Interview date: 30.03.2007
Kojaniskaci, a trio of interesting old-timers from Borovnica, sweated it out last weekend at the Rock Otočec qualifier, held in the smoky atmosphere of Navigator in Logatec. After an energetic set, their second of the night, I sat down with them to talk about their plans and wishes.
Rockline: You guys come from Borovnica. What’s actually going on there?
Jani: Practically nothing. All the events are limited to Arterija. I think we’re even the only serious band there at the moment (laughs).
Rockline: So, kind of the big names in town?
Jani: You could say that, yeah (laughs).
Rockline: How many springs has Kojaniskaci seen?
Marjan: The band started in 1996, but it was a different lineup back then. Since then it’s only been the two of us, me and Andraž (the bass player), who’ve known each other since high school.
Rockline: So how long have you been playing as a trio?
Jani: We’ve been a trio since 2001. Before that we tried it with another guitar too, but that didn’t work out so great. I can say we feel pretty comfortable right now.
Rockline: What would you say sets you apart from other bands today?
Marjan: Hm, mostly the variety of musical styles you can hear in our music. From retro rock to ethno and beyond. Some people even find elements of surf music in what we do. Where exactly, to be honest, we’re not quite sure. Still, we try to stick to the pure basics and stay as basic as possible. The emphasis is on the form itself, meaning the shape of the songs. Any later experimenting, with acoustics and that kind of thing, is just a matter of how you interpret them.
Rockline: What are your plans for the future? After all these years, are you thinking about recording an album?
Jani: Not for now! At the moment we’re still more interested in racking up gig mileage.
Rockline: You clearly rely on a hard, direct approach, which still leaves a bit of a “moody” atmosphere in the end.
Marjan: Interesting, I’ve heard that a few times already. For the most part we try to stick to the basic hard rock form, which in principle shouldn’t leave much room for drama.
Rockline: There’s a surprising amount of Glenn Danzig in your vocals.
Marjan: Glenn Danzig? I don’t even know him. Interesting, I’ll put him under the microscope in the near future.
Rockline: Speaking of vocals, one of the things that jumps out at you right away is the drummer’s backing vocals. Not exactly common on the Slovenian scene today.
Jani: Singing while playing isn’t a problem for me at all, so we often come back to this kind of vocal backing, which gives the songs a special expression and, of course, makes them more recognizable.
Rockline: You mentioned earlier that for now you’re focusing mainly on gigs. Where can our readers catch you in the future?
Jani: We’ll be playing at Gran Rock in Sevnica, NHL Pub in Notranje Gorice and, of course, the “legendary” Arterija (laughs)
Rockline: Thanks a lot for the chat.
Kojaniskaci: Thank you, Travolta!
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