Thursday, July 3, 2008

Laibach interview


When we came to the Student Cultural Center with an idea to interview members of Laibach we found out that band gives only interviews to TV stations. Ha! No way! We are elektrobankmusik and we shall not be denied! So after some radical actions (read: we begged and pleaded) Vier Personen agreed to answer us a few questions. So while we recorded the whole thing with a poor man's digital camera (it has a pathetic excuse for a microphone and the whole sound is bad, we had to read lips to transcribe this), the whole crew of MTV Adria, and several other big TV names, with their flashy pro TV cameras with big optical lenses, big puffy mics and those light direction screens, timidly waited for us to finish.
E.B.M. - Can you tell us about the new 300 000 V.K. lp “Titan”
Vier - This is one of our side projects and I wasn’t personaly involved in it, but I can tell you that it is ambiental electronic album and that is dedicated to Saturn's Cassini mission.

E.B.M. - What is your definition of Eastern Europe?
Vier - It is something that we feel very close to us. It has a deeply rooted enthusiasm in it's nature, and can still look to some things without cynicism. Western Europe has lost this enthusiasm.

E.B.M. - Will barbarians ever get to Europe?
Vier - They are already here. And it is not only story of Europe., “Now You Will Pay” is also story about America.

(Whole interview is a bit longer, but this is all we could decypher from the material we had, it is shitty to publish only partial interview, but hey, this is underground, this is good :)

Divided States of America


When i heard that the opening for the Laibach concert will be their new movie called “Divided States of America”, directed by Sasho Podgorsek, the only thing comingto my mind was “Not another, not THEM jumping the wagon with this anti-american shit”.

Don't get me wrong, America is bad, beyond comprehension, but this all seems like a tidal wave without sense and purpose, and a nice self-promotion for the person/artist/band who gives his opinion, because all of a sudden he becomes an actual saint who fights the injustice, poverty, war and all those bad things plaguing the world today, feeding the audience to the “Miss of the Universe” cliché quotes. So, general feeling was that Laibach became another Green Day surrogate, blended, chewn and preprocessed for mass consumption.

But, as always, i was wrong. Although movie is against current American government, it gently avoids being drawn into self-righteous preaching. This ain't another Michael Moore flick, where a millionaire sells you stories about oppressed people of America working for a dime, while their government spends tax money on bombs, guns and “bad bad things”.

I would really like to find a transcription of the opening speech given by Petar Mlakar of NSK's Institute for pure and applied philosophy. In the absence of this, all i can say is that it takes balls to say things he said in front of a lot of Americans. It wasn't anti-Bush, but anti-American values speech, dissecting them to tiny pieces of nationalistic prejudices about own glory and other's unimportance. Whole tone of the movie was in sync with the Laibach's song “B-machine”, and that is that if all this continues to happen, we're all gone and then it doesn't matter if you have a Lexus or if you live in a trailer.

Reaction from the audience was more than positive, and from what seemed like a cross-section of that “other” America, their opinion was generally united one, that what is happening today is no good. There were people from gay-scientists(?) to regular white collar media workers agreeing that what is going on is bad.

I don't know, maybe i liked it because i can relate to it, it's filmed from the “barbarian” angle of view, from the eyeglasses of people who Americans knew only as James Bond's antagonists, those who buy A-bombs on the black markets, just so they could destroy Americans, because they hate freedom and Americans have freedom.....and Patriot Act.

Laibach WAT tour Belgrade








Long awaited date arrived, and while we were entering the crowded hall of the Student Cultural Center i couldn't help but wonder how Laibach, not anymore an uncommon show in Belgrade, always rises much attention from large number of different people.

Many arty farty celebrities bothered us for days how they like and love Laibach and how it was the most influential band in their lifetime. It is worth explaining that for many years until the breaking of the former Yugoslavia, Laibach was domestic band in Serbia, so they aren't viewed here as some underground attraction in well ironed uniforms, but as the only thing from the old country that did catch global attention and doesn't have to do anything with civil wars and slaughtering your neighbors.

They grew out of their audience torture phase into a more defined and common form of band (no drill press, no milling machines). But although they replaced their old style with a new, more user friendly one, questions they arise didn't suffer from it.

I will not go into their philosophy, appearance or other dubious subjects, as those had been objects of long lasting discussions. I will assume that you've already read, heard and saw it all.


One thing that comes naturally with going to Laibach's concert in Belgrade is that you will be crammed in more than full hall with very small amount of space for dancing (you will have to satisfy yourself with moving your eyebrows with the beat) or anything else other than standing in some of the more obscure yoga positions. Crowd was, as usual, full of young teutonic knights in leather and grumby coats, Hitler jugend haircuts and many gothic mistresses of darkness which spent past few days applying the makeup to their faces were there as well. Several heavy metards and even a few nazis, but except for a single “Suck cock you Slovenian cunts” during the movie, everything was in order and no shit stirring happened. I can't believe one would pay substantial amount of money for a ticket, just to curse at the band, but we Serbs are difficult type of people. This said, most of the audience were normal ordinary people you see on the streets every day.

After the movie, band came on stage, screams and moving hands in the air welcoming them. There is always some moron who elbows his way to the front to nazi-salute to the stage just because the band is singing in german (Alle gegen alle), which is rather pathetic.

At some point several of us with press accreditations were allowed to enter the front row, which was motion liberating. Security advised me to stop dancing and ass-shaking while being there, which was a hard thing to do especially because the band played their dancefloor top of the pops hits “Tanz mit Laibach” and “Now you will pay”. I could easily see these playing in some disco club with pink lights, disco ball, furry chairs and deranged bdsm audience with attached fluorescent dildos, stomping ABBA and Boney M LPs under high platform shoes. It even came to my mind to be a total sleaze ball and start passing onto the girls who were giving their best effort playing those drums and clapping hands at the time while attaining the valkyrie attitude, but i guessed that that would bring me much misery with my girlfriend who was in the back.

Later, the frontline left the stage, leaving rest of the band to show their skills during ultra loud version of "Wirtshaft...". Laibach's keyboardist rules. He looks like a nerd and plays like a demon. Best satanic-sacred-HD-whatever techno i had in years. Too bad i was back in the sardine can again because shooting was over.

At the end, when the lights came out we were left with the static scream...well not static scream, but Umek's remix of the “Tanz mit Laibach” and that was the sign to start fighting to get our jackets from the wardrobe.

The whole experience was great, i liked it as i always like it, and beside the fact that i could expect when will each song be played because this concert was very similar to the one two years ago, Laibach remain as artists that bring me joy every time they play.

I don't want to rationalize the concert just to be able to rate it in some way, the only rate is subjective one and seeing all the eyes shining and smiles across faces in the crowd i think this one was a success.

*added by WMK. Maybe the play list was simmilar to their 2004. show but we have the chance to hear live version of "Mama Leone" and experience its emotional impact on audience and most of the songs had new, more electronic, additions (new version of "Du Bist Unser" was great and i just cant wait for "Anthems Tour" be be released on DVD).

ElektroBankMusik wishes to thank Laibach, Maria and all people from Long Play for a great night.




Interwiev: Sasho Podgorsek


We singled out Sasho Podgorsek, the director of the latest Laibach's movie “Divided States of America” in some dark back corridor, so we could interrogate him about his work with Laibach.

E.B.M. - Can you tell us something about the film?
Sasho - I am very glad to be here in Belgrade, and tonight it will be a special situation that I called “two-for-one”, first you’ll have a film and later the concert. I think, that movie will be very interesting overture to the concert. It was shot last year in America during Laibach's North American tour. As much there is a seriousness and sadness in this film there is also some hope for a better future. I think this is, in a way, a pro American movie. Because it grabs some basic values and emotions from American people, which are, maybe, forgotten. Laibach have spoken to them, through music and lyrics and people responded with those emotions.


E.B.M. - People in America feel guilt, because of their governments actions, just like it was here during the 90's. What is your opinion about that?
Sasho - It’s for sure. Title of the movie “Divided States Of America” speaks about a basic fact that it is not one but two different states. First half is strongly pro-Bush, militant, conservative and there is other half which is totally opposite of that. That other half, when you talk to them, is having a sense of guilt, because other half didn’t see things in a right light. Some of them have spoken really drastic things, like, there will be the same situation as it was in 18th century in France, during the revolution. But we shall see…

E.B.M. - It is Laibach's mission “to make evil nervous”. Were there any reactions during the North American tour.
Sasho - I think that evil is still afraid and that it still waits with its answer to this.


E.B.M. - Thank you very much, we wish you luck.
Sasho – Thank you, goodbye.

Omegga:Blue Year:One


Omegga:Blue Year:One
Label: Roil Noise RNO009 2005.
Roil Noise

Maybe you read reviews of this one somewhere else telling that it is weird and not accessible music. Well I think that they do wrong to the artist and concept of this LP. For an unprepared mind this is weird and screwed up music, but how many unprepared minds come to site like this. If I categorize this as weird I must remember that I heard weirder sounds on Drum and Bass party’s at 4 a.m. and lot of tracks can be used as breaks if you are brave DnB DJ. You can find some mutant noise Trip Hop like my favorite track “Kuatan” (done with Rabbit Girls) + fun IDM/Glitch stuff (“Pink Evolution”) + dark inner hell (“En Sabah Nur”) or you can imagine circuit bent turntablist after few weeks of using amphetamines. Some of the tracks can be categorized as minimal and some as micro but all of them speak same alien noise language. It is easy to get lost in all of 25 tracks that this cd hides but you can always return to discover something that you missed.

Kmarsquantine Die Objektive Wahrheit


Kmarsquantine Die Objektive Wahrheit
Label: Red Star Budapest RSB06 2006.
Red Star Budapest

When you look at the cover picture of this cd with two, mean lookin, Chinese soldiers with AKs and hand grenade, first impression is a sonic assault. But don’t be afraid this is not screaming power noise stuff. This is much calmer madness done by Enron Pretzel (samples, sound machines, unarticulate singing) and Cjjbrozt (samples, synths, articulate singing) of productive Hungarian Red Star Budapest label. Sound of this lp reminds me a lot of Bruce Gilbert and Graham Lewis “Dome” project released by Mute some 25 years ago. If you ever listened to “Dome” you know what I’m talking about but if you don’t, go and find it for your own good. What Kmarsquantine has to offer in this release: samples of comrade Lenin (which is a RSB trademark), clicks, noises, covers that are not covers of “Les Lita Mitsuko”, “China Chrisis” “Borghesia” x2 (song “Mali Covek” from Borghesias “Resistance” LP is actually a cover of Belgrades avantguarde/new wave band Sharlo Akrobata) songs, old school EBM, Ninja Tune mutant hip hop, grunts, more samples, melodies that sound familiar, pitched and unarticulated voices,…….. This is a soundtrack that exists in everyone’s information overloaded brain.
RSB label is on a unique mission, so feel free to contact them and you will receive their releases for free.