Paradise Found at Rock Otočec! (2008)

Arhiv Arhiv Last updated 11 June 2026

Concert date: 06.07.2008
Attendance: 27
Ticket price: 10.000

Rock Otočec. The twelfth consecutive edition of the muddiest of all mud festivals, set in the idyllic surroundings of Otočec Castle, served up three days of action, musical and otherwise. The focus was on intercultural dialogue: the Dharmaling society presented the attitude toward Tibet, and part of the program was dedicated to raising awareness about global warming and climate change, presented by the Fokus society … The European football championship claimed its share too! Organizer and festival father Franci Kek spiced things up as well, cruising around the grounds on his bright red Tomos moped. He and his crew deserve all the praise for organization on a level that few Slovenian or foreign promoters can match. The festival ran from Friday, June 27, to Sunday, June 29.

FRIDAY, JUNE 27

BANDITI: 18.55 – 19.10
The honor of opening the concert part of Rock Otočec went to punk`n`roll band Banditi from Idrija. The four-piece, who rumbled through their first rehearsal in 2005, are still waiting for their debut album to come out, but the guys promise it’ll happen this year. Their fifteen-minute festival set was watched by a bunch of fifty or so girls and guys, nothing too crazy. They played what they consider their best tunes, like “Nick O`teen”, “Dost mam”, “Secret Place”, “Rad bi le” and “Skozi tvoje oči”. The undemanding teenage crowd was thrilled, but for the “old cats” … Nothing special, even a bit déjà vu.

DIVJI V*ETER: 19.25 – 19.50
Another winner of the Rock Otočec preselection in Maribor is Divji V*eter, real greenhorns on the Slovenian music scene. The five-piece, fronted by singer Tina, comes from Ruše and describes itself as a softer rock act. They already proved that at the closing of Majske igre in Ljubljana, where, unlike at Rock Otočec, considerably more people listened to them. At Otočec, the football was more interesting than their set.

PAIN IN THE ASS: 19.55 – 20.25
Punk rockers Pain In The Ass from Jevnica, once known as No Excuse, were yet another local winner of the Rock Otočec preselection. The five young, ambitious guys took us into slightly harder rhythms and drew an enviable number of listeners to the front, hanging off the barrier. True, most of them were friends and acquaintances, but the fact is that this band has plenty of promise. Besides “Zasilni izhod”, “Sanje brez nadzora” and “Kreten”, the biggest craze came from a song of our childhood. Who doesn’t know “Srečno Kekec”?

OTIUM: 22.35 – 21.10
Otium. A band whose beginnings go back to the summer of 2001 offers listeners a cocktail mixed from rock, funk, nu-metal and punk rock, spiced up by the powerful but quality voice of Jasmina Grčar. But is that a recipe for success? The crowd at Otočec proved a bit of it already, though a lot also depends on how self-assured the band is.

INTERCEPTOR vs. SARCASM: 21.20 – 22.05
Nothing is impossible, but it rarely happens that two legendary thrash/heavy metal outfits like Interceptor and Sarcasm share the stage. The set, packed with energy, was a treat for all the metal connoisseurs, and there were quite a few of them at Otočec that day. Sadly, other obligations kept me from watching it.

NIET: 22.25 – 23.20
The first of Slovenia’s big two, Ljubljana’s legendary punks Niet, took the stage in a heavy downpour. But that didn’t scare off the crowd gathered in front of the stage. On the contrary, at Rock Otočec rain is more than welcome, since the more mud, the better. And when you looked around, you couldn’t see where the crowd ended.
Niet kicked off with “Molk” and the madness began. Not even slipping on the wet grass stopped the people. Who cares if someone landed on their ass. They continued with “Vijolice” and the crowd sang along with Borut in one voice … “Trip and violets, trip and violets in my eyes…” That night certainly in many an eye. The angrier Borut sounded, the harder it rained. Irony or …? “Tvoje oči”, “Paranoja” and “Umiranje” followed. The crowd reacted a little reservedly. True, a much younger crowd had gathered at Otočec, and Niet probably don’t mean as much to most of them as they do to the slightly older folks. Then again, at festivals of all kinds it’s hard to tell who the real fans of a band are. Then “Srečna mladina”, and during “Zastave” bassist Aleš Česnovar took over lead vocals. Interesting! “Depresija” once again brought out the crowd singing in unison. How could it not, it’s one of Niet’s best-known tracks. Then came “Sam”, which also belongs in the group of Niet’s “greatest” hits. This sounds a little sugar-(pop)-coated, huh? “Moon and stars, city and lights …” Yes, the start of “Ruski vohun”. The harder you try to keep this song’s lines from echoing in your head after the show, the more the opposite happens. Could that be Niet addiction? Even though “Ruski vohun” is another one of their more recognizable songs, the crowd didn’t sing it as loudly as a few songs earlier. They were much louder during “Bil je maj”, though. This time there wasn’t the kind of fanfare around the song (mostly from the crowd) that there was at Križanke on May 27, but it was loaded with emotion all the same. It was enough just to know that the song is dedicated to the late cult frontman Primož Habič, even though nobody at Otočec specifically mentioned it. And right during that song it poured even harder. As if the sky was crying. You could also spot a few lighters lit up, flickering in the wind. Tanja Ukmar then joined the guys on stage. “Ritem človeštva” followed, plus three slightly faster tracks, “Izobčeni”, “Melanholija” and “Perspektive”. Niet wrapped up their set with one of their best-known songs, “Lep dan za smrt”, though I probably didn’t even need to mention it, and “Februar”.
The guys said goodbye and the rain stopped too. Interestingly, the crowd thinned out a bit after Niet’s set, even though another band of legendary punks was still to come.

Niet setlist:
1. Molk
2. Vijolice
3. Tvoje oči
4. Paranoja
5. Umiranje
6. Srečna mladina
7. Zastave
8. Depresija
9. Sam
10. Ruski vohun
11. Bil je maj
12. Ritem človeštva
13. Izobčeni
14. Melanholija
15. Perspektive
16. Lep dan za smrt
17. Februar

PANKRTI: 23.35 – 00.40
Last of Slovenia’s two legendary punk bands, Pankrti took over the Rock Otočec stage. They marked their return to the Slovenian music scene with a big concert last December 1 at Hala Tivoli. For Peter Lovšin aka Perči Gnus, as he was known in his younger days, and his gang, this wasn’t the first time on the Otočec stage, as they had already played in 1983 and 1997. And yet they returned to the scene of the crime. Even though the rain had let up, not as many people gathered in front of the stage as during Niet, but those who did were that much louder. Pankrti, whose reunion tour slogan is “Nč se ne premakne”, served the crowd legendary tracks like “Lublana je bolna”, “Bandiera Rossa”, “Osmi dan”, “Totalna Revolucija” and many others. The crowd went wild from the first song to the last. Like Niet, Pankrti are one of those bands known to younger and older generations alike, and their music doesn’t leave any true alternative fan’s room untouched.

ZABLUJENA GENERACIJA: 0.55 – 1.45
The clock ticked steadily into the start of Saturday as the last Slovenian band, Zablujena Generacija from Idrija, took the stage. We can easily (and happily) call them one of the leading Slovenian punk`n`roll bands of the past decade. At Rock Otočec they played as part of their promo tour, which they’ve named “Mi smo stare pizde!” (“We’re old farts!”). Why that name? On January 30 this year the Zablujenci released their latest self-titled studio album, which supposedly goes with their midlife crisis?!?
Even though I missed the start of their set, all the way out at the entrance/exit of the Rock Otočec grounds you could hear the persistent crowd greeting the Zablujenci loudly, with a roaring applause. The guys gain more followers from gig to gig, as their older songs have become real “evergreens”. And the newer ones are on the right track too. One of them is “Egotrip”, which they opened their set with. The crowd proved the song has already settled well in their ears. After all, the record has been on the market for almost half a year. “Toward the sun, through the dusk, I race like a runaway train, there’s no power that can stop me and bring me to my knees!” The line the crowd sang during “Pobegli vlak” certainly rings true. Neither mud nor rain stops it. Is there jet fuel running through their veins? The Zablujenci continued with “Totalni debil”. The crowd went so wild during the song that the security barrier was swaying dangerously, and the security guys had to flex all their “wannabe” muscles to hold it in place. Mission accomplished. “Pozitiv vabrejšan”, a song from the self-titled album, carried the crowd off into reggae-punk-rock rhythms that fit perfectly into the sultry night, which even the rain didn’t cool down. Then “Ekstrasupermegafakinnujno”, and another evergreen, “Metulj”. The song, originally performed by Šank Rock, which got its punk look for the 35th anniversary of radio Val 202, is definitely one that deserves any kind of cover. Surprisingly, though, their first ballad ever, “Razdalja”, one of the best songs on the latest album, didn’t get the reception you’d expect. The response was lukewarm, like when you hear a song for the first time and know neither the lyrics nor the melody. Sadly, that happens too. The response was a bit better during “Sonce nabija”, which definitely fits these (way too) hot June days. “Samer hit 13” (Pop idoli, 2003) belongs in the same context. “Only a cold liquid should cool my thoughts.” Then came “Moja Liza”, and the crowd once again showed its stamina. One more for all the “Patricijas”, and then the song that placed an excellent fourth in the preselection for the Eurovision song contest, Ema 2007: “Kdo hoče plesati z menoj?”. When the names of the Ema performers were announced, many people wondered WTF the Zablujenci were doing there. The answer was clear: it was a prank, and the song is a parody of all sorts of instant pop tunes that flood the Slovenian music space, already saturated with tasteless music, day after day.
The Zablujenci closed their set with “Tu mač” and so brought another excellent show to the end, despite Hanson’s poor health and the heat. In sickness and in health …

Zablujena generacija setlist:
1. Egotrip
2. Pobegli vlak
3. Totaln debil
4. Pozitiv vabrejšan
5. Ekstrasupermegafakinnujno
6. Metulj
7. Razdalja
8. Sonce nabija
9. Samer hit 13
10. Moja Liza
11. Patricija
12. Kdo hoče plesati z menoj?
13. Tu mač

LORD BISHOP: 1.50 – 2.30
New Yorker and eternal wanderer Lord Bishop, who names Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, Frank Zappa, John Lennon, Kurt Cobain, Tina Turner and Janis Joplin as his role models, calls his music sex rock with a blend of funk, and it thrills crowds all over the world (it’s worth mentioning that in the last few years he’s played over a thousand shows, an average of 200 a year). He calls himself a visionary, an egocentric maniac, a genius, a fool and the future of rock`n`roll, and above all always a singer and guitarist. He really is all of that, which his energetic, voodoo-charged set at Rock Otočec confirmed. Though little known among the Slovenian audience, a surprisingly large number of young people came to listen and shake their hips to his rhythms. Maybe not with the first few songs, but more and more toward the end of the set. His music creeps into your head without pushing and crawls under your skin. Despite some trouble with the electricity, when the generators died, he didn’t get angry. Instead, he jumped off the stage and offered the crowd some of his Jack Daniel`s whiskey. A gesture not every world-famous musician makes. He spiced up his list of old hits with a few newer tracks, like “Senator Groove”, “Jam Of Love” and “Killing Aint The Answer”.

Text: Lea Lesar
Photos: Miha Mally