Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Location: Ljubljana / Lutkovno gledališče Ljubljana (Oder pod zvezdami) / Slovenia
Concert date: November 24, 2012
Attendance: 180
Ticket price: €10.00
Godi Bodi, the festival of contemporary singer-songwriter and ethno music, has been a fixture of Slovenia’s live scene for five years running. We’re used to getting it in spring, in the second third of April. This year, though, it got a twin little brother: an autumn edition. The lineup is a fair bit shorter, but no less sweet.
With its excellent acoustics, Oder pod zvezdami is tailor-made for shows where a purely organic-sounding backdrop takes the lead and the vocals sit at the center of delivering the music and poetry, with emotions free to pour out in full.
Rudi Bučar was first on stage, a little after eight in the evening. This guy has a huge vocal charisma that tears down and pries open every barrier on the way to the listeners’ hearts, and this year he released his third studio album, »Rudi Bučar & Istrabend«. It’s a logical continuation of its predecessors »Kapot« (2004) and »Kambiament« (2007). Even though a quartet of backing musicians handles the instruments next to Rudi on the new record, on this night he took the stage with just two helpers: Janez Dovč on accordion, who’s also a mainstay of the Celinka label and the Godi Bodi festival, and Goran Krmac on tuba.
Rudi is a cheeky little rascal, a true Istrian “nobleman” who talks to the roots of his Istrian forefathers so fiercely and convincingly that anyone taking in his confession has no trouble picturing a wrinkled land, furrowed by salt and the bora wind, yet noble: the “terra rossa”. With the carefree ease of the coast, the troubadour cut through most of the tracks from the new album. He opened the concert with (J)one dvi naranče (from the album »Kambiament«), and it was precisely this song, where he vividly warmed up his voice, that made a great jumping-off point for the whole gist of Bučar’s musical sermon. In the middle section he slid into a proper female falsetto, so you’d swear there was a guest female vocalist hiding behind the stage set. Bučar is a crafty interpreter. Deeply sensual, completely immersed. He can be mocking, even sharp-tongued, nonchalant when he gives in to his temperament, as befits his Mediterranean roots. You’ll struggle to find better metaphors than the ones offered by the new Wana je lbezn, Mama Piero me poca, or, at the end, the traditional folk medley Vstala Primorska and O, Bella Ciao! And in the very next moment he pours the character of the mood each song demands, soaked in Istrian melos and authentic Istrian dialect, into a caressing, peaceful landscape where his warm vocal tenderness really comes to the fore. That sensually vibrating sentiment of Rudi’s pays off fully in the delicately fragile Edina, as well as in the erogenous ear massage of the blues contour Še malo, both of which of course made the setlist.
The entertainer showed his sharp wit between songs too, keeping the crowd amused with anecdotes that drew plenty of laughs from the audience. A few playful jabs flew at Anika Horvat’s expense in particular, before the performance of Samo ti, which Rudi Bučar wrote for Anika and with which she won Slovenska popevka in 2009. He also spiced up the set by inviting guest Ksenija Benedetti (ex-Pleksus Solaris), better known as the head of Slovenian protocol, who sat down at the Nord keyboard for Noč uničuje and helped bring the song to life. It originally came about for the Rudi and the Cool Vibes project. Vivid, sparkling, and above all a performance that demands a big heart, the show was wrapped up with one more tender number. That was Naj traja, the song Rudi won Slovenska popevka with in 2011. For the occasion he invited Eva Hren on stage, and the duet delivered a palpable chemistry between two sensitive, contrasting voices that complemented each other completely. Let’s hope this kind of stage get-together eventually gives birth to a joint songwriting gem.
Eva Hren brought her backing band Sladcore, though without the guitarist. Marko Boh, the “sharp-tongued doctor” of the brilliant Nula Kelvina, sat at the keys, the all-round Blaž Grm took the drums, and Klemen Krajc “peeled off” the bass guitar and double bass. Adding spice to the arrangements with occasional solo bits were academic jazzman Igor Matkovič on trumpet and accordionist Janez Dovč.
Just like Rudi Bučar before her, Eva Hren filled most of the vibe coming off the stage with her vocal interpretation alone. Besides the wildly infectious color of her voice, with its sensual soul chops, it’s above all this singer’s incredible charisma that works, and with it she won over the hearts in the room in an instant.
Eva presented material from the records »SLO« (2009) and »Etnosoul« (2012), with the emphasis on the latter, which is also her current, this year’s release. With Eva Hren & Sladcore’s performance as part of the autumn edition of Godi Bodi, the album »Etnosoul« got its very first stage outing in Ljubljana. The traditional folk songs of the old Slovenian school, the ones scouts sing around the campfire, that our mums hum, and that get played to us regularly on radio stations across the dial, got a whole new artistic exposé in Sladcore’s makeover, and it’s something truly special, appealing and convincing. It’s a great interplay between the jazz crew on stage, who toss the ball of experimental solo antics back and forth, adding an element of unpredictability to the otherwise trivial primal melos of these songs. A new expressive quality, in other words.
So, a fun and dynamic show, where the musicians, with their new musical dimension on the bridge between the Slovenian tradition of folk melos and jazz “free-sailing”, fully won over the crowd. Right at the end of the concert, the already battle-tested and wildly effective combo of Eva Hren and Rudi Bučar on vocal duet delivered the “icing on the cake” for these feelings. Among most of the songs from the new record »Etnosoul«, Eva and company also slipped in numbers from the album »SLO«, where Lisička je prav zvita zver stood out in particular (a cheeky minimalist contrast between Eva’s voice and Klemen Krajc’s double bass accompaniment), followed by Po jezeru, Dekle je po vodo šlo (a duet with Rudi Bučar), the especially tender Mamica je kakor zarja and, in the closing crescendo, Oblaki so rdeči (again as a duet with Rudi Bučar).
And so the first autumn Godi Bodi festival came to a close. We hope it becomes an autumn staple of the live offering in the Slovenian capital! This festival helps bring singer-songwriters closer together, along with all kinds of experimental music that blends the colorful passion of world ethno music, jazz and blues, and above all draws its authentic, natural contrasts from the roots of Slovenian folk tradition. Distinctive, in a spirit of provocation and avant-garde shifts.
Setlist
RUDI BUČAR & ISTRABEND:
1. (J)one dvi naranče
2. Edina
3. Wana je lbezn
4. Draga
5. Mama Piero me toc
6. Noč uničuje
7. Trajna
8. Še malo
9. Dajte, dajte
10. Naj traja
11. Slon
12. Drugačna
13. Samo ti
—encore—
14. Vstala Primorska / O, Bella Ciao
Photo gallery
