Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Venue: Cvetličarna MediaPark / Ljubljana / Slovenia
Concert date: November 30, 2011
Attendance: 600
Ticket price: €22.00
Slovenian rock’s first fiddle for the last 15 years, a band that needs no biblical fanfare with the sea parting in two (we’re talking about Siddharta, of course), has just given birth to its new studio album “VI” (“Six”). As the title already hints, it’s the band’s sixth consecutive studio album. But that’s not all. Just as Laibach’s album “Volk” carries a double meaning, the Roman numeral six can really be read as “Vi” (Slovenian for “you”), an album meant for “you”, the people who are “Vi”, since it was recorded live and you (the audience) are, in this case, actually the sixth member of Siddharta.
It’s the habit of a band that always fascinates with a polished marketing approach and strict professionalism, the kind that lets it go toe to toe with big names on the international rock scene with a clear conscience, to mark moments like this in a visible way.
For this one they picked the intimate vibe and atmosphere of Ljubljana’s Cvetličarna MediaPark hall. Interestingly, Slovenian rock bands lately seem to prefer this hall over the one at Kino Šiška for celebrating new releases, even though the rent is lower there and the space is a touch roomier. Maybe the reason is the better acoustics Cvetličarna has. Who knows. Before I wander too far off: the album “VI” was recorded live at the band’s show this year at the Stožice stadium. They played there in mid-June as the first Slovenian rock band ever, which is a new historic milestone and a mark of quality for them. At the same time they also put out a live DVD, a manifesto of their stadium show in Stožice.
After heavy rotation of Queen classics, the whole point of handing out cardboard glasses finally became clear! An opening screening of the video for the song Postavi se na mojo stran, to be watched in 3D! Supposedly this is the very first Slovenian music video shot in such a format. No joke. Siddharta keeps setting new milestones for Slovenian rock music. On Slovenian rock soil.
The place goes quiet for a few short moments, darkness finally swallows the hall, but only until the girls shriek in unison and the stage lights up through volleys of beams full of strobe cannonade, cutting through the foggy haze! Siddharta is on stage! With a live rendition of Postavi se na mojo stran!
This time the band didn’t devote the event solely to playing the new album, like you could see two years ago at Kino Šiška, when Siddharta played their then-current album Saga live, song by song, in album order. Nope. This time they mixed classics in with the new songs and stretched the show to almost two and a half hours! In their professionalism, Siddharta understand that they have to leave fans with the impression of their story, one that stirs the imagination long after the gig and sets off positive emotions and experiences! And this time was no different.
No need to waste words on form. The sound was excellent; supposedly the band needed a whole five hours to polish and hone every last sonic detail and nuance for this show! So, no sonic farts allowed. A dynamic, massive wall of sound in the background, built on the riffs of both guitars, with programmed samples carefully woven in, revealing the dark mood the band is known for, actively backed by a flinty rhythm tandem and contrasted by intensely pulsing bass lines. And on top of it all, naturally, the number one factor that embodies Siddharta through and through! Placed front and center, another excellent vocal performance from Tomi! A pleasure to watch the band on stage in the form of their lives.
And the crowd? No question. They were eating out of the band’s hand again! Speaking of the crowd, it’s interesting that you spot very few rockers in it, the so-called “doctors of music”. Mostly Siddharta shows are full of young souls who are still finding their musical taste. Luckily, Siddharta are strong enough in terms of media propaganda to bring their music to the masses through the most-read media. Why? Because amid the plethora of junk those same media bombard the public with, Siddharta, unlike the junk, always leave the listener with real, original musical content (poetry included). Which makes it all the more puzzling why even those music enthusiasts who have “seen through it” and don’t need the media for their info, and who are always full of the true faith of “rock”, don’t come to a Siddharta show!
Besides the proven classic hits from the iron repertoire Klinik, Samo edini, Ring, Rave, T.H.O.R., Domine, Od višine se zvrti, B Mashina, plus the “Saga” songs Nevarno mesto, Napalm 3 and, right at the end, Vojna idej, the band played the album “VI” in full. After the second encore, rounded off by an excellent Vojna idej, it seemed like the band was saying goodbye, but then Tomi asks: “Do you guys have time for two more songs?” Of course we do, what are you even asking, man alive! So the band bangs out, quite fittingly for the purpose of the event, the last two songs of the night, taken from the new album “VI”.
Well, and where are the promised surprises we mustn’t skip? The memory of the theatre rock concert for kids and youth Livingstonov poslednji poljub by Nana Milčinski, Siddharta and Igor Štromajer, produced by Anton Podbevšek Teater, is still very much alive. Onto the stage sidle the cute “aunties” Brina and Katarina, on accordion and violin, and next to Tomi stands a “riled-up” soprano, Irena, with whom he drives through the verses in a duet! A sugar-lump surprise, then. Surprise number two of the night was a performance of a song whose name remains a sweet mystery to this day! “…” from the band’s debut. The song has grown over the years! Played in slightly restructured arrangements, it has matured especially thanks to an upgrade in the keyboards. That’s the famous spot where Tomi’s vocal sounds fleetingly “Pearl Jam-ish”, which of course the arrangement of the lead motifs itself helps along, allowing (enabling) something like that.
A new, unique and unforgettable concert event! Two and a half hours. Siddharta once again charmed a packed Cvetličarna with feather-light ease! Incredible how self-confident their presence and charisma are! Bravura! Now everybody, rush out and grab the album “VI”.
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