Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Leonart
Label: Self-released
Release: 2016
Duration: 39:18
Rating: 4.5/5
These days it’s hard to find a band with such a finely tuned strategy for effectively winning over the heart of the Slovenian music public (indirectly, of course, via the available media – radio frequencies, YouTube, etc…) and, as a result, for settling smoothly into the Slovenian »mainstream« scene – that is, into those pleasant mid-wave tones – as Leonart have. Here we have their studio debut »Visoko v nebo«, which simmered for a full four years. It came together slowly, in the glow of serious perfectionism, driven by a seasoned team of four musicians with a tightly built musical vision and an inner core that chases artistic aesthetics.
The band’s drive is no surprise, since they can openly brag about their musical quality, and they happily »shield« their backs with it while pulling off one successful self-promo move after another. Before the debut even dropped, Leonart had already put out four music videos and no fewer than seven singles. So the casual public got to hear more than two thirds of the album before it hit its official release date or reached the record store shelves.
»Visoko v nebo« is a finely crafted, polished debut with an instantly catchy pop art rock character rooted in urban culture, speaking to the listener across ten tracks in a way that is (in general perception) hugely friendly and easygoing. The natural sonic pastels that the production of the seasoned Martin Bezjak paints over this record are just the cherry on top of the polished arrangement »costume design« of ten compact, punchy songs that, over a bit under forty minutes, keep up a high level of musicality (Ko si tu).
Sure, you can draw some stereotypical parallels, and Leonart are certainly not reinventing the wheel or bringing a musical revolution, but behind every one of these songs there’s a perfectionism of filigree precision engineering, a fussing over every little detail that, through gradual perfectionist tuning, brings the album as a whole a highly effective dose of pop aesthetics.
What radiates from the album is an honestly felt dialogue between four musicians who have known each other for a very long time and have no shortage of musical mileage. The lively arrangements, which fold several genre detours into the album’s ID card, show that these are excellent musical interpreters. The blending of genre swerves, toward the figures of dance-funk kinetics (Vroč poljub), blues/funk flirting (Povabi me na ples), reggae and surf (Nora noč), spiced here and there with rock’n’roll and the constantly noticeable jangle of guitars (the cheeky opener Danes me ni), shows that Leonart are rockers at heart. The mid-eight sections also feature guitar solos, but they speak to the listener modestly and totally unpretentiously, following the »less is more« axiom and so keeping the songs nicely compact. All these varied moments of the album are tied together by the band’s strong sense for melodic catchiness, which is a typical reflection of where the band comes from. Leonart (with Slovenian lyrics) sound almost textbook Slovenian in how they develop their lead melodies and moods. So we get that veil of atmospheric melancholy that, in its own typical way, only Slovenes develop on this planet. That’s why they’ll instantly be interesting to fans of the refined art culture of acts like Dan D, say from the era of their first three albums. The songs Moje mesto and Pojem zate even carry a touch of indie pop rock cosmetics that, with English lyrics, even today’s trendy MTV generation would gladly adopt.
Leonart thought of everything in the arrangements. Extra backing vocals behind the lead vocal lines, a thickened backdrop with multiple guitar lines that often give way to acoustic sounds. Throughout there’s the clear, contrasting and constantly effective warmth of the musically lively bass guitar, plus active drumming that stirs up the songs in all the right places with light but necessary drum-fill flourishes. In the gradual build-up of moods from verse to chorus, the keyboards often play an important role too, playfully getting into a dialogue with the guitars and lending the songs a noble art charisma. The lead vocal is wonderfully pleasant in tone and instinctive in delivery all the way through. It’s the cherry on top of how convincing this record is, and it’s certain that a lot of work also went into wrestling with the meter of the verses themselves, since the delivery in Slovenian holds an exceptional note of musicality and reaches a high level of singability, which the audience at the band’s gigs can jump into right away.
So the album »Visoko v nebo« is a gorgeous pop rock record with polished artistic charisma and a typical musical vision tailored under the Slovenian sun. You couldn’t really ask for a better Slovenian »mainstream« album, one that reflects old-school rock melting into the trendy pop aesthetics of today.
Leonart – Danes me ni:
Line-up
Sebastijan Lukovnjak – vocals, guitar, keyboards
Andrej Knehtl – guitar, backing vocals
Martin Počkar – bass guitar, backing vocals
Marko Brvar – drums
Production
Martin Bezjak
Track list
1. Danes me ni
2. Vroč poljub
3. Pojem zate
4. Moje mesto
5. Podoknica
6. Nora noč
7. Ko si tu
8. Dim nad mestom
9. Nov dan
10. Povabi me na ples
