I don't think the video's scenario or the song would be *anyone's* fantasy! Well...maybe if the song were about revenge...but I don't think it is...I think it is about people who hurt each other in their relationship or aren't sure they really want to be together.

Thank you for the link! I like the original version's meaning much more than the My Dice lyrics. Still, I feel it's a good song. And the video is mesmerizing, especially when it gets to the part where she bashes this man to dust and he looks at himself after the first hit. The contrast between her gentle actions that seem tender (but really aren't) and the obvious abusive destruction is disturbing.

In my last post I mentioned a compilation "Paket Aranzman" and its cult place in ex-Yu rock history, but it wasn't the only one. Croatia and Slovenia had a pretty developed punk and new wave scene as well, as is represented through another compilation Novi Punk Val (New Punk Wave). It compiled songs from Pankrti, Paraf, Prljavo Kazaliste, Termiti, Berlinski zid, etc.

I will link a post from another thread on this forum 'Interenational music (in general)'. A poster Swink presented a few punk bands from Slovenia. I would like if he/she could come back and continue with it in this thread.Slovenian punk

Anyway, I will continue with Croatian bands.
PARAF was formed in 1976 and lasted till the middle of the 80's. They were at first a proper punk, punk-rock band, as is evident on their first album A dan je tako lijepo počeo... (translated: "But The Day Started So Good...") from 1980. Later they started using keyboards and went for a more challenging and artistic sound, post-punk actually (album Izleti 1982). The third album Zastave from 1984 incorporated a somewhat gothic/dark wave sound. This album did not have any success and went almost unnoticed, but has gained a cult status since then.

First single Moj zivot je novi val 1979

PRLJAVO KAZALISTE is a long lived band (I don't know if they still exist), very popular in ex-Yu. I think that only their second album can be considered new wave - Crno bijeli svijet (Black and White World) 1980. Later they made some pretty conventional, mainstream rock.



HAUSTOR (formed in 1979) was probably one of my favorite Croatian bands from that period led by great Darko Rundek. Their music was coloured with tropical and reggae sounds, sunny feelings, which made them unique in the Yugoslav new wave scene. (First album S/T from 1981). They had about 5 albums and Darko Rundek is now doing some interesting solo work (from what I've heard).

Moja prva ljubav (My first love)1981


FILM or Jura Stublic & Film was another Croatian band very popular in ex-Yu with lots of hits. I will post a video that shows best their new wave side, their first hit 'Neprilagodjen' (Unadjusted) from the first album Još jučer samo na filmu a sada i u vašoj glavi 1981.



I found this pretty informative Wikipedia article on New Wave music in Yugoslavia with a list of bands (some of them even I'm not familiar with), so if anyone is interested, it's a good read.
New Wave music in Yugoslavia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
I read on some blog that there were "statements by the editors of British NME Magazine that Yugoslavian new wave scene was the second strongest in Europe (right after England)". I don't know if that's true as I can't find the actual quotes from the British NME Magazine, but if it is, that's pretty cool. EDIT: Still, I seriously doubt it. There was some tough competition in Europe like German dark wave and industrial or French cold wave. Hmmm...

I have Paket Aranzman, a very enjoyable comp, I shall check out Novi Punk Val then... and of course the bands you just mentioned.

Great posts btw :thumb:

I only know Boban Marković because of Emir Kusturica movies.

Thank you NumberNineDream for showing interest. In my next post I'll jump to Slovenia and write about the two most interesting bands and imo probably the best that came out of ex-Yu from that early to mid 80's period - Laibach and Borghesia. Some of you (industrial fans especially) probably know them, particularly Laibach.

Anyway, I was listening to the clips you were posting in your Lebanese Music thread and I'll continue to follow it, as I have a soft spot for middle eastern melodies, although I practically know nothing about the music from that part of the world.

Well thank you for showing interest too. I got a soft spot for Ex-Yougoslavian music (and I also don't know a thing about it)... seems like we're complementary in these subjects.

Btw, I'll try to update the "Arabic Music" thread too, a lot of unmentioned names on there... and looking forward to reading about the Slovenian 80s period.

Cheers.

I enjoyed your write-up, too, dankstra, and especially the last song by FILM. The Wikipedia article about Yugoslavian New Wave music was interesting. It makes the government at that time not sound so terribly repressive:

Well Yugoslavia's government was always more tolerant compared to that of other communist countries. Yugoslavia wasn't even in Eastern Bloc, but was rather Non-Aligned trying to have good relations with both East and West in the midst of the Cold War. But still, it had a totalitarian regime. There was nothing that brutal and extreme like Siberia in Russia, but we had our own Goli Otok for political prisoners. The regime was much more rigid in the decades closer to WW2, but the grip was loosening as the time went by and people started being disillusioned. The film auteurs were the first (in popular art somewhere in the 60's and 70's) to challenge that idealistic communist point of view and some of the films were indeed banned. When Tito (Yugoslavian dictator) died in 1980. the idolatry was nearing the end and there was more breathing space. That's when all this punk and new wave boom was happening. But, there were bands that had trouble with the police because of their massages, Paraf for example when they were a punk band. Laibach's concerts were banned and their name was forbidden because it was the name of Ljubljana (the capital of Slovenia) during the Nazi occupation. Laibach was the most radical band in music, massages and image. They were toying with a fascist and other totalitarian imagery trying to show that it's all the same thing. Naturally, it was very disturbing for communists, especially when they see that they share many similar traits with their mortal enemies, the fascists.

Thanks for the insights, dankstra. I like how music can unite people and raise awareness. I'd say the U.S. has also transitioned away from greater oppression to quite a lot of free speech, which is wonderful. The sign of a strong government is one that allows and even encourages criticism and handles it openly, rather than trying to squelch it.

LAIBACH from Slovenia