Artist: Dirnbek, Peter
Label: Self-released
Release: 2007
Rating: 2.8/5
Slovenia has had a rich singer-songwriter tradition for quite a while now. Just think of legends like Jani Kovačič, Iztok Mlakar, Tomaž Domicelj, Marko Brecelj, Vlado Kreslin and Andrej Šifrer (small šala). Many of them still perform today. And why wouldn’t they? They don’t have any real successors anyway. Now young hopeful Peter Dirnbek is trying to wedge himself in among these giants, stepping onto the Slovenian scene with his self-titled debut. Sadly, the new face among Slovenia’s singer-songwriters doesn’t come up to his predecessors’ knees.
Musically, the focus is on Dirnbek’s voice and his twelve-string guitar, but it’s the guests who make sure the album doesn’t sink into overly familiar waters by the second or third song. Dirnbek has a rather pleasant voice. Technically you can hardly tell whether it’s good or not, but that’s not the point of singer-songwriter music anyway. What matters are the lyrics and a pleasant, (often) smoky voice. His guitar playing is also perfectly suited to this kind of music – simple and melodic. Dirnbek also reaches for the harmonica, which has been the weapon of choice for plenty of solo artists (Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen). Keeping him company on the album is the band Vox Populi, which means two drummers, a bassist, a guitarist, two accordionists, a keyboardist and a saxophonist. On the song “Navdih,” Dirnbek sings the chorus in a duet with Petra Uršič. The sax, accordion and second guitar work especially well, since the album would sound a lot more barren without them.
The lyrics are nothing to write home about. Dirnbek mostly sticks to melancholic love ballads that aren’t piercing or inventive enough to leave much of a mark. Like many singer-songwriters, he occasionally tries his hand at wit, but while it sometimes comes off as downright funny with Jani Kovačič and Iztok Mlakar, with Dirnbek the effect is exactly the opposite. When someone forces themselves to be funny, it often comes out really strange. I didn’t exactly get the feeling that Mr. Dirnbek just shakes humor out of his sleeve; rather, it seems he has to strain like hell for every unfunny quip. The fact that he overuses rhymes doesn’t impress me much either. The days when rhymes were mandatory in music (or poetry) are long behind us. It’s music, after all, not sonnets.
With his debut, Peter Dirnbek has made a fairly solid record that won’t move the musical world an inch. He has a good feel for melody, and there’s occasionally some talent visible in the lyrics too. He has a pleasant voice and confidence in himself. I doubt the Croatian version of the song “Skala” will bring him any great success with our southern neighbors. We can only hope he’ll make something juicier and more substantial in the future, rather than something this average. Mostly harmless.
Lineup
Peter Dirnbek – vocals, 12-string guitar, harmonica
Vox Populi:
Robert Fuks – drums
Janez Gabrič – drums
Dejan Jerončič – keyboards
Enos Kugler – slide and bass guitar, percussion, shakers
Dror Orgad – acoustic, electric and bass guitar
Tomaž Rožanec – accordion
Katarina Štefanič – accordion
Petra Uršič – vocals
Bojan Zupančič – saxophone
Production
Peter Dirnbek
Track List
1. Radi ljubljeni bi b´li
2. Skala
3. Bil je maj
4. Za vse ljudi
5. Samo pojdi
6. Duša ujeta
7. Ekološka
8. Navdih
9. Vse in ne malo
10. Skala (hrvaška različica)
11. Naj ti bo
Album length: 47:09
