no major artistic gaps between them, which makes it all the more worthwhile that the band managed to keep that quality consistent across every song. Over a total running time of a good 55 minutes, it doesn’t waver, and in terms of quality it doesn’t buckle for even a moment. So the album has a clearly shaped character and tangible artistic focus, which the trio of brothers follow in tune, with effective working chemistry and just the right working environment between them. That kind of environment is a prerequisite for real creative bonds to develop.
An easygoing, upbeat, positive-minded album, seasoned with a pleasantly mild but effective pinch of melancholic longing. Short, punchy, relaxed songwriting moves. Sometimes the axiom “Less is more” is much harder to achieve than you’d think. Especially when you’re after concise punch that’s meant to grab the listener instantly, that is, on the first listen, “straight off the bat”. And 2B have this rare songwriting virtue and talent. As said. A new, tightly tuned step on their own upward evolution, and an extremely nice, well-packaged album that the band will proudly present at upcoming concerts. Compared to their predecessor, 2B sound even more confident here, and even more incisive.
Lineup
Primož Mihelič – drums, keyboards, bass guitar, electric guitar, programming, backing vocals
Gašper Mihelič – vocals, acoustic guitar, backing vocals
Jernej Mihelič – bass guitar, backing vocals
Production
Zmago Šmon (except the track Privid – Primož Mihelič)
Tracklist
- Viniško nebo
- Daj srce
- Antidot
- Nasvet
- Drama
- Nazaj
- V strugi
- Midva sva
- Don Kihot
- Mraz
- Bonaca
- Sonce
- Privid (bonus track)
