Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Photos: Jernej Vene, Aleš Podbrežnik
Location: Ljubljana / Prulček bar / Slovenia
Concert date: September 11, 2014
Attendance: 70
Ticket price: €0.00 (free entry!)
With rain hammering down day after day, the idea of stumbling onto an »open air« gig in early September sounds downright bizarre. The rain has been throwing a wrench into things all summer, and there’s more to come. Luckily, Prulček bar has a roof, plus a sinful selection of beer. It was another Thursday, another day, another gig. Old acquaintances. Good acquaintances. Moonlight Sky Trio. Yep. Those three young guys of rare musical gifts, grandmasters of their instruments, who fuse into a single musical body brimming with astonishing bursts of original individuality. Given the exceptional level of virtuosity they’ve built up over years of pushing their creative spirit, this is a band that belongs at the very top of Slovenian groups and could, on that front, compete on the international scene with a clear conscience. And yet at heart they remain big kids, still modest on the outside, quiet, even a little reserved.
Miha Petric (guitar), Janez Moder (bass) and Žiga Kožar (drums) run Moonlight Sky Trio on the principle of »free the body and the spirit«. Of course, that doesn’t mean chaos on stage. The skeleton of the songs and their form have to hold together. But with their great artistic talent as masters, the trio has opened up a huge amount of expressive room for themselves at every turn, to drift freely through jazz, rock and the melodies of world music, with a heavy emphasis on »arabesques« (Leb i sol). Even though at a few points they briefly »fell apart«, which only the trio themselves noticed among those present (they exchanged glances a few times during the show and cracked up laughing), their exceptional tightness, experience and chemistry between the three building blocks is phenomenal, and that’s exactly what always pulls the band »out of the mess« whenever a little »flub« sneaks in. The band’s work casts a spell on the listener and sets off on a path of freeing body and spirit. That’s precisely thanks to the smashing of established forms they’ve been striving for over the years. In the early days they were still a quartet with progressive rock elements built in; as a trio, a free-spirited, exploratory mind soars on the wings of jazz and rock fusion.
As always, most of the attention went to the guy who shod the trio’s playing with the occasional trace of rock. The one, that is, with the guitar in his hands. Once again the one and only Miha Petric, who counts as one of the best-kept musical secrets on our soil. Over the years Miha has developed a completely personal style and sound, approaching mastery of six-string music theory. We could even call it the guitar bible. Above all, it’s incredible how he handles absolutely everything with his right hand. He strikes the strings with the pads of his right-hand fingers, which of course gives the instrument even more harmony and more options for harmonic combinations of the notes played. What I’m getting at is that he can pull off more varied wizardry within a given musical form than if he were using a pick. That’s exactly how his free right hand gives him generous control over the sound, over every single tone he produces at the gig. Miha once again shook out a few bravura solos, and the opening one alone properly woke up the club when Miha suddenly went wild soloing on his »Ovation« acoustic guitar. Janez Moder and Žiga Kožar are just as outstanding masters. Each in his own department. Just as seasoned, deeply rooted in the Slovenian music scene, where they work with a good number of well-known Slovenian acts. During the show the trio seems to be in a trance. With the occasional eye contact they simply make sure they don’t fall apart within the forms, and somehow work out who in the trio will take the full solo at any given moment in the songs.
This time, too, the concert was split into two parts. The first was acoustic, the second acoustic-electric. Actually, both were acoustic-electric. You’re always plugged into a power source anyway. In the second part Miha swapped the acoustic guitar for a »Strat« for a few closing numbers. The band played originals, especially from the third album »Changing Parameters« (2012), and spiced the show up with covers of some of their musical heroes, such as Leb i sol, Billy Cobham, Miles Davis and Jimi Hendrix. Like I said. It’s a joy to watch this trio. Their gigs always leave you with different feelings at the end. It feels like a completely new adventure into the world of musical magic. One of a kind and unrepeatable. And that’s what matters. The guys embody their feelings honestly and with passion, and those feelings vibrate through the room and fill us with energy! Honest and positive!
It’s also important to note that in the second part, Moonlight Sky Trio unveiled a completely new original song at Prulček bar that evening, which means the guys are creating new musical material and a new studio album is on the horizon somewhere in the future. Well, if not Moonlight Sky Trio, you can catch trio member Janez Moder on September 18, 2014 at Repete café on Gornji trg in Ljubljana’s old town, where he’ll be performing with the band Alkimia V. Be there too and treat yourself to a new musical delicacy!
Photo Gallery
