Artist: Billysi
Label: Dallas Records
Release: 2007
Rating: 2.5/5
I’ve known the band Billy’s Private Parking for quite a while, since their name pops up pretty often on TV screens and the radio waves. They recently renamed themselves Billysi (no, it’s not a mangled version of the Georgian capital, at least I don’t think so), and under that name they’ve now put out an album called Magia. To promote the new record, the members showed up on various TV shows, and I caught them on Navigator, which has nothing to do with music whatsoever.
I think Billysi (or Billy’s Private Parking) musically can’t decide what exactly they want to be. On one hand, I get the feeling they want to be rockers, on the other, that they’re more into pop. The upshot is that the songs mostly come out as a lukewarm mishmash of pop and rock with very little tension or energy in it. The songs are played very well, mind you, and the production is typically modern and polished, as you’d expect. Davor Klarič (Šank Rock, keyboards) adds a bit of a sonic boost; he’s been in huge demand as a studio musician for ages (he also worked on albums by Devil Doll, for example). The Billysi definitely don’t lack a feel for melody, and the songs are mostly catchy and slide right into your ear, but that real punch just isn’t there.
I couldn’t say the lyrics are a total trainwreck. Some of the singer’s ideas are fairly interesting, but mostly she leans on stereotypical moaning about unrequited love, longing and the other joys of life. Sadly, she’ll have to leave the award for poetry in music to others who know how to craft lyrics better, like Jani Kovačič or Iztok Mlakar. It gets even worse when she tackles lyrics in English (C’est La Vie), but then again, almost every Slovenian band struggles with that. I don’t see the point, since breaking abroad is unlikely, and judging by the quality of the lyrics on display, I seriously doubt Urška is any sharper in English than in Slovenian. I do have to give her credit for singing it very nicely, with almost no accent at all.
I can’t help taking a jab at the cover too, where the four young guys of the band try to look menacing without their shirts on, while the singer flashes her tempting smile to lure in unsuspecting young guys to buy an album that won’t offer them anything earth-shattering musically. Personally, I’d rather see the guys on the cover dressed, while the lovely Urška could easily shed some unnecessary rag or two (apologies for the vulgarity).
This album has a very meaningful title, but there’s certainly not much magic on it. I can’t say much that’s praiseworthy about the band. If I said they’re better than assorted turbo folk acts a la Atomik Harmonik and Turbo Angels, I wouldn’t be saying anything terribly flattering. It’s sad enough that I have to compare them to bands like that just to praise them. I reckon that without an attractive singer like Urška, they wouldn’t have the kind of name they do on the Slovenian pop scene. I don’t know where the Billysi’s magic is hiding, but it’s certainly not in the music. Maybe it’s in Tbilisi!
Line-up
Urška Majdič – vocals
Matic Ajdič – guitar
Sergej Pobegajlo – rhythm guitar, keyboards (C’est la vie)
Martin Rozman – bass
Mic Melanšek – drums
guests:
Davor Klarič – keyboards
Jure Rozman – drums (Kaos)
Marko Soršak – drums (Skrivnosti)
Production
Sergej Pobegajlo, Jurij Toni
Track list
1. Svet gre naprej
2. Ona
3. Hello Hello
4. Slikar
5. Preberi me
6. C’est la vie
7. Pasti za srce
8. Orkan
9. Skrivnosti
10. Še! Dobre elektrike
11. Aine
12. Kaos
13. Fool for you (bonus)
