Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Buh
Label: Celinka
Release: 2018
Runtime: 56:15
Rating: 4.5/5
Three years ago, a pretty hard-hitting album by the project N3L came out, titled »Natriletno kolobarjenje s praho«. Uroš Buh was part of that project, the very same guy who is showing up this year in a completely different musical setting. In expression. In style. In message. Singer-songwriter territory, too. For that, he’s put together a proper musical crew to help him bring all his ideas to life. So the album »Buh«, the debut of Uroš Buh, or let’s just call it the band Buh, is a very strong, tightly hewn piece of work, both in musical composition and in the message itself (the poetry), packed with tangible substance.
It’s hard to pin a genre label on it, which proves that Uroš Buh is a multilayered, finely carved musician who approaches ideas in a totally genuine, honest and free-spirited way. Creatively unburdened. If an idea is good, he’ll set it to music and try to squeeze the maximum expressive punch out of it. We can call the album singer-songwriter fare, we can call it hugely radio-friendly, even though chasing radio love isn’t his goal. Meaning that, thanks to a crafty musicality, the premise of pop is there on the album but doesn’t push itself to the front, and that premise speaks in a melos that’s typically »Slovenian-geographic«. Still, at its core this is an art rock album that, within light and unpretentious compositional frames, even carries some levers of psychedelia. The opener Lovim dež hints at that: in its lightness, resting on a simple compositional format, it opens up a heap of room for small, fine but clearly articulated instrumental contrasts, with space even for the harmonica of Miha Erič (Prismojeni profesorji bluesa). Even though the opener doesn’t deliver the first swallow yet, it lays bare the principle of this record pretty well. From first track to last, it favors building intense moods and atmospheric contrasts, since the album speaks as a whole: totally unpretentious, mellifluous, dreamy, cerebral, even mystical. And yes, you can add that it carries some inspiration borrowed from that famous »Floydian« esotericism, or from Gilmour’s solo albums. The track Mesto counts as one of the "rougher" and faster moments of the album, with a pronounced rock phrasing, but still with an incredibly catchy appeal of compact songwriting, one that radio frequencies will have to adopt gradually.
Uroš, judging by the cover a passionate lover of soggy quartz quarries, is a very accomplished musician and vocalist. He has a versatile, convincingly colored and high-quality expressive character when it comes to interpreting the poetry, but what really feels good on the album is his instrumental contribution. Alongside all the ever-present acoustic elements, there’s the warm, organic-sounding integration of the semi-acoustic guitar, where the especially inventive use of decorative passing ornaments and little solo impulses impresses, with which he deftly fills the compositional structures, gives them a touch of mysticism and, as mentioned, given the mellifluous ambience of the compositions and the soft, refined rhythmic kinetics, a hint of psychedelia. Uroš has clearly listened to quite a lot of blues along the way, and he must also be a big fan of the softness and refinement of David Gilmour.
Buh is also seriously skilled at gradually building moods that slowly sail toward the crescendo of the atmosphere he’s after. The most direct example of reaching such states on the album is the excellent Novi časi. In achieving and intensifying this element, he also trades very cleverly on the thoughtful and refined integration of extra harmonic vocal lines that join the main vocal line in spots. The album is full of small, short but subtle touches, and in the track Senca srca Gombač’s foxtail saw fittingly joins the action, nicely combined with Buh’s whistling. A thorough album that builds first and foremost on contrasting and intense feelings that carry the listener away. The last three tracks are sung in English and placed at the tail end on purpose, so they don’t shock the listener too much, since they deliver a jump into a new energetic vibe. These three tracks are still crafted with real dedication and a gleam of perfectionism. They’re sung in a very likable way, and in terms of vocal meter and accentuation they sound convincingly Anglo-American. Keeping that credibility up even in the English part of the album only shows and confirms Uroš’s great experience, gained over the years working in the music business, which involuntarily calls up his work in the band Relight from the subconscious. The compositions don’t follow a completely predictable template of chord placement, but occasionally surprise by tacking on unusual ones, which results in an interesting development of the melos itself, and such a track, musically speaking, consequently veers into the territory of the unexpected. Come Near, for instance, is one such track, another is, say, the one before it, and both tracks are building blocks that, right at the tail of the album, boost the elements of an alternative rock sound.
A dreamy, gazing-into-the-distance art rock album that, entirely unintentionally, carries some of that Dolenjska breeze of such Slovenian albums, and it will knock harder on the doors of those music souls who love the art rock touches of Bort Ross, Dan D, EPP (a.k.a. Erik Platon), Daniel Vezoja’s singer-songwriter album »Where the Light Resides«, even the older and more classic rock-flavored Drevored, as well as the solo works of Jernej Zoran. But let’s not forget to point this out: »Buh« is a different art rock story, with its own musical direction, its own energetic vibe and a recognizable musical character. At the same time, it’s stuffed with the full-blooded tangibility of creative perfectionism and refinement!
Lineup
Uroš Buh – guitar, vocals
Vid Drašler – drums
Jošt Drašler – bass guitar, vocals
Ambrož Božiček – rhodes, hammond
Metod Banko – acoustic guitar, vocals
Višnja Fičor – vocals
Miha Erič – harmonica
Julijan Erič – electric guitar
Boštjan Gombač – singing saw
Rok Šinkovec – accordion
Mario Babojelič – guitar
Production
Uroš Buh
Tracklist
1. Lovim dež
2. Mesto
3. Poleti
4. Jutri
5. Senca srca
6. Novi časi
7. Mislim nate
8. Lov na človeka
9. A Letter to Leni
10. Come Near
11. Fearless
