Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Venue: Scratch bar / Ljubljana / Slovenia
Concert date: October 15, 2010
Attendance: 150
Ticket price: €0.00 (free entry)
That’s how our little world turns. It even “turns” so far that the entire Slovenian nation gets to witness the opening of a venue dedicated first and foremost to the “middle-of-the-road” rock crowd. Good grief. What could that possibly be? Let’s work out the magic formula for the answer from the opposite direction. A venue that’s not the classic refuge of the Metelkova dive-bar type, devoted to punk and/or alternative screeching, to extreme forms of metal and/or core and other leanings toward indistinct vocal puking and semitone masochism, but instead gives all its attention to the pursuit of melodic perfection, virtuosity, and a tribute to the immortal figures and work of the creative geniuses among musicians, who flung open, with their contributions, the doors to the creative dimensions through which rock has evolved to this day. With their work they left a permanent mark on rock culture, moved mountains with their inspiration and profoundly shaped the face of rock music. The new temple of music, born in the city of Ljubljana and dedicated to the very best that rock has to offer, is called Scratch bar. Where else in Ljubljana can you go today to a bar where the night is devoted to AOR, progressive rock, melodic hard rock, blues and generally one-of-a-kind acts like, say, the ultimate father of smashing every musical taboo – the unforgettable Frank Zappa?
Scratch is a tremendous asset in this respect, because its work is hugely important in making the Slovenian public realize that the world doesn’t consist only of the whiner Kreslin, Čuki and Pankrti. It’s high time that, if we’re playing the European Union game anyway, we also connect our own rock roots with the roots of the traditional rock heritage that sprang up from the Mississippi delta and Elvis, the king of rock n’ roll, then spread across the pond to the Beatles phenomenon and kicked the old continent into a revolutionary creative drive through the sixties (“white” blues), the seventies (progressive rock) and on into the eighties (hard rock, AOR, heavy metal, art rock). I went minimalist here to make the point clearer, the point the birth of Scratch bar is all about.
As is only proper, the Scratch crew set the date of the grand opening for Friday, October 15, 2010. Things were already bubbling at the venue by 6 PM, but as the clock crept toward eight, it felt like sitting with your head stuck in a beehive. Good vibes everywhere, tons of laughter and joy, which somehow tied together every head in the place that night, from die-hard metalheads to hardened rockers, all the way to the most spoiled ears among the gourmets of avant-garde musical experimentation. Everyone found a little corner for themselves under the free sun of Scratch bar. Even a personality like Dragan Bulič didn’t skip the scene. His presence alone in Scratch bar flashed the green light confirming that Scratch bar is on the right track!
The crowd was entertained that night by an interesting combination of two bands who, in their sets, perfectly captured everything that’s been waxed poetic about so far in this report. The unbreakable surfers Bitch Boys drove the crowd properly nuts with their instrumental medley of some unforgettable motifs from the genre they faithfully serve, and after them Ljubljana’s progressive metallers Chaosstar took the stage. With the help of the broad musical horizons of the boundless scene they belong to, and with a performance of a few evergreens, they rounded out the menu that music consumers will be able to enjoy from now on during their visits to the bar.
On top of that, Scratch can boast a super-rich selection of beers. Deciding what to drink really isn’t hard. And drink at pocket-friendly prices. Friendly for the center of Ljubljana, I mean. And the drinking went deep into the night and even further into the morning. A one-of-a-kind event that’s not to be forgotten. The outstanding turnout confirmed that we Slovenians are hungry for “refuges” and/or “strongholds” of a healthy rock offering. Until now you had to flail around the bars begging, hoping to catch by chance the sweet sounds of acts like Jethro Tull, Dire Straits, Winger, Toto, Rush, Journey, Judas Priest, Van Der Graaf Generator, Frank Zappa and so on… As of October 15, 2010, Ljubljana is no longer the same. It’s richer, because a big piece that had been missing for far too long has returned to the mosaic of what its streets offer day and night. Let’s hope the top brass who look after the cultural flourishing of the city municipality will also recognize this gain and from now on carefully nurture the originality of Scratch bar themselves. The people said it all with their turnout, full of tremendous support and enthusiasm. So long live Scratch bar! Forever and ever.
photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
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