Label: Nika Records
Release date: 4/28/2023
Production: Metalsteel
Album length: 36 min.
Genre: Heavy Metal
Rating: 8.5/10
English version:
Slovenian classic metal champions Metalsteel have decided to pay tribute to some of most essential metal bands from Slovenia with new cover album Spomenik (Monument). It consists of 8 covers and one original song. Apparently this was planned to be an EP with four cover songs but the band later opted for a full length, adding four more covers and an original. As it is a short release I will simply go song by song.
It was fun guessing which four songs were planned for original release as the band has never revealed this piece of info in the interviews I have read.
I will start with four songs I believe were originally planned:
- Uniformiranci (People in Uniform – meaning both uniformed clothes and uniformed minds) by Slovenian metal godfathers Pomaranča (Orange, named after classic novel A Clockwork Orange). Combination of more melodic approach of guest vocalist Aleš Pelhan and screaming style of Metalsteel singer Beny works extremely well in this cover of otherwise pretty boring (aside from meaningful lyrics) original song. Metalsteel cut the running time by more than minute and rightfully so. Notable appearance of original Pomaranča keyboard player Tomaž Žontar.
- Na noge (Stand Up) by YUNK (too complicated to translate this abbreviation, sorry). One of two personal favorites of this album. Original of neoclassical shredders YUNK was a warcry of my youth and this modernized version just screams rebellion. It is played with urgency that makes you wanna drink 10 beers and burn the first car you see on the street. Excellent performance of guest vocalist Sergej Škofljanec (ex Requiem) and tasteful touches of double bass drumming in strategic places just bring this one to another level. Masterful!
- Action! by Mary Rose. This one comes from album Rocks Off, a milestone of early 90’s Slovenian metal scene. It’s pretty close to the original with guest appearance of original Mary Rose singer Frenk Tominšek.
- Road Warriors by thrashers Sarcasm. This one just kills the original on every level. Metalsteel slowed it down a notch and altered the drum pattern and heaviness is doubled because of modern production. Elite bass player (last band on the long list of bands he was in was U.D.O.) Tilen Hudrap provides raw and rough vocals which work surprisingly well, Beny does his classic style with ease. Great cover!
Those songs above suit the idea to cover milestones of Slovenian metal music in 80’s and 90’s of past century.
Probably added later were
- Manijak (Maniac) by glamsters Šank Rock (Bar Rock basically). Quite faithful cover of probably the heaviest Šank Rock songs with great vocal performance by Matic Nareks of rockers San Di Ego.
- Prepozno je (Too Late) by Divji Kojoti (Wild Coyotes). Original song from late 90’s bears a special place in my heart as it was a guilty pleasure little hit song of mine with hilarious video starring Slovenian versions of Axl and Slash. Cover is metalized in true Metalsteel fashion and Beny sings infantile lyrics with such conviction it’s almost unbelievable. Thumbs up!!!
- Križarji (Crusaders) by hard rockers Requiem. Classic early Maiden galloping style of original is well preserved in this cover. Interesting choice of guest vocalist in Aleksandra Josić of pop rockers King Foo (bassist Matej side project) which I am afraid doesn’t work so well. Not because Aleksandra is a bad singer, quite contrary, but her rendition of lyrics lacks passion of original somehow.
- Moram naprej (I need to go on) by M.A.S.H. (no need to translate this one, right?) which was predecessor of bands YUNK and Mary Rose and did not go beyond a demo tape, where this cut is coming from. This is classic glam metal banger with thoughtful “what to do now” lyrics. Jan Leščanec from SkyEye destroys and demolishes this one with his Bruce Dickinson vocal style and deadly screams. My second personal favorite.
At the end we find the only original song Spomenik (Monument) with a massive 80’s metal riff and lyrics about how above mentioned bands fought the system behind the Iron curtain.
This album is a living proof of how small and limited Slovenian HM scene was and still is. Majority of guest performers are or were in the bands covered here but covering other bands’ songs or even their own. But, as they say, small is beautiful, right?
The sound on the album is massive, tight and kicks directly into your brain. Heaviness of all songs is brought two levels up due to flawless production, most notable on Road Warriors and Moram naprej. Performances of all 4 members are impeccable with tons of energy.
As mentioned my favorites are Na noge and Moram naprej but all of the songs are in constant rotation in my office and in my car. Well done and maybe another one in 2035?
Author: Igorac
Tracklist:
1. Uniformiraci (feat. Aleš Pelhan & Tomaž Žontar)
2. Na noge! (feat. Sergej Škofljanec & Davor Klarić)
3. Action (feat. Franc Tominšek & Peter Dimnik)
4. Manijak (feat. Matic Nareks)
5. Prepozno je
6. Križarji (feat. Aleksandra Josić)
7. Road warriors (feat. Tilen Hudrap)
8. Moram naprej (feat. Jan Leščanec & Mark Lemer)
9. Spomenik
Line up:
Daša Trampuš – bobni
Benjamin Kic – vokal, kitara
Matej Sušnik – bas kitara
Rok Tomšič – kitara
Special guests:
Sergej Škofljanec (ex Requiem, ex San Di Ego), Tomaž Žontar (ex Pomaranča), Tilen Hudrap (ex U.D.O., ex Vicious Rumors, ex Pestilence), Aleš Pelhan (Pelhan Band), Davor Klarić (ex Šank Rock, Mi2), Aleksandra Josić (King Foo), Mark Lemer (ex Junaki nočne kronike), Jan Leščanec (SkyEye), Peter Dimnik (Avven, Shadow Universe), Franc Tominšek (ex Mary Rose), Matic Nareks (San Di Ego).
Slovenian version:
Slovenian classic metal champions Metalsteel have decided to pay tribute to some of Slovenia’s most important metal bands with a new cover album, fittingly titled Spomenik. It’s made up of 8 covers and one original song. The original plan was an EP with four covers, but the band later went for a full album, adding four more covers and an original. Since it’s a short record, I’ll simply go song by song.
It was fun trying to guess which four songs were planned for the original release, since the band never revealed that detail in any of the interviews I’ve read.
I’ll start with the four songs I believe were planned originally:
1. Uniformiranci by Slovenian metal godfathers Pomaranča. The mix of guest vocalist Aleš Pelhan’s more melodic approach and the screaming style of Beny, Metalsteel’s singer, works extremely well in this cover of a pretty boring original (lyrics aside, which have real meaning). Metalsteel trimmed the running time by more than a minute, and rightly so. Worth a mention: the appearance of Pomaranča’s original keyboard player Tomaž Žontar.
2. Na noge (YUNK). One of my two personal favorites on this album. The original by neoclassical shredders YUNK was a battle cry of my youth, and this updated version just screams rebellion. It’s played with an urgency that makes you want to down 10 beers and torch the first car you see on the street. Excellent performance from guest vocalist Sergej Škofljanec (ex Requiem), and tasteful touches of double bass drumming in all the right places take it up another level. Masterful!
3. Action! (Mary Rose). This one comes from the album Rocks Off, a milestone of the Slovenian metal scene of the early 90s. It sticks pretty close to the original, with a guest spot from Mary Rose’s first singer Frenk Tominšek.
4. Road Warriors by homegrown thrashers Sarcasm. This one simply kills the original on every level. Metalsteel slowed it down a notch and changed up the rhythm, and the punch is doubled thanks to the modern production. Elite bassist Tilen Hudrap (the last band on his long list of bands is U.D.O.) delivers raw, rough vocals that work surprisingly well, while Beny effortlessly sings in his classic style. Great cover!
The songs above fit the idea of covering the milestones of Slovenian metal music from the 80s and 90s of the last century.
The following songs were probably added later:
1. Manijak by glamsters Šank Rock. A pretty faithful cover of probably the heaviest Šank Rock song, with a great vocal performance from Matic Nareks of rockers San Di Ego.
2. Prepozno je by Divji Kojoti. The original from the late 90s has a special place in my heart, since it was my little private hit, complete with a goofy video featuring the Slovenian versions of Axl and Slash. The cover is metalized in true Metalsteel style, and Beny sings the infantile lyrics with such conviction it’s almost unbelievable. Legendary!!!
3. Križarji by hard rockers Requiem. This cover keeps the classic galloping style of the original well preserved, in the vein of early Maiden. The choice of guest vocalist Aleksandra Josić of pop rockers King Foo (a side project of bassist Matej) is interesting, but I’m afraid it doesn’t work all that well. Not because Aleksandra is a bad singer, quite the opposite, it’s just that her interpretation of the lyrics somehow lacks the passion of the original.
4. Moram naprej (M.A.S.H.) This band was the predecessor of YUNK and Mary Rose and never got beyond demo recordings, which is where this track comes from. It’s a classic glam metal “banger” with “so what now?” lyrics. Jan Leščanec of SkyEye tears it apart with a Bruce Dickinson-style delivery and deadly screams. My second personal favorite.
At the end we find the only original song, Spomenik, with a massive 80s-style metal riff and lyrics about how the bands mentioned above fought the system behind the Iron Curtain.
This album is living proof of how small and limited the Slovenian HM scene was, and still is. Most of the guest performers are or were in the bands covered here, yet they’re covering other bands’ songs or even their own. But, as they say, small is beautiful, right?
The sound on the album is massive, tight, and kicks straight into your brain. Thanks to the flawless production, every track is at least two notches heavier, most noticeably on Road Warriors and Moram naprej. The performances of all 4 members are impeccable and full of energy.
Like I said, my favorites are Na noge and Moram naprej, but all the songs are on constant rotation in my office and in my car. Bravo Daša and the gang!
Author: Igorac
Tracklist:
1. Uniformiraci (feat. Aleš Pelhan & Tomaž Žontar)
2. Na noge! (feat. Sergej Škofljanec & Davor Klarić)
3. Action (feat. Franc Tominšek & Peter Dimnik)
4. Manijak (feat. Matic Nareks)
5. Prepozno je
6. Križarji (feat. Aleksandra Josić)
7. Road warriors (feat. Tilen Hudrap)
8. Moram naprej (feat. Jan Leščanec & Mark Lemer)
9. Spomenik
Line-up:
Daša Trampuš – drums
Benjamin Kic – vocals, guitar
Matej Sušnik – bass guitar
Rok Tomšič – guitar
Special guests on Spomenik:
Sergej Škofljanec (ex Requiem, ex San Di Ego), Tomaž Žontar (ex Pomaranča), Tilen Hudrap (ex U.D.O., ex Vicious Rumors, ex Pestilence), Aleš Pelhan (Pelhan Band), Davor Klarić (ex Šank Rock, Mi2), Aleksandra Josić (King Foo), Mark Lemer (ex Junaki nočne kronike), Jan Leščanec (SkyEye), Peter Dimnik (Avven, Shadow Universe), Franc Tominšek (ex Mary Rose), Matic Nareks (San Di Ego).
Dober izbor pesmi. Predvsem Junaki in M.A.S.H so skriti biser osemdesetih. Res skriti. Zanimivo, Moram Naprej sem takrat enkrat samkrat slišal na radiu, verjetno na Val202 ali pa na RGL, potem pa nikoli več. Dolgo sem iskal posnetek na Youtubu in nazadnje obupal, pa vidim, da ga je pred dvema letoma vendarle nekdo objavil. Izjemen komad, če se prav spomnim, so z njim M.A.S.H. nastopili na Pop Delavnici ali nekem podobnem tekmovanju. Komad je svetlobna leta pred denimo Osmim Putnikom, ki je bil takrat precej uspešen v Jugi.
Na Noge je pa itak remek delo, mislim na celoten album, ne samo na naslovni komad. Noro, da smo v osemdesetih imeli svojega Yngwie-ja, pravi neoklasičistični metal band in to v času, ko so mojstri z Berkleeja (Moore, Friedman, Taffola, Howe, etc) še mastrubirali shreddanje na neskončno dolgočasnih instrumentalnih albumih. Ampak seveda so bili Junaki za jugo in slo sceno čisto preveč resni glasbeniki, tu sta se pač od nekdaj cenila predvsem zajebancija in kvaziintelektualizem. Žal pa so se YUNKi, podobno kot Yngwie, kmalu izpeli in že drugi album ni uspel doseči visoke letvice prvenca, tretji pa, hm …
Sicer sem nad izborom coverjev navdušen, izvedba pa me ni preveč navdušila, še manj pokajoča produkcija. Imam rad originale, s slabo produkcijo vred, tudi ta je del komada in njegove duše.
“Na noge!” mam jaz še vinil 😀 – se morm mal pohvalt.
Drugač se pa ne spomnim, da bi kak SLO metalski bend pripravil v preteklosti podoben kompilacijski album ‘influenc’ 😀 oziroma kompilacijo poklona bendom, ki so vplivali na artistično oblikovanje glasbenikov v določeni skupini in s tem na sam slog skupine.
Recimo, vem da je Polona Kasal pred leti objavila album priredb s komadi Tomaža Pengova v odlični aranžerski preobleki, ampak to je komplet druga žanrska sfera nima veze z metalom…. V tem oziru so Metalsteel postavil končno tudi pri nas nek nov standard, ki laufa v tujini na polno že kup dekad.
“Ampak seveda so bili Junaki za jugo in slo sceno čisto preveč resni glasbeniki, tu sta se pač od nekdaj cenila predvsem zajebancija in kvaziintelektualizem” – bolj se ne bi mogel strinjat. Bom piker: ‘zajebancija’ – to se je pakiralo že v časih Juge pri nas pod ‘liberalizem’, da ima vsak svobodo ustvarjanja in snemanja muske, tud tak ki pozna tri tone (od tod se je bohotil punk – drugač nimam nič proti alter rocku), seveda pa papir/radijski prispevki prenese(jo) vse in če imaš prave ljudi na pravih položajih (tudi političnih), ki obvladujejo propagandne vzvode, se polagoma potem vzgoji ‘one track mind’ generacija. Ta nekako ‘programirano’ meni da je le alter-rock tisto pravo (govorim za Slovenijo).To podpirajo večkrat ‘kvazi-intelektualni’ članki o določenem izvajalcu – polni filozofske ‘diareje’, ki ni razumljiva niti avtorju več. Protežirajo pa le eno žanrsko špuro. Človek ima kdaj občutek da v Sloveniji velja, da se je vse začelo in končalo z Bobom Dylanom, R.E.M, Lou Reedom, …
Uglavnem ‘drotanje’ je pri nas postavljeno zelo visoko, previsoko – skozi leta. Nič proti – absolutno nič. Vse je to okej. Samo druge žanrske sfere so ostale zanemarjene in ‘zakrite’. Tko da se šele sedaj nekako osredotočajo generacije tudi na žanra hard rock in heavy metal, ki imata prav tako dolgo kilometrino, zastopana pa sta žanra z vrhunskimi glasbeniki, ki so, kot si povedal, bili odločno pred časom, s potencialom, da v kolikor bi bili rojeni v VB, ZDA, Nemčiji, bi si v osemdesetih zgradili lahko status glasbenih ikon. Mare Lebar definitivno sodi v ta rang. 😀
Sicer pa je vedno bolje karkoli, kjer se sliši distorzirano kiraro, kot harmonike…. Tako da vsak šteje. Punker al pa metalc! To leti na žalostni fakt, da Slovenci ne bomo nikol rockerska nacija.
Se pa zadeve polagoma balansirajo. Film in knjiga Železne stopinje, ponatis Mary Rose albuma “Rocks Off”, upajmo da sledi temu še kak podoben ponatis. Ne dolgo tega so ponatisnili opus zasedbe September (čeprav to nima veze z metalom)… mogoče bomo na Slovenskem dočakali tudi recimo ponatis YUNK! albumov, mogoče kdaj tudi kakšnih Šank Rock,… 😀
Kar se tiče dostopa do medijev – srce mi je zaigralo, ko sem ugotovil, da je na RTVSLO nova glasbena oddaja 33/45, s takole super retro naslovom. Pa sem jo pred nekaj dnevi prvič ujel, mogoče sem 15 minut zamudil, vžgem in kot bi padel v Radio Študent, Igor Vidmar vstal od mrtvih in pametuje 100 na uro, o tem, kako smo nazadovali glede velikih koncertov, kot je rekel na Štadionih, da ni več tako super, kot je bilo v devetdesetih. Res je sicer, da nam manjka velikih koncertov, ampak nikakor pa se ne spomnim, da bi jih bilo v devetdesetih prav veliko. Spomnim se Joe Cockerja, pa Kelly Family in Metallice (mimogrede – jih nisem šel gledat, ker so mi v Load/Reload fazi bili popolnoma mimo). Pa festival v Izoli in to je to. Je pa res, da je Metalliico pripeljal prav Vidmar, in se mu zato dozdeva, da se je takrat veliko dogajalo.
Sicer pa sem res padel v retro leta – jutri se odpravljam na Dunaj na najbrž najbolj nepričakovan koncert v desetletjih – Atomic Rooster 🙂
No to je to kar sem zgoraj opisal. Eni in isti obrazi v fokusu najbolj agresivnega ‘propagandnega smetišča’.
Respektiram Darkota, da ne bo pomote, hvaležen sem mu za Living Colour 1994 v Hali Tivoli, sem pa jaz devetdeseta preživel pretežno ob jazz glasbi, zato sem se smukal pretežno na relaciji Cankarjev dom – Križanke
A bi bilo dobro zadeve uravnotežit. Recimo Da imaš dva različna voditelja, enkrat vodi oddajo en, drugič drug. Prvič je zadeva bolj alter šaltersko obarvana, plus ‘žilorezje’ kantavtorjev dodaš (s strani Slovencev od nekdaj oboževanih Dylana, Cavea, Lou Reeda,…), naslednjič pa hard rock, metal in progmetal. Al pa nardiš dve ločene oddaje. Zadeve morajo biti nekak v ravnotežju. Ker sicer bodo otroc novih generacij mislil da so v Sloveniji – zdej bom karikiral – obstajal od nekdaj samo Pankrti in da je bil nekoč nek kantavtor po imenu Pero Lovšin, ker ostalo je itak harmonika, pa turbo folk z Balkana (tuc-tuc).
A Atomic rooster še igrajo? In to kar brez Vincenta Cranea? Huh.. to je tko kot bi reaktiviral Budgie brez Burkea Shelleya recimo 😀 Uglavnem respect 😀
Kar se pa koncertov tiče – ta velikih. Se jaz niti ne sekiram. Navadil sem se potovanja v tujino. Pri nas obvladujejo ‘mali bogovi’ stvari – tisti, ki oddajajo prizorišča in organizatorji komaj pridejo čez z nulo (ob tem da koncert razprodajo). To je po moje ta glavn razlog, ki je uničil koncertno sceno – govorim o ‘large scale eventih’ v Sloveniji. Požrešnost s strani tistih, ki oddajajo dvorane. V prvi vrsti so to Arena Stožice, Hala Tivoli, Križanke. Po moje dobiš za isti denar v Zagrebu Hipodrom pa Maksimir skupaj. Karikiram. Plus da je Arena Zagreb user friendly – od parkiranja dalje, do prodaje pijač.
Recimo neznosna jew goljufija v Areni Stožice z zelenimi žetoni. Povsod na zahodu dobiš potem ko kupiš pivo, pač žeton in ko ga vrneš in ne naročiš novega piva, dobiš nazaj ‘pfand’ – ponavad je bilo to 1 euro. Tu v Areni Stožice pa ne. Ne moreš vrnit žetona, lahko pa si ga nekam ‘okačiš’ – tako malo, za spomin. Tako da bi bilo bolj okusno, da tiste zelene žetone čimprej pretopijo v kaj bolj koristnega. Goljufivci.