Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Location: Ljubljana / Kavarna Slamič / Slovenia
Concert date: April 3, 2015
Attendance: 80
Ticket price: €15.00
This time, Slovenian art rock veterans Avtomobili steered their eternal rock’n’roll ride into the intimate little cabaret room in the middle of Kavarna Slamič. Kersnikova 1, Ljubljana! The lovely little stage, lit only by soft tabletop candles, was slow to fill up. Even a few moments before showtime, just past eight in the evening, the room was noticeably empty. That was probably down to the start of the Easter holidays, plus the »dropout« of students who bolted for the weekend to their home turf, far away from euphoric Ljubljana. But as the evening went on, the tables did fill up, and the art rock heavyweights got an exemplary welcome once again.
As expected, the band played the classic twenty-three songs, including tracks from the current album »Nova pomlad« (2012), which usually sit at the start of the show and in the obligatory encore, with Netopir in between, where David Morgan shone once again with a drum solo in the extended outro. As always, the band radiated serenity and good vibes. Bushy switched between his Telecaster and Stratocaster several times that night, which is rare, and a few songs, thanks to his constant sonic experimentation and his urge to try out ever new improvisational bits, took on a whole new dimension. The show was split into two parts with a twenty-minute break in the middle, and in the first part the revamped version of the legendary Prljavi jezik especially »set things on fire«, even picking up a veil of jazz and funk. Ljubezen ne stanuje tu was played in a radio edit, meaning a shortened version.
The band is exceptionally seasoned, and the gig went exactly like that. Superbly tight, the band members know every detail and every finesse, there’s no hide-and-seek between them – they read each other perfectly and communicate effortlessly. The chemistry just works. Avtomobili function as an impenetrable, unified musical body of five excellent musicians. And they keep on maturing like good old wine. Rust won’t stick to them anytime soon, and they still stay evergreen. Calm and relaxed, yet, as always thanks to the great musical eclecticism of the band’s repertoire, hypnotic and commanding. Avtomobili built their unique world once again, and for a good two hours we slipped out of reality and into it.
Everything sounded great, except for Bushy’s guitar, which was occasionally a bit hard to hear. Still, Avtomobili delivered an excellent sound overall. Marko wasn’t having the best vocal day because of a cold, but with all his mileage and experience the man handled every situation like a master. Besides, that hardly matters, because his instantly recognizable vocal approach and that velvety vocal tone, which he still knows how to use to caress the listeners’ ears so effectively, save him at every step. It remains the basic trademark of Avtomobili’s music!
In the closing stretch, Avtomobili really fired up the crowd, who, with loud cheers, were in no way willing to let them leave the stage. In the encore they played two songs from the current studio album »Pozna pomlad« (2012): first the dark but powerfully peculiar track from their rich discography called Bar pozabe, followed by the radio hit Poslušaj once more, which had also opened the evening! It was another unforgettable adventure with the one-of-a-kind Avtomobili, one of the finest and most fascinating art rock acts on Slovenian soil. The performance proved the timelessness of this striking band from Gorica, and every one of their shows remains a chapter of its own. They’re still masters of a flawless sonic delivery.
Setlist
1. Poslušaj
2. Kaj si hotel
3. Drugačno nebo
4. Gorica
5. Mraz
8. Nekaj let
7. Ljubezen ne stanuje tu
8. Proti luni
9. Pot domov
10. Sama
11. Prljavi jezik
12. Skozi leta
—20 min. break—
13. Argentina
14. Navaden dan
15. April
16. Netopir
17. Hvala za pisma
18. Gospodar
19. Enkrat v življenju
20. V mrzlih dvoranah
21. Enakonočje
22. Ona nosi uniformu
—encore—
23. Bar pozabe
24. Poslušaj
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