Location: Novo mesto / Lokalpatriot / Slovenia
Date: Friday, December 15, 2006
Our motley crew, of various ages but with plenty of shared musical (and other) DNA, decided there was no way we could miss the show by the young avant-garde rockers from Novo mesto with the downright bizarre yet fairly original name Od Franclna Možgani. Especially on the day they were presenting their debut album “Pofrancljevanje” and packed the already tiny Lokal Patriot, a venue that holds a hundred people at most, to the rafters. Even so, some folks who haven’t followed the band since the early days turned up too, curious to see what these guys bring to the otherwise pretty bland and obscure world of Slovenian avant-garde rock. As I noticed after the gig, there was even a Frenchman in the crowd who didn’t understand a word of English, yet was thrilled all the same, which says a lot about a band with serious potential that would be very interesting for foreign markets too. The view of the stage won us over right away: a picture of a pink brain on the screen gave anyone unfamiliar with their work a pretty clear hint that something special was in store tonight.
After some chatting in a cozy, homey atmosphere, and even a close encounter with a few band members, the show could begin. Even before it started, we noticed that flutist and saxophonist Tine – Tinčk was absent this time (for reasons unknown to me). Od Franclna Možgani are a band known not only for a top-notch ability to blend jazz, funk, ethno and avant-garde into a unique, complex mix of wildly varied pieces, but also for short skits between some of the songs, where they entertain the crowd with humorous banter, usually at the expense of one of the band members. After a short opening address from guitarist Djuko, which included a few mathematical terms, they immediately surprised us with some pieces that haven’t (yet) come out on an album and are probably being prepared for future studio releases. I can say that what we heard of these creations sounds incredibly promising; they’re mostly longer jazzy-funky instrumentals (which is where, in my opinion, they’re strongest anyway). The band is clearly being pulled even further toward jazz fusion.
For a warm-up they kicked off with two longer, jazzy-funky compositions that haven’t (yet) appeared on an album, “Solid Fill” and “Little Mouse Cum”. It was fun to watch the stage setup and the interplay between the band members: guitarist Djuko stood up front at the mic, gliding over the strings in true jazz style, while drummer Brgs and percussionist Pimps sat in the back, each behind their own kit (in Pimps’s case, a set of African tam-tams, regular drums and a few other unusual musical contraptions). It was a bit odd that bassist Slejk, whose style leans mostly funky, was stuck off to the side for almost the whole night, practically outside the stage area. For the most part they came across as pretty “cool”, though I wouldn’t have minded a few more energetic outbursts, especially from the guitarist and the bassist. Then came a short skit that drew some laughs from the crowd and segued into one of the album tracks, the witty “Extra Bird”, which most of the audience recognized in an instant, and there was no shortage of die-hard fans among them. Percussionist Pimps treated us to some thrilling and funny kazoo playing in its intro. After “Extra Bird”, Djuko also took a short solo spot. Next up was “Šum”, another piece I hadn’t heard before. The crowd properly came alive for the Zappa-flavored “Are You a Horse?”, one of their most popular numbers. What blew me away even more was, in my opinion, one of their best compositions, the extremely complex instrumental “Supersonic Speed”. Then they thanked the crowd and took a short break for a drink. When they came back on stage, they played “Juhanovski”, yet another brand-new piece. After that they wanted to bring two people on stage who apparently deserve major credit for getting their debut out, but despite calling them several times, neither showed up. As if in answer to the dull silence left by the two missing guests, drummer Brgs launched into a short solo. Next came probably their most popular song, and at the same time their least typical. The already notorious “Kolaček” set off a wave of excitement among all the devoted fans of the band. Backing vocalist Tina joined the band on stage for it, making sure the performance sounded as close to the studio version as possible, and her dance moves added a bit more energy too. Still, her vocals were mixed a little too loud compared to Djuko’s, so the whole thing came off more like a vocal duet. Plenty of people who didn’t know this song were surely surprised by the only “pop” number in the entire set. Then Djuko and Pimps started a short improvisation that served as an intro to the fun “Butterfly”. Next was another of the best pieces on the debut, the Caribbean-rhythm-based “Beach Party”, where Pimps’s percussion, the funky groove of Slejk’s bass and Djuko’s jazzy guitar bits impressed most. After “Neon Farting”, another one I didn’t know yet but which was pretty funny, Djuko and Sleyk put on an entertaining skit in which they crossed swords like a pair of knights about to duel. I hope they’ll put on more of these “theatrical” bits in the future. You don’t see a jazz guitarist and a funk bassist brandish swords mid-show, epic metal style, every day. In the rest of the set they played some of their funniest numbers, like the country-flavored grotesque “Kavboj Kavbojc”, “How To Be Happy On The Floor”” and probably the peak of their satire, “Lesbian Show Named Herald”. The latter came off much better live than the studio version, and this time I had a pretty good laugh myself at Djuko’s crude babbling about three lesbians. “Whale In High Heels” was another highlight of the night, while fans of the beloved wookiee Chewbacca got their fix with “Wormhole No. 9”, where Pimps imitated his roaring and grumbling. After “GVARS” came the extremely complex yet wittily grotesque “Šarodoraš”, yet another highlight of the show that got the front rows going. At that point, at the band’s invitation, the author of the excellent cover art for their debut came on stage, and they poured themselves some ruddy wine with him and raised a toast together. That was the official toast to the album’s release. They wrapped up the main set with “Kaj Ste Tak Čudni vsi”, another funny grotesque during which they also fired off a few drinking jokes together. True Dolenjci. The crowd was visibly thrilled, and after long applause and a short pause they came back for an encore called “Sleyk’s On the Run”, yet another longer instrumental full of improvisation, which was a superb showcase of their whole potential. During it I got carried off to who knows where a few times (which, admittedly, happened to me several times during the concert).
After the show we thanked a few of the band members in person. In particular, on behalf of Rockline, we’d like to thank percussionist Primož-Pimps once more for his cooperation and kindness. Od Franclna Možgani wowed us with their instrumental acrobatics and witty stage approach. The show was at an enviable level for local standards, especially musically, and I hope we’ll get to see them again soon. On the other hand, you could tell the guys were under tremendous pressure (which they admitted themselves, since it was a hugely important gig), that they’re only at the beginning of their stage careers, and that eye contact with the crowd still needs some polishing (especially from both guitarists). Other than that, I have no complaints. For local standards, and for a band that’s only just starting out, the concert was excellent and I really enjoyed it. As I’ve stressed many times before: given our modest logistical circumstances, these guys play fantastic music, already have a recognizable sound and stage approach, and the necessary stage chemistry between the members. So I wish them lots of luck in building their sound and stage identity further. May it blossom in all its glory.
author: Peter Podbrežnik
photos: Thomas Breznik
Setlist:
1. Solid Fill
2. Little Mouse Cum
3. Handsonic Flash Of Extra
4. Extra Bird
5. Kitara
6. Šum
7. Are You a Horse?
8. Supersonic Speed
9. Juhanovski
10. Brgs Time
11. Kolaček
12. Đuxo + Pimps intro for Butterfly
13. Butterfly
14. Beach Party
15. Neon Farting
16. Sleyk & Đuxo medival contest
17. Kavboj Kavbojc
18. How To Be Happy On the Floor
19. Lesbian Show Named Herald
20. Whale In High Heels
21. Worm Hole No. 9
22. GVARS
23. Šarodoraš
24. Kaj Ste Tak Čudni Vsi?
—encore—
25. Sleyk’s On The Rum
