Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: EPP (alias Erik Platon)
Label: Self-released
Release: 2017
Length: 36:48
Rating: 5/5
In Memoriam: Primož Žižek (1972 – 2017)
Primož Žižek, from Novo Mesto, put out his first solo studio record this September, called »EPP«, which stands for »Ekonomsko propagandni pop«. It can also be read as the first two letters, i.e. »E and P« (Primož Žižek alias) »Erik Platon«, while the extra second »P« in »EPP« can stand for (and) »Problemi«, the name of his backing band.
Primož Žižek and Tokac are longtime friends, and that bond helped shape part of the career of Dan D, especially in the early days when they were still called Mercedes Band, and later too. Primož worked as an author or co-author on some Dan D songs, including Rekli so, Moj problem, Google me and Daj mi daj, which are part of the band’s rock-solid live repertoire. And it’s uncanny. When you listen to his vocal delivery and his tonal color, the voices of Primož and Tokac are strikingly close, so similar in character that a listener could easily think Tokac himself is handling the lead vocals (take the song Odveč, for example). In fact, Tokac does play on this album, as lyricist, co-writer of some of the songs, and one of the guitarists and backing vocalists. The aura of the album as a whole occasionally drifts toward the essence of Dan D, which (with Tokac on board this time) is a direct sign of Žižek’s general approach to songwriting, the very thing that, as mentioned, left his authorial mark on some of Dan D’s musical moments.
So what can you say about the album as a whole? It’s a first-class rock product, subtly infused with pop aesthetics, and its huge musical catchiness slots it with the greatest of ease straight into the prominent radio slots that are supposed to look after the healthy mainstream of Slovenian music. It barely gets more »Lower Carniolan« than this. The album draws expressive parallels with artists from that corner of Slovenia, like the aforementioned Dan D, plus Bort Ross, “Mistermarsh” Martin Štibernik, even Drevored and a few others. What marks all of them in their own work is a sense of great »art« refinement.
The album has an exceptionally warm and dense production, with flawlessly balanced contrasts in how its »sound pastels« come together, painting an extraordinary musical landscape in which the emotions and passions of Primož Žižek’s vocal performance get fully laid bare (one of the peaks in that respect is the song Tako blizu tako daleč). The album is driven by a dynamic, active, bold and musically super-lively bass line, keeping company with a solid rhythmic foundation and a whole pile of fine, short, one-off and concisely thought-out arrangement tricks, adding ornamental touches of guitar phrasing and the rest of the instrumental accompaniment (especially the »embrace« of varied sonic shades in the keyboards). Woven through all of it is the strikingly penetrating, charismatic and emotionally deep, confessional vocal of Primož Žižek, often backed by a female duet with his wife Urška and additional backing vocals. The art pop rock label clearly carries a hint of the alternative, along with other genre spices, from danceable funk charm (Super man) to traces of surf (Več še več), while the exceptional musical vibe of this record is at times also reminiscent of an inspiration drawn from The Beatles. There are tons of candidates for heavy radio rotation on this album, and it’s hard to pick a personal favorite.
The set of songs is equally strong throughout and doesn’t waver in quality over the whole running time. That goes for the arranging, the composing, the production itself and the overall interpretation. The album knows no dips or stumbles. Everything is done with great distinction and the careful dedication that perfectionism demands. Truly an album you can’t take anything away from, or add anything to. And it translates, very effectively, those typical emotions and passions of the Slovenian musical soul into the magic of rock and roll. The melancholy, the shivering, the pain, but also that bubbling, unrotted stance of defiance, the belief that there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel. From head to toe a truly soulful, Slovenian art pop rock album, backed by a seasoned crew of superb Slovenian musicians.
The album »EPP« is considered one of the most beautiful and most expressive Slovenian rock albums released in Slovenia this year. With real »Lower Carniolan« charm and charisma, which, if we look only at the Lower Carniolan rock scene, stands on equal footing in quality with this year’s remarkably beautiful, high-quality new studio releases from, for example, Drevored and Jernej Zoran.
The album will stand the test of time, since the songs already carry the essence of evergreens. They get stuck in your ear fast, and at the same time they carry a homegrown art charisma that nobody else can reproduce except Primož. A song like Midva is, in the opinion and taste of this review’s author, the first guaranteed Slovenian radio hit evergreen (by the way, the song Valentina became the song of the week on Val 202 in mid-July 2017)! Given that Primož is no longer with us, this is a huge blow for Slovenian rock and a void that the album »EPP« gratefully fills, a majestic work of art and Primož’s legacy to Slovenian rock, a monument that accidentally became Primož’s last rock’n’roll requiem.
Lineup
Primož Žižek – vocals
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Urška Žižek – vocals
Tomislav Jovanović “Tokac” – guitar, electric piano, backing vocals
The Bazookas – backing vocals
Matej Mršnik – guitar
Matej Sušnik – guitar
Žarko Pak – guitar
Martin Štibernik – guitar, keyboards, electric piano
Davor Klarič – keyboards
Dejan Slak “Slejk” – bass guitar
Jošt Drašler – bass guitar
Andrej Rebernik – woodwinds
Production
Žarko Pak
Tracklist
1. Eric Platon
2. Kamasutra
3. Odveč
4. Več, še več
5. Midva
6. Spoznanje
7. Super Man
8. Tako blizu, tako daleč
9. Valentina
10. Enako drugačna
