Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Location: Ljubljana / Prulček / Slovenia
Concert date: 29.05.2014
Attendance: 70
Ticket price: €0.00 (free entry)
Poltrona Express is a blues and jazz rock fusion outfit whose members, Tomaž Lapanja (vocals),
Matej Magajne (guitar), Matija Purgar (bass), Alen Bogataj (drums) and Žiga Kovačič (Hammond organ, keyboards), come from the Cerkno and Tolmin corner of Slovenia. That part of the country is known for some seriously adventurous musical oddities, embodied in the looks and work of bands like Feedback, Salamandra Salamandra and Idrija’s Divje jezero, whose trademark is a flirtation with symphonic progressive elements and the traits of jazz rock fusion, a field where we Slovenes have proverbially always been a strong, artistically expressive musical force. Unlike the bands listed above, though, Poltrona Express also bring a clear blues component into their sound, which sets them apart a bit from their kin.
The lineup, active since 2007, may not be all that well known around Ljubljana, probably because Poltrona Express don’t exactly play every day or even every month, but it’s seasoned and experienced. The link to Feedback goes beyond the music, since the superb guitar oddball Matej Magajne is a member of both bands. And if you glanced at the stage of Prulček bar that evening, it wasn’t hard to notice that the gear (Hammond organ, Rhodes keyboards, Leslie) actually belongs to Feedback. Only the face of the keyboardist behind it was swapped out this time!
Poltrona Express split their speeding couch-on-rails into two breakneck musical rides through Prulček. In the first part they focused on their own original material, painting it vividly for some fifty curious heads who had “wandered” into Prulček bar that evening. Although the band identifies with a strong blues component, the arrangements of their original music are so loose and layered that the blues is only barely noticeable at times. It mostly crystallizes into a tight formation when Tomaž Lapanja steps up to the vocals, but otherwise the band is known for quickly “winding off” into improvisational expanses toward jazz and progressive rock. Especially under the superb navigational baton of two members of the crew, two captains: Matej Magajne, master of guitar “knots,” and keyboardist Žiga Kovačič. Parallels? You’ll struggle to find any right now. Of course there are family ties to the bands mentioned earlier, and going back to the seventies, a mention of September might do (in a milder sense).
The second part of the evening, the band devoted to performing blues classics, tailored to their own manner and their own way of hearing music. Energetic and witty, bathed in the glow of melodious charm and dynamics that radiated the power of a multilayered musical outlook and great “resourcefulness” on a ride through a juicy theater of solo acrobatics. In just the right measure. With a feel for holding on to melodic tightness and without overdoing the “shaking out” of improvisations.
A really enjoyable musical evening with a band that counts as something of a musical oddity on the Slovenian scene. Word is the first studio album is in the works. Judging by what we savored at the Prulček gig, it will surely be a string of inspiring musical treats.
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