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dankrsta · 11-29-2010, 04:54 PM

Laibach

It's about time I post in this thread. The last time I did I promised to write something about two Slovenian bands, Laibach and Borghesia. I see that Scissorman posted one Laibach song, but I would like to focus on their earlier period when, it can be said, they were a Slovenian and Yugoslavian band as opposed to international and European like later in their career.

I've already mentioned that Laibach was the most radical band to come out of ex-Yugoslavia. Formed in 1980. they were also a part of a larger cultural collective NSK (Neue Slowenische Kunst) which incorporated, beside music, film and video, visual art and, how should I say, political/philosophical part that produced all those art and political manifestos. With the use of different totalitarian and state symbols and images they were very controversial, especially when they were contrasting fascist and communist symbols. Needless to say, communist Yugoslavia was shocked, like looking itself in the mirror. The name 'Laibach' was especially problematic and thus banned, because it was the name of Slovenian capital Ljubljana, in German, during Nazi occupation, which was still pretty fresh in collective memory. That's when that recognizable cross symbol was formed to represent the group instead of the name.

Throughout the years the audience was wondering what are the true political convictions of Laibach. Are they an extreme right wing or extreme left wing, fascists or communists? They weren't really eager to explain. In the public, they were the perfect actors, always in the characters and always talking in proclamations. Their interviews were actually artistic and political manifestos. So wtf is Laibach all about? We just have to listen to their manifestos, it's all there. They weren't really interested in promoting any specific political ideology, be it fascism, communism or western democracy and liberalism (yes those are ideologies too). They were interested in exploring the phenomenon of ideologies as such and how they create collective thinking, depersonalization and losing of individuality. They were also interested in juxtaposing artistic and political means of manipulation. I find this especially interesting. So, in fact, they were a socially engaged artistic act, political as long as we see all art as such, and also commentators, challengers and maybe parodists. I mean, it's really hard for me not to see the humor in their over the top monumentality and seriousness, very often dangerously close to parody. Just look at this clip:

'Država' (The State) from the first album Laibach (1985)

Musically, Laibach was an avant-garde industrial band using heavy percussions, militaristic, monumental rhythms perfectly going with those totalitarian images. This is especially evident on their first few releases: Rekapitulacija 1980-1984 (a compilation of early work), Laibach (1985) (the first album containing some of the songs from Rekapitulacija in slightly different versions), Nova akropola (1985).

'Brat moj' (My Brother)

'Sila' (The Force)

'Nova Akropola' (New Acropolis)

There is a great documentary Laibach and NSK made (I think) in 1988. called Victory Under the Sun, about the band history and the social and political environment from which they arose. It's referred to as "Laibachian" history and I must say, I like this term. This film is very interesting overall, especially for understanding Laibach. Here are youtube links for those interested in watching it (with English subtitles):
YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 1
YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 2
YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 3
YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 4
YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 5
YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 6 Final

OK, since this post turned out to be much longer than I expected, I'll write about Borghesia some other time, maybe tomorrow. Stay tuned.

11-29-2010, 04:54 PM	#43 (permalink)
dankrsta ... Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 1,776	Laibach It's about time I post in this thread. The last time I did I promised to write something about two Slovenian bands, Laibach and Borghesia. I see that Scissorman posted one Laibach song, but I would like to focus on their earlier period when, it can be said, they were a Slovenian and Yugoslavian band as opposed to international and European like later in their career. I've already mentioned that Laibach was the most radical band to come out of ex-Yugoslavia. Formed in 1980. they were also a part of a larger cultural collective NSK (Neue Slowenische Kunst) which incorporated, beside music, film and video, visual art and, how should I say, political/philosophical part that produced all those art and political manifestos. With the use of different totalitarian and state symbols and images they were very controversial, especially when they were contrasting fascist and communist symbols. Needless to say, communist Yugoslavia was shocked, like looking itself in the mirror. The name 'Laibach' was especially problematic and thus banned, because it was the name of Slovenian capital Ljubljana, in German, during Nazi occupation, which was still pretty fresh in collective memory. That's when that recognizable cross symbol was formed to represent the group instead of the name. Throughout the years the audience was wondering what are the true political convictions of Laibach. Are they an extreme right wing or extreme left wing, fascists or communists? They weren't really eager to explain. In the public, they were the perfect actors, always in the characters and always talking in proclamations. Their interviews were actually artistic and political manifestos. So wtf is Laibach all about? We just have to listen to their manifestos, it's all there. They weren't really interested in promoting any specific political ideology, be it fascism, communism or western democracy and liberalism (yes those are ideologies too). They were interested in exploring the phenomenon of ideologies as such and how they create collective thinking, depersonalization and losing of individuality. They were also interested in juxtaposing artistic and political means of manipulation. I find this especially interesting. So, in fact, they were a socially engaged artistic act, political as long as we see all art as such, and also commentators, challengers and maybe parodists. I mean, it's really hard for me not to see the humor in their over the top monumentality and seriousness, very often dangerously close to parody. Just look at this clip: 'Država' (The State) from the first album Laibach (1985) Musically, Laibach was an avant-garde industrial band using heavy percussions, militaristic, monumental rhythms perfectly going with those totalitarian images. This is especially evident on their first few releases: Rekapitulacija 1980-1984 (a compilation of early work), Laibach (1985) (the first album containing some of the songs from Rekapitulacija in slightly different versions), Nova akropola (1985). 'Brat moj' (My Brother) 'Sila' (The Force) 'Nova Akropola' (New Acropolis) There is a great documentary Laibach and NSK made (I think) in 1988. called Victory Under the Sun, about the band history and the social and political environment from which they arose. It's referred to as "Laibachian" history and I must say, I like this term. This film is very interesting overall, especially for understanding Laibach. Here are youtube links for those interested in watching it (with English subtitles): YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 1 YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 2 YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 3 YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 4 YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 5 YouTube - Laibach - Victory Under the Sun (1988) Part 6 Final OK, since this post turned out to be much longer than I expected, I'll write about Borghesia some other time, maybe tomorrow. Stay tuned. __________________ Last.fm