#serbian festival

[ststevanofdecani]

Serbian Festival in COLUMBUS

[canmom]

animation night should be viable this week. might do Serbian animation, since I'm gonna flying to Serbia the day after. so far the only notable thing I'm finding is Technotise, which sounds pretty sick... fingers crossed I can find an encode of it somewhere.

other than that, I think there's been enough new stuff for another indie/web animation night. maybe in combination with technotise if i can't find more to go with it, or maybe I just keep it short...

[diathadevil]

NOOOO FUCK they delayed Beer Fest cuz of the rain literally on the DAY of the festival.

This is the most shittiest timing to announce that. The fuck.

[a-dash-in-the-middle]

what if i told you tumblr would eat up the cinematography of this movie

[jokeroutsubs]

[📝ENG TRANSLATION] The most personal conversation with Nace Jordan of Joker Out: "I wanted to justify being in the band"

Original article written by Alma Rahne for Metropolitan, published 14.11.2024. English translation by @weolucbasu, review by IG 10_anja, proofread by @flowerlotus8

Full article under the cut 👇

Prior to the release of the long-awaited Joker Out's third studio album we had a chat with their member, the bassist Nace Jordan. For him this is an especially huge milestone in his career, as this is the first album after he joined the band in 2022 after the previous bassist Martin Jurkovič left.

When Nace Jordan joined Joker Out two years ago, he probably didn't think he'd experience such a rich musical journey. During this time he performed at Eurovision, their song 'Carpe Diem' won the hearts of foreign audiences like a magnet. This was followed by a long European tour, creating new musical material in London and later in Hamburg. The boys also had a rich festival summer.

(Ph: Primož Lukežič)

The year and a half since it all began with the Eurovision song 'Carpe Diem' and up until today, has been rounded off with a new studio album 'Souvenir Pop' by Nace Jordan, Bojan Cvjetićanin, Kris Guštin, Jan Peteh and Jure Maček. The album will be released on the 15th of November. On it there are a collection of 10 songs in Slovene, English and Serbian.

"From every trip each of us usually takes some kind of memorabilia or a so-called 'souvenir'. That's basically what 'Souvenir Pop' represents," clarifies this time's guest, Nace with whom we talked about the creation of new material and his musical beginnings. We also found out after who his new family member got his name from, what food he eats and for how many years he hasn't been drinking alcohol.

(Ph: Mark Pirc)

Rocker bassist, who doesn't drink alcohol

Nace Jordan grew up in Kranj. Perhaps he was a newbie for most two years ago, but before joining Joker Out Nace had already professionally worked with music for over 10 years. He collaborated with most Slovene performers, including Jan Plestenjak, Samuel Lucas, Katarina Mala... and as he tells he "at least once in his life accompanied all the main Slovene musicians on an instrument."

When he turned 18, he went on a cruise ship where he gained invaluable experience. He always stood up for those who were weaker in school, even if that meant he got the short end of the stick. Likeable and almost always in a good mood, he admits that he also has a bad day sometimes.

(Ph: Nace Jordan's private archive)

"I'm definitely a positive person, but I also have days when I'm the complete opposite of myself and on those days, nothing is good enough, nothing is okay, everything sucks. Actually, the way I'm on stage I'm also privately. When I'm in a bad mood you notice it quickly, because I can't hide it. Which maybe isn't always the best." (smiles)

(Ph: Profimedia)

Alongside music, he's also enthusiastic about cooking, where he transfers his creative approach onto how preparing dishes. He especially likes dishes with polenta and he explores recipes without gluten. A few years ago he even applied to a goulash cooking competition in Kranj with a friend, where they won. He still keeps the medal and the pot at home. Even though he has gotten used to gluten-free food, he explains, with a sparkle in his eyes that he sometimes misses a really "good, freshly baked donut".

During our conversation, Nace confides in us that he hasn't been drinking alcohol for 10 years. If anyone encourages him, to drink something stronger, he playfully declines: "When you have a baby, I will drink to their health." And he stays true to this. He maybe drinks once or twice per year, at a really special opportunity or dinner.

He joined the group without any greater expectations

His integration into the group happened at the speed of light. "When me and Bojan (Cvjetićanin) got together for a drink, he mentioned that Martin is leaving the group and they're looking for a new member. According to him, I was the most appropriate for that and they wanted to meet up with me at their place (practice space), so we could play something together. This was actually before the concert in Križanke (9th September 2022). In the beginning, I was careful, because I've been in situations where I came into a band and we didn't get along. Being in a group isn't easy. Back then I told Bojan: "Let's get together and get a feel for each other." Prior to that, I didn't know the other members. I entered slightly reserved, without any greater expectations," he describes the beginning of his collaboration with the other members of Joker Out.

(Ph: Aleksandra Saša Prelesnik)

"Then we played together a bit. After Križanke, we didn't see each other for a bit, because Kris went to travel in Peru. When he returned, we started practicing again, because we had a performance waiting for us. Martin decided he wouldn't play anymore, I had not yet been an official member of the band, but I did go and play with them." And the rest is, as we like to say, history.

"I wanted to justify being in the band"

The new third album of Joker Out, 'Souvenir Pop' is especially dear to Nace, as it is, as previously mentioned, his first album that he created together with the rest of the band members.

"Maybe I slept a bit worse the final nights when we were finishing up the album. Maybe because of that I was slightly more nervous, because I wanted to justify being in the band and the fact that some new good songs were made. For example, the single 'Carpe Diem', which was accepted greatly, as well as 'Šta bih ja' and 'Bluza', which are amazing songs to me. I also want the same for the other songs on the album. More or less, I felt some kind of pressure that this album has to be really good."

The new album of course has a whiff of foreign countries, as we find songs in two other languages besides Slovene: English and Serbian. But for sure, this album will not have an identical sound as the previous two albums.

(Ph: Vita Orehek)

"I think that everything that Bojan sings and we play is Joker Out. You can't escape that. But for sure, it doesn't sound the same as the previous albums. We all played those songs so often that you want something different in a while to make the concert more interesting. The song 'Carpe Diem' already doesn't sound the same as the previous album to my ears. Maybe the new album sounds more closely like a combination of 'Carpe Diem', 'Šta bih ja' and 'Everybody's Waiting'. That's the genre we're moving in. But there are definitely some surprises on the album, which caused some doubt in me during the middle stage, where I was wondering if this even fits on the album. But now that I listen to the album as a whole, I actually really like it," he says and is satisfied with the final product.

The order of the songs on the album is placed into a story. "I think that Kris described it very well in an interview. The first part of the album takes place right after Eurovision, this hype (circus, noise), confidence, this kind of power, surreality. The second part of the album represents the time after you've taken a step back and summarised all of this. At the same time, some dark things can come out during that time. The second half is a bit more dark and I think we nicely captured the transition into this," he clarifies.

Album cover taken between the sheets

If their last album covers were in colour, this one is black and white. On it, the boys pose in between the sheets. The picture was taken on the morning of the Eurovision final.

"Maybe none of us is perfect in this picture, but we all agreed that this picture isn't just some visual image, but it also has some kind of energy, which tells us exactly what was happening then. You look at this picture and you see some kind of energy between us, a bit of nervousness..." describes Nace.

Album cover of their new album 'Souvenir Pop'. (Ph: Joker Out archive)

The bassist likes it, if the songs jump from genre to genre on albums. "So you don't get bored, when you listen to it as a whole." Each song carries its own story and a kind of emotional charge. Between the new songs you can find ones that especially touched him.

"The first one that really touched me is for sure 'Carpe Diem', it's our first song together after all. Then the seventh song on the album ('Lips'), because is contains the most of me. Already the idea for it was created on a laptop in bed and not at the place with the band. The creative process alone connected me with it, it for sure is one of the most different, striking songs. When you'll listen to it, you'll see what I mean. The ninth song ('Sonce') is a ballad. When I listen to it, it doesn't matter how I'm feeling at that moment, it always touches me. With that song I like: the topic of the song, the lyrics itself and how Bojan serves it. When I played it to my mum, she got teary-eyed."

(Ph: Nace Jordan's private archive)

They experimented with different instruments on this album. Nace first and foremost plays bass, but recently he also bought a Wurlitzer piano (a type of piano which you plug into electricity). "It's a very dear instrument to me and I finally got to buy it. The same week I bought it, I put it into a new song," excitedly tells the 30-year old, who, for the album, alongside the bass also recorded another guitar, marracas and other pianos and programmed the drums, where there are no acoustic drums.

He often takes on the role of an older brother

In the group Nace takes place of someone who takes care of all the studio things. "I already did this in the past and I felt at home with it. When we were finishing up the album, I took care that the album was be finished on time. The last three weeks before the album was finished, I shared our Producer's Žare Pak's biorhythm which means I was up from 4pm until 10 am." (smiles)

As he is the oldest, turning 30 this year, he often takes on the role of an older brother. With his responsibility and mature approach he takes care of the other members: "Boys, today let's maybe hold back a bit, we have a long weekend ahead of us. Sometimes they make fun of me because of it, but the following day at least one of them is probably grateful." (smiles)

"We encourage each other"

It doesn't happen often that members of a band are also privately good friends. We can say that this certainly isn't true when it comes to Joker Out. As friends they support each other at all moments, go on holiday together, spend their free time together, hang out during social evenings, which creates a unique energy amongst them, which can be felt by the audience at every concert. This friendhsip gives their music additional depth and energy, because of which their fans feel as though they are a part of their story.

(Ph: Damon Baker)

The dynamic between members naturally changes and develops through time. Together they experience new challenges, creative processes and personal transitions, which effects their relationships. Slowly, special bonds are created between them because of this - with some they connect on a deeper emotional level, with some more in a business sense.

"When I feel bad or I want to talk about deeper matters with someone that person will certainly be Bojan. Because he really knows how to get close to a person in that moment and give them good advice. With Kris we are both more business orientated and we have almost daily conversations about what we have to do and what we have to improve. Because of this we often go and grab a coffee and we see each other the most. With Jure you will never just be sitting down, but you have to do another activity as well. A love for keyboards connects me and Jan, we talk the most about music. Jan also often inspires me with his manner of playing," say Nace, who with Jan forms a fantastic guitar duo on stage.

(Ph: Vita Orehek)

Their collaboration is energetic, synchronised and soaked with the right amount of improvisation, which concert goers already feel during the first chords. Their connection is expressed through music, as they can easily communicate through looks alone while playing and improve their performance. This authentic relaxed chemistry between then is something so natural that they have also moved this to the audience.

(Ph: Profimedia)

He takes care of his stamina at night

The Jokers are famous for their dynamic performances, where stamina comes in handy. "It's definitely easier, if you have some stamina. I try to keep it up. Sometimes a bit better, sometimes a bit worse. When I come on stage, I want to support what I'm doing with movement, with my body and to someone in the audience, who is looking at you and wants your attention, I try to give it back tenfold. I try to put myself into the shoes of a fan because I know exactly what I would like. We provide each other with energy, so it's very important that we're in a good mood during our performances. We encourage each other, support each other."

Recently he spends a lot of time at the piano, which relaxes him. As a true Gorenjska local he also loves mountains, but he's recently been running out of spare time. "I like going to the hills very much, but I sadly go so rarely that I'm almost embarassed to say. The walking really relaxes me. I would also like to fish more. Me and Bojan are very amateur fishermen, but that's our common interest."

He mentions that he also likes to run and swim. "I am the funniest runner in the world, because I run between 11pm and midnight. I often look behind me and also run faster. (laughter) Getting out of the door is the most difficult. I admit, it's sometimes torture, but the satisfaction after I'm finished is then that much greater. Running also helps my mental health a lot."

(Ph: Vita Orehek)

New family member - dachshund Pino

A few months ago, Nace's life was enriched by a new family member, an adorable dachshund named Pino. He was named after the amazing English bassist with Italian roots, Pino Palladino, who performed with Adele, Paul Young, The Who, Nine Inch Nails and others. At first, Pino was a bit shy, but he quickly won his heart over.

"In the beginning I always needed a sitter for him. Now we've progressed so far that he can be home alone a bit longer. It's definitely some kind of additional responsibilty, but he made my life better. When I come home he is very honestly happy to see me. Nothing can replace this feeling. Everyone who has a dog knows this well. He also won a right to the bed, he sleeps with me. I spoiled him a bit much," he honestly admits while laughing.

In the past months Nace's life is being made better by the dachshund Pino. (Ph: Nace Jordan's private archive)

Even though taking care of a dog is an additional responsibilty, Nace is grateful for his new furry friend and the feeling of unconditional love, which can only be understood by those, who have a dog.

For the ending, we were interested in what has been the greatest lecture he has learned in the past year, "Oof, great question. I don't now if I've learned it, but I'm still trying. At the moment when something wasn't going my way, I always wanted to do anything to solve it. Now, I've realised that it's much better to take a step back and look at things from a different perspective and then return."

[natasa-pantovic]

NatasaPantovicPublished Author since 1991, Management Consultant since 1999, Adoptive Parent since 2008 Using AoL #consciousness research as a process, #phil..

Nataša Pantović LIVE with Magic Spell from Tree of Life and Dr Rudolf Ragonesi with Spring, A Collection of Aphorisms at the University Book Festival. Music by Norman Cristina.

relax-journey-of-discovery_from-mindful-being-course-by-natasa-pantovic

[izpira-se-zlato]

Milan, 27.03.24

Gig report! Can't believe there's only two to go after this one :o (for me)

I showed up at 4:45pm (bc I'd chosen to get food at the station) and was still a lower number than in Munich at 2pm. Yeah.

didn't really queue thus, which always makes gigs a bit… different. I miss chatting with people before gigs, but I hadn't wanted to fly (even though after the venue move that would have been even easier. But also catching a 7:30 flight the morning after a gig. Yeah, no)

the queue kinda fell apart because you needed a membership card to get into the venue. We didn't have to pay. But they had to handwrite it for us. Emotions ran a little high

the venue was. Something. Sorta a… festival tent? Not quite outdoors, but definitely Interesting

due to the proximity to the airport, the radio frequencies from planes kept interfering with the equipment. Bojan attempted to explain it to us, but he didn't know it himself and thus mostly listened. I feared for the worst at that point, ngl. They didn't look particularly angry to me, but Bojan was like, "Don't be angry, Jan!" so I was like 😬

Bojan tried to get Jure and then also Nace to jam while they were figuring out their tech issues (Always Something Problem), but it meant Jan couldn't hear himself enough and so we just watched him wander on stage while Bojan tried to entertain us

We got ASTP and Proti Toku for soundchek. My first ASTP in 12 gigs on this tour! Curious to see what we'll get today

Bojan repeatedly called Jan "Jenzo" and then later claimed "Just so you know, Jan's Italian name is Jenzo!" with which the crowd disagreed (and let him know that it should be Gianni)

soundcheck was pretty cold and I almost regretted not having taken my jacket (but it did warm up)

the opener was a brass band. Unexpected but actually fun. Fit the gig, somehow

they played a lot of medleys of known songs and the crowd was pretty into it

JC! God, I barely can believe that it was the second-to-last tie I saw him live like that. I love his acoustic set a lot (in particular the first and last songs xD)

He accidentally unplugged his guitar last night. Kinda a funny moment

pretty sure the hype list was changed. Dirty Little Secret made it into the cut, and to our surprise, Zitti e Buoni didn't. Weird choice, Primož (or so I assume)

Actual gig!

We got Jan in a capybaster shirt and Nace in the cosy sweater and Bojan in a buttoned shirt he got gifted during soundcheck and Jure in the gorgeous metallic sweater and Kris in another cozy sweater

The Jance was off the fucking charts, jfc I hate them idk what was in the air. Probably hadn't seen each other all day (I'm not actually complaining)

We got SSOL opener into… Ne Bi Smel into Ona into Tokio

During Ne Bi Smel Jan was standing in front of Nace's mic so Nace had to push him away to sing the backing vocals (grinning all the while)

Bojan went, "This night is gonna be multilingual" so I was like, oh, Tokio, but no! "We had English, then Slovene, now we're gonna add some Serbian!" Changing his quips for the final stretch, huh?

Nace singing fucking "Dok tebe sunce greje, mi amore" at Jan. I hate him (While the sun warms you up, my love, according to lyrics translate)

They also played at each other during NBS because of course they did

Jan back on Jure's snare drum for the end. Multi-instrumentalist

Tokio! I didn't catch it on video, but Nace leaned in and bumped his nose into Jan's breast? Kissed his coat? I have no clue what he did but I was like ??? Nace?

At the end, they chased each ohter in circles again, and Nace either went down on one knee in front of Jan or almost did so. When the lights came back on, Nace patted Jan's chest while laughing (couldn't make out Jan's expression)

before NGVOT, Nace was thrown bread. A plushie? Actual bread? I don't know

Nace kept looking over at Jan during NGVOT, and when Jan finally met his gaze, he turned to him so they played at each other. Jan was making a mock-surprised grimacing face and playing? And then they just. Turned back to the front. What the fuck, guys

they just. kept looking at each other. Jan looking at Nace while Nace was doing backing vocals. Nace looking back as soon as he was done. Them swaying in sync while Nace smiled smugly about it. And at the end, they did the swaying like. In opposite cycles? So both sawying in and both swaying away, until Nace turned and bent his knees a little and yelled up into Jan's face. Yeah idk.

we didn't only get Bluza but got it before Šta bih ja

Kris came over to hug Jan during Bluza 🥰😭

Jan's expressions during the ending were. Something 😂

more silliness from Jan and Nace during Šta bih ja

Bojan: "This is a new song! Why do you know it"

also uh. Synchronised hip thrusting while facing each other at the end of the song. Yeah. Jfc remember you're on a stage, guys

Jan either messed up the opening of Demoni or his guitar gave out for a hot second but he was wearing a very oops expression

Jan grasped Nace's shoulders during Demoni and I think spoke the words at him? Or said something else? But that wouldn't make sense? Nace nodded and patted Jan's chest in turn

Got the Demoni scream

PiJano Padam. Bojan looked really tired during that song. Jfc get this man to take a break

Intense staring at each other at the beginning of Umazane until Nace said something to Jan and then both grinned and Nace wandered off

Nace was pretty silly at the start of the karaoke bit and like. gestured at Jan theatrically and then mimed falling over. Dork

We got the OG OG Umazane Misli chorus. The one Bojan wrote in a hurry the first time they performed it. Made my night -- and Kris's because it's where the very smiley/laughing Kris pics during UM came from

@kurooscoffee/@jokeroutsubs had prepared UNO reserve cards to make the boys sing. Which made the rounds already but gaaah it was !!!!!!

Jan declaiming the verse because "[he] can't sing so [he's] not gonna sing. [He's] gonna interpret it." And interpret he did😂

Nace with the "oh oh" before he started jfc the dork

Jan ducking under Nace's arm to play his bass after he failed to catch Nace's attention to offer, and then just. Going for it.

Nace slinging an arm around Jan

Nace singing "morning smells like you" right at Jan while Jan keeps looking up at him from playing chords on Nace's bass

Kris "Jan! Play, play the melody, I need the harmony!" (and Jan did)

god we need more Kris singing plssss

Kris sang the verse mostly at Nace

Jure going "oooh fuck!" and not knowing the entire lyrics 😂😂 Jance this and Jance that, but that made my night

I didn't see Bojan at barricade cheering his band mates on but he was and just. Gah. It was such a wholesome thing I hate them

Nace posed for pictures with a silly expression, and then Jance posed for a combined heart for someone

Plastika saw Bojan caress Nace and then hug Jan from behind (no choking tho)

During Novi Val, Jance stood off to the side being Jance for quite a while, while Jure had his hand weirdly on Bojan's back?

They looked really exhausted by the end which. Mood.

Post gig:

The venue had a scrolling LED screen that scrolled "Everybody's Waiting At The Ball" (thanks, Kris, for the restory!)

Had a chat with Dean (lovely) and JC Stewart (also lovely) and learned that JC and Conor used to live together which is why JC was out with Conor to be introduced to the boys (allegedly before Christmas, though JC wasn't 100%)

hung around the gate after the show even though it was pretty clear they wouldn't say hi, but it gave us a chance to see Mark (who'd surprised the boys with a visit) as he was waiting for someone to let him off the venue grounds. "Well, they'll have to open this at some point, they ordered McDonald's!"

Spoiler: they did not open the gate for McDonalds. Primož tried to scale it, which almost worked but looked dangerous, and so the delivery person threw it over the top. It was a spectacle

by that point, Mark had been let out the old-fashioned way though

[kwisatzworld]

List of Valentino Rossi books and documentaries:

inspired by @pgaslys list of marc’s docs

📚 Books

What If I Had Never Tried It [English/Italian/Spanish/German/Japanese/Chinese, etc.]: Vale’s only autobiography to date, translated into a lot of languages (so many that it’s hard to keep count). The English edition is notoriously rough - think spelling mistakes and some lost-in-translation moments. Despite this, yellow fans absolutely shouldn’t miss out on this gem. Published in 2006, during Vale’s zenith with five consecutive championships under his belt, the book radiates his happiness and confidence. The narrative is casual, with chapters loosely connected, but you will still find pleasure in reading this book.

MotoGenius: the Valentino Rossi biography by Mat Oxley: Oxley remains my all-time favorite Rossi author! Initially published years ago, the latest edition is available on Kindle. It’s a treasure trove of Vale anecdotes and Oxley’s unique insights, offering a glimpse into how Vale captivated his generation.

The Valentino Rossi Files: Everything I’ve ever written about VR by Mat Oxley: Available on Kindle, this collection (in two parts) encapsulates all the articles Oxley wrote about Vale for magazines and newspapers before joining Motor Sport Magazine.

Valentino Rossi: The Definitive Biography by Stuart Barker: A comprehensive biography of Vale, chronologically organized.

Valentino Rossi: Il Dio del Motociclismo by Fabio Fagnani [Italian]: Not recommended as the author’s fan-like admiration making it read more like a love letter than a biography. The only saving grace is the interview with Aldo Drudi.

Valentino Rossi: All His Races by Mat Oxley [English/German/Japanese/Serbian]: Chronicles every race of Vale’s career, enriched with exclusive interviews.

🎥 Documentaries

When asked about a movie about himself, Vale said, “If it’s a bad movie, I’d rather it didn’t exist.” He holds a similarly cautious stance towards documentaries, and has never personally produced a documentary about himself, though perhaps that might change at some point in the future.

Faster (2003) : Premiered at the Festival de Cannes during MotoGP’s golden era, this documentary intriguingly portrays the rivalry between Vale and Max Biaggi.

The Doctor, the Tornado, and the Kentucky Kid (2006) : Focuses on the 2005 season, especially the US Grand Prix, you can see the beautiful yellow livery of Yamaha’s 50th anniversary.

Fastest (2011) : A sequel to Faster.

Hitting the Apex (2015) : Arguably the best MotoGP documentary out there. Vale and Marco riding into the sunset to ‘Wish you were here’ is a poignant moment.

Valentino Rossi: The Doctor (2016) : Produced by Monster Energy, primarily illustrating how Vale expanded his empire step by step.

Racing Together (2017): MotoGP history isn’t complete without its greatest icon, Vale features for about 15 minutes.

Valentino’s Secret Room: Inside the Doctor’s Hidden Archive (2020) : Produced by Dainese, revealing Vale’s personal collection.

Ruta 46 – Ruta 93: El camino de dos mitos (2021) : Produced by DAZN España, unfortunately I haven’t seen it yet – if you have, let me know how it tells the tale.

Tales of Valentino (2021) : A nine-episode documentary series produced by Dorna, showcasing different aspects of Vale’s career through nine significant races.

RiVale | Valentino Rossi as Told by His Rivals (2021) : Produced by DAZN Italia featuring Vale’s main rivals (except Marc), sharing their stories with him.

Rossi | BT Sport Documentary on the Career of MotoGP Icon, Valentino Rossi (2022) : Produced by BT Sport following Vale’s retirement, highlighted by Suzi Perry’s captivating hosting style.

MotoGP Unlimited (2022) : No need for a lengthy introduction – it’s probably already been watched by everyone by now.

[endlich-allein]

"A Serbian website, kurir.rs, interviewed Zoran Bihać during his visit to Belgrade's FEST film festival. Among others, Zoran discusses Rammstein, his work with the band and Till's solo projects, provides details on why he stopped working with Rammstein explains the story behind the videos for "Platz Eins" and "Till the End". He also shares an intimate story of Till Lindemann's visit to his mother's house. Excerpts:

"Till pushed me, I pushed him, we were a perfect symbiosis, but a bit brutal. I worked with him honestly and wholeheartedly, and he with me. What he's doing now with other people is like Rammstein from Ali Express. He sees that too, but he only says it out loud when he gets drunk."

"When he went into a solo project, it was in a way the breakup with Rammstein. That's why I wanted to do videos for his independent project in a completely different way. I made a music video for the song "Praise Abort" with a message explaining that situation. The video starts with "Rammstein Till" and then "solo Till" comes in with a pig face and kicks him off the stage. A lot of people didn't understand that. After working on Till's solo project, the other members of the band told me that I would no longer do Rammstein videos. They couldn't handle Till's success without them. So they decided to stop working with me. Till knew that, but I didn't, that was the price I had to pay."

"People only see what is brutal, the scenes from that video ("Till the End" - ed. note) are images from their nightmares. They don't see what I wanted to say with such a video. It is a story about a man who is always hungry and, no matter how much he eats, he cannot be satisfied. And he is the loneliest man in the world and he cannot find the love he is looking for. A lot of people understood that, but we didn't want to offend anyone with erotica, but only to cause a shock. It created a lot of problems for me in Germany, several jobs were cancelled."

Photo: Dado Djilas"

Rammwiki

[marxistcomedy]

Anyone working in counter-propaganda can testify to a curious experience: we’ll put in hours of careful research collecting an impeccable set of resources that undermines some warmongering narrative, and we’ll eagerly share it with someone who claims to despise racism in all its forms — say, an outspoken opponent of the West’s so-called “War on Terror.” Unexpectedly, we are met with a response that is somewhere between chilly reticence and downright hostility. What’s going on?

From our perspective, we’re offering water to a person who’s self-identified as thirsty, and yet they react as if we were trying to poison them! They turn on a dime to defend the same institutions whose lies they were denouncing just moments before. At this point the sense of pride and accomplishment that comes from seeing through propaganda and putting puzzle pieces together into a satisfying historical account gets brutally transformed into its exact opposite: a sense of crushing defeat. In response to this bitter experience, many researchers — serious people, with plenty of experience reading and writing, and sometimes even of being published! — lash out. They decide that people have been “brainwashed” beyond the point where they can be reached by words or rational appeal. They “realize” that the masters of propaganda have been far more successful than we first imagined: it turns out we’re not David fighting Goliath, we’re more like an ant facing an asteroid.

The same inquisitive nature that first led them to unravel war propaganda narratives begins to feed an even larger psycho-historical narrative, and nihilism takes hold. The tragic cycle begins to appear eternal: innocent, well-meaning, hard-working folks are, time and again, viciously tricked by the scapegoating of a new rogue in the gallery — Indigenous, Black, Spanish, Jewish, Soviet, Vietnamese, Cuban, Serbian, Muslim, Libyan, Syrian, Korean, Venezuelan, Russian, Chinese. Due to the sheer power of propaganda and mass-media, the masses helplessly fall for hatred and volunteer for war, even though it comes at a very high cost to ourselves, our loved ones, and our ideals (religion, environmentalism, etc.). Sadly, the innate human propensity to “hate the Other” seals our fate as a society… or something along those lines.

I am going to argue that this narrative is nonsense. It tries to pass off as universal and eternal something that in reality is particular and ephemeral. In short: Westerners aren’t helpless innocents whose minds are injected with atrocity propaganda, science fiction-style; they’re generally smug bourgeois proletarians who intelligently seek out as much racist propaganda as they can get their hands on. This is because it fundamentally makes them feel better about who they are and how they live. The psychic and material costs are rationally worth the benefits. As for those anti-imperialists who don’t participate in this festival of xenophobia — and here I include myself — we have our own elitist consolation: we accept the tragedy of masses of gullible sheeple falling for cunning propaganda because having overcome it flatters our own intelligence. The more we condemn society’s stupidity, the smarter we feel in comparison.

But am I not just worsening the problem, aggravating our hopelessness, by criticizing the critics in a way that suggests that no one escapes ideological self-flattery? I don’t think so. Paradoxically, it brings us all back to a more even and possibility-rich playing field.

The prevailing populist narrative grants the People (of the West) moral innocence by attributing to them utter stupidity and naivety; I invert the equation and demand a Marxist narrative instead: Westerners are willingly complicit in crimes because they instinctively and correctly understand that they benefit as a class (as a global bourgeois proletariat) from the exploitation enabled by their military and their propaganda (in Gramscian: organs of coercion and consent). We’re not as stupid as we’re made out to be. This means that we can be reasoned with, that there is a way out.

[emphasis mine]

[qstarhalo]

Como hoy es el día del idioma para qsmpblr, quería hacer una lista con todas las canciones que me han enviado y las que yo misma he elegido! ^^ ¡y si quieren enviarme más, por favor hazlo!

Español:

★ En la Ciudad de la Furia - Soda Stereo

★ Colgando en tus manos - Carlos Baute

★ Soñé - Zoé

★ Festival de las luces - Mueran Humanos

★ Japón - Mecano

★ Él Me Mintió - Amanda Miguel

★ Honey, No Estás - Bratty

★ Fuimos Amor - Esteman

★ Cariño - The Marías

★ ¿Porqué te vas? - Jeanette

★ Ahora Decide - Pimpinela

Portugués:

★ Se Eu Fosse Casado - Lui Lorenzo

★ Inveja - Lourandes

★ Avião De Papel - Carolina Deslandes, Rui Veloso

★ A Vida Toda - Carolina Deslandes

★ Lambada - Kaoma

Francés:

★ Tout le monde se presse - Sanseverino

★ Jalousie - Angèle

★ Démons - Angèle, Damso

★ Ta reine - Angèle

★ Papaoutai - Stromae

★ Dernière danse - Indila

★ Je veux - Zaz

★ Ça (c'est vraiment toi) - Téléphone

★ Comme des enfants - Cœur De Pirate

Alemán:

★ Alles Neu - Peter Fox

★ Schrei nach Liebe - Die Ärzte

Serbian:

★ Molitva - Marija Šerifović

Idioma + Idioma:

★ Corazón - Maluma ft. Nego do Borel (esp. + pt.)

★ Fever - Dua Lipa, Angèle (eng. + fr.)

★ Everything Matters - AURORA, Pomme (eng. + fr.)

[ststevanofdecani]

[tulisydan]

You always get me some surprise

“You always get me some surprise” 

this actually hits so hard. I have been thinking this comment since I saw this video right after Eurovision final. This comment is why I can’t take seriously when people try to analyse their friendship by using social media interactions, OF ALL THINGS, as their tools and proof. 

We do not know shit. We did not know that Bojan always has some surprises to Jere. We do not know what happens behind the cameras.

Remember that interview where Bojan said that one of the reasons why Jere and Bojan gets along so well because Jere felt comfortable with Bojan and that it was important to Bojan to make Jere feel comfortable and safe because everyone tried to get a piece of Käärijä [which we know overwhelmed him]. Maybe that’s the reason why Bojan’s social media behavior is so low-key. Or maybe he is just a private person with his friends and family (very likely). At the same time people were/are accusing that Bojan was/is using Käärijä as PR to Joker Out’s Eurovision journey/today’s success. There is no win-win situation to him. That’s why I can’t help but to roll my eyes when people analyse some Instagram likes/comments/whatever.

Some of the cutest things that we know what has happened between these two we have heard it by accident. Oh Jere gave Bojan his rare hockey jersey? Bojan recorded bunch of Käärijä’s songs in Serbian festival? Bojan being there for Jere after losing Eurovison even though he was very very disappointed in their own results? Bojan always gets Jere some surprises?  

[teatitty]

My little headcanons of what I think some of the witcher characters are [IE: polish, english, danish etc] based on the vibes they give me and some of their name conventions

Geralt: Polish. He's the main character of the novels it just makes sense to me that he'd be the most polish of everyone

Vesemir: Slavic as fuck. I put him down as Serbian but you could make a good argument for any of the slavic countries really

Lambert: German. Based purely on vibes

Eskel: Nordic. I lean more to him being Danish if we want to get specific but you can put him anywhere so long as he's nordic. His name comes from an old norse word and I know Witchers like Geralt and Vesemir name themselves but I like to think Eskel kept his on lock

Coen: Flemish. He just seems belgian to me I can't explain it

Cirilla: Her name is likely of Greek descent, coming from Cyril, since Calanthe is also a name stemming from Ancient Greek, so Greek Ciri real to me

Dandelion: Welsh. I've said this before but Wales has a huge yearly festival where they celebrate the arts such as poetry and music so it simply Fits for him. He's capable of mimicking many different accents though

Yennefer: Yenn was a hard one to pin down but in the end I thought somewhere in the Southeast. Serbia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Moldova etc she'd fit with any of those I think

Triss: She was relatively easy. Triss comes from Beatrice which itself is derived from the latin "beatus" and Merigold is Marigold which comes from middle english "mary + gold" so Triss is from england but she's Cornish <3 her and Dandy can be brittonic language besties

Regis: Hard as it is for me to say this that man is French as fuck

[profesors]

◾Serbian young men in national costume, holding a large bunch of grapes, Smederevo 2018 🇷🇸

◾The "Smedervska jesen" is one of the most important agricultural-tourism-economic events in Serbia. It is held every year in September in Smederevo, with the aim of presenting high-quality agricultural products, a rich tourist offer as well as the economic potential of the Smederevo region. The first manifestation was held at the end of the 19th century. For the first three exhibitions that were held before the Second World War, the central event was the Exhibition of Grapes and the selection of winegrowers. During the first exhibition, a festive party with a dance was held on the first day, and a banquet was organized on the last day of the exhibition. The program included a visit to the vineyard of His Majesty the King of Serbia Aleksandar I Obrenović in Plavinac and private vineyards, as well as a demonstration of working with a mulcher. After the Second World War, the preparation of the exhibition is only one segment in a multitude of programs of a different character. The event is conditionally divided into an economic, sports, cultural and entertainment part. The commercial part presents an exhibition of grapes, wine and fruit and other economic branches of the city. In addition to this, the manifestation has a number of content and programs of a sports, entertainment and cultural character, the number, content and quality of which vary from manifestation to manifestation. In 1989, the event began with a ceremonial parade through the streets of the city with about 500 participants. That practice has been maintained to this day. Since 2000, a larger number of programs have been introduced that have the prefix ethno in their name. In this period, the program of cultural and historical content, which takes place in the Smederevo Fortress, is established. It is, first of all, the program of the knightly brotherhood "SVIBOR" and stage representations of the despot Đurđ Branković and his family. At the same time, an agricultural exhibition program is established, in which each village of the Smederevo region gets its own exhibition space and within it the opportunity for agricultural and ethnic presentation. The event also has its fair part located in the large city of Smederevo Fortress. There are merry-go-rounds, tents with food and music, stalls with various goods.

[jokeroutsubs]

📝ENG TRANSLATION: Križanke Anniversary Part 2/3

The band Joker Out revealed to us what can't be missing backstage. You'll be surprised...

To celebrate 2 years since Joker Out's concert at Križanke, we decided to translate some content from that time. This article was translated as part of our celebration.

Original article written by Alma Rahne for Metropolitan.si, published 08.09.2022. English translation by @chaosofsmarty, review by @kurooscoffee, proofread by @flowerlotus8.

Audio version available here.

Translation below the cut 👇

(Photo: Aleksandra Saša Prelesnik)

The boys had the doors of the secret spot where they spend the most of their time wide open for us. Among other things, they told us what was the most unusual gift they got from a fan and what they do during the drives to concerts.

Joker Out doesn't need a special introduction, but still... The Ljubljana group of five, consisting of Bojan Cvjetićanin (vocals and majority songwriter), Jure Maček (drums), Kris Guštin (guitar), Jan Peteh (guitar) and Martin Jurkovič (bass), did not rest during the summer. Instead of chasing the sun's rays, they shut themselves in the studio, where they worked tirelessly on the new, second album 'Demoni', which was released recently. There are 10 new songs on it, including two in Serbian. The band performed at the Exit festival in Novi Sad in July and made it clear that Slovenia has become too small for them and that there are no limits for good music.

This time, we visited the members of the popular band – drummer Jure Maček was absent due to unpostponable obligations – in the rehearsal room. A place that they have equipped in their own way with a little imagination and creativity.

Even though the space is small, that's exactly what makes it special, homely. At first glance, it gives the impression of a living room, in which many instruments, speakers and cables are displayed. You can immediately feel the special energy and at the same time the wish for a private acoustic concert. I admit, I wouldn't have said no to it. Read on to find out everything we spoke about...

(Photo: Matic Kremžar)

What are demons to you?

Bojan: What all people have in common is that we have our demons and that we're demons for someone. For me personally, demons were songs. The demons were the expectations, waiting, creating... Now I'm starting to face other demons. The five of us are each other's demons. Žare (producer) is a demon. Jan is the resident demon exorcist.

Jan: Žare is a big demon. Maybe demons are something that comes when you have too many dirty thoughts.

Bojan: I just wanted to say, demons are dirty thoughts that you can't get rid of.

Martin: The songs we've been making for so long are our demons.

On the new album there are two songs in Serbian. You don't hide your craving to conquer the Balkans as well...

Bojan: Our huge desire and inspiration is expanding our musical journey to the Balkans. In fact, in the Balkans, which used to be the mecca of rock 'n' roll, the scene has completely died out. I would dare to say that of the countries within the former Yugoslavia, Slovenia is by far the most favorable for musicians of all genres, except for turbofolk performers.

It seems to me that there's one big gap in terms of these 'live performances' and they also lack young bands and interesting performers. Let's just say that one of our missions would be to expand there and get the younger people to listen to guitars, drums again. Slovenia is an area that would be very suitable for them, because there are no more venues in the Balkans where unexperienced bands could perform, or there are very few such venues. Whereas here, there's a huge amount of them. It would be very nice if some mixing started to happen. They accept us and we accept them.

(Photo: Aleksandra Saša Prelesnik)

Kris: I'd like to see us establish a sort of "precedence" that Slovenians are also going to the Balkans, in addition to Senidah, who has already done so, and that young rock 'n' roll bands can also come to Slovenia. To somehow re-establish the Yugoslav spirit, especially in music. I want Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian young bands to start going to Slovenia more, because this direction, at least in terms of rock 'n' roll, is not utilised as much.

Listeners' expectations before the release of each subsequent song are high. Is there any fear present?

Bojan: You can't know, but we listened to the album so many times and really enjoyed listening to it so much that we completely lost that feeling of nervousness about what they were going to say out there, because we were really happy with what we did and we didn't care.

Kris: We're pretty confident about what we've made and created.

(Photo: Aleksandra Saša Prelesnik)

How many times do you record a certain song to be able to say it's the final version?

Bojan: For example, we recorded the song 'Katrina' only once.

Kris: You have pieces that come together right away, and you have some that you have to work on for months. We tried to make the song 'Padam' in a much more band-like format than it is on the album now, but in the end we found that it completely takes away the message of the lyrics and we just let it kind of float with the instrumental.

Where did you get the idea to put the song ‘Ne govoriva več o tem' (We Don't Talk About It Anymore) on the album with the abbreviations Ngvot?

Kris: When I brought this piece to rehearsals, I already had it written with the name Ngvot. I don't know why... It's already so ingrained in our collective subconscious that it's Ngvot that we've said let's leave it that way. And that something else interesting happens when you're looking at the tracklist. But I'm shocked at how many people just read the word and don't think that it could be an acronym (smiles).

Bojan: In the playlist for the concerts, we always wrote it as Ngvot, just like Vdg ('Vem da greš' - I know you're going).

If I'm not mistaken, the arrangement of the song on the album is different than what we've heard at concerts so far. Why?

Kris: We had a little bit of a problem with this piece because when I wrote it in 2018, it was still very high school, teenage and the lyrics stayed the same. The piece has a kind of naïve honesty that didn't match this rock banger base that we've had so far. There was always some kind of dissonance in the piece.

What our producer Žare did was to guide us to back up this naivety and sincerity in the piece with some nostalgic base. We chose a very 'Beatles sixties vibe' for it and it's very good.

On the first album, a lot of the headaches in its creation were caused by the song ‘Vem da greš’. Which one did you struggle with the most this time?

Bojan: 'Novi val'. From some demo, a song was created that we changed to a completely different form at least five times. We actually flew from genre to genre, from sound to sound. In the end, one day, Žare pulled the handbrake and told us not to move anywhere. I went to the recording room a little offended and 'Novi val' happened.

Many people think of the coronavirus first when they hear the word new wave. Are there any parallels?

Bojan: Actually, the trigger for the lyrics were the wildfires in the Karst region that were happening at the time we were in the studio. The line "Where do we go from here, if we're already setting the horizon on fire?" is from there, and from there onwards I built the lyrics.

We've seen you on several occasions in the company of Magnifico¹. Have you done anything together?

¹Magnifico, one of the best-known singers on the Slovenian scene. He recently celebrated his 30-year career with a spectacular concert just outside of Ljubljana, which Joker Out also attended. You can watch our translation of Bojan's intervew from this concert on our video titled: Bojan Cvjetićanin on Magnifico's concert for his 30-year career.

Bojan: No, we never created together with Magnifico. I didn't even dare to think of ever writing anything for him. If I liked the offer, I would accept it, but it seems to me that Magnifico sees us as very independent performers. Magnifico is Magnifico, but he's a very big fan of ours. Which he will confirm himself if someone asks him, so that no one will say that I am lying (smiles).

Kris: At the beginning of August, we had two concerts, one day after the other in Zagorje and then at the Castle Festival. In Zagorje, we played after Magnifico, and almost all the members of his band, including him, stayed for the whole concert and listened. In the end, they were thrilled.

How are the preparations for your first concert in Križanke² going?

²Joker Out held a concert at the Križanke venue on the 9th of September 2022. They presented their second album, Demoni, there.

Bojan: We honestly wanted to have a little rest the week before Križanke, in addition to rehearsals, of course. But there's so much work still to be done when it comes to promoting the new album.

Kris: Luckily, we have a really well-established team that handles a lot of the things for Križanke that we would have to be dealing with otherwise. Let's say for the whole stage scene, the sound system, the logistics... We're working with our chief creative director, Mark Pirc, who also shoots our music videos and who was also involved in the creation of the album cover for the second album. In fact, we already trust him so much and he understands well what we are, what we want, that he doesn't need to be corrected. He always comes up with good ideas, and then we just give him our blessings.

(Photo: Marko Alpner)

Damir Raković Ponorelii will design your outfits for Križanke. Have you ever been in a situation where you had to put on a piece of clothing that you didn't feel comfortable in?

Kris: We get along so well with Ponorelii, we have a friendly relationship. He puts something on you, and if it's not cool with you, you tell him. But it's also good that he also notices that you're not okay with it. He doesn't want to force you into something that doesn't sit well with you, either.

Jan: You just tell him, this skirt is a little too tight for me (laughs).

Speaking of skirts... How are you with them? Right now, the trend is for men to wear skirts (Brad Pitt, Harry Styles ...). Would you wear it?

Jan: I don't care about that. If I felt good in a skirt, I'd just wear it.

Kris: Same.

Bojan: But we're not at skirts yet (laughs).

Jan: We don't really plan on it.

Bojan: In general, because skirts have come into this hype, we definitely don't want to go into skirts just for that. Maybe we'll put them on in five years, when they're already out. Because we're kind of Joker Out (smiles). We're happy to have come to the point where the band is bigger than the name.

(Photo: Vita Orehek)

Are you ever afraid of everything that is happening around you? A lot of media attention, recognition on the streets, a lot of female fans...?

Bojan: It would be absolutely brilliant if we could have this "Daft punk" (French music duo with a helmet) moment when no one knows what you look like and you can live on stage to the maximum of what a musician can reap, and under the stage you can live a completely normal life. That would be a dream. But that's impossible for us, because we didn't introduce these masks from the beginning (smiles).

How do you pass the time while driving to concerts? What do you do in the van?

Everyone: Scratch! We support Slovenian Paralympians because we scratch scratchcards³.

³For the occasion of the Tokyo Paralympic Games, the Lottery of Slovenia, in cooperation with Slovenian Paralympic Committee, issued a new scratchable lottery ticket to support paralympic athletes on their way to Tokyo.

Martin: The van is the best thing.

Kris: Physically, it's moderately comfortable, but what's comfortable is that you're in the company of people you spend a lot of time with. Above all, you can sort out all those things that you otherwise don't because you never remember. All five of us are in a pile, and you can arrange/discuss/sort out everything then. And a lot of business decisions are made in the van as well.

(Photo: Aleksandra Saša Prelesnik)

Who has the main say in the group? Are the roles divided?

Bojan: It depends entirely on the sector we're talking about. If there's a question about the image on social networks, then Jan is the alpha and omega.

Kris: That means if the rest of us don't agree, then it won't happen. We respect each other.

Bojan: We operate in such a way that someone in their sector can take full responsibility for things that we know we will all agree on. Fortunately, so far we have never had any disagreement that someone should actually impose their veto.

Jan: But we do hold a vote if there is a more important issue.

(Photo: Aleksandra Saša Prelesnik)

The strangest thing that was thrown onto the stage?

Bojan: Last time, I got flowers from a guy over the barricades, still in a pot, with soil. I think they were cyclamen.

You recently surprised us with the announcement of a concert in Stožice on October 6, 2023. You also promise guests. Can you give us a hint as to who will join you on the biggest stage in Slovenia?

Bojan: You know them (smiles).

Kris: So we're going to say... There will probably be some guests we haven't anticipated at the moment. Our creative paths for Stožice are still very much open.

(Photo: Marko Alpner)

Are we going to have to wait a year for a new song?

Bojan: You certainly won't have to wait a year for a new single. But we probably won't be doing an album, at least for now, we don't plan to.

Kris: Now we still have to convince people of this new 'Demoni' album.

Martin: I was just thinking that you don't have to say twice how motivated we're going to be when we're all together, that something might even happen.

Kris: By the time of Stožice, the new material will be available for sure, but I don't know in what form yet.

Martin: Maybe it'll be a cassette tape (laughs).

What should not be missing backstage at your concert?

Everyone: Table tennis is definitely required.

Bojan: We really like it when there's a big enough table backstage because we bought a portable table tennis set so we can play it.

Kris: A full fridge of goodies.

Martin: A safe, warm place where the band can relax, rest and retreat.

Jan: Once we added a mirror and five towels on the list as a joke.

Kris: A shower in the backstage is a very welcome thing, but unfortunately you can't always ask for it (smiles).

We will not waste words on the fact that a group of talented young musicians has already left a strong mark on the domestic music scene. The fact is that they have found their circle of fans in both younger and older generations. And they turn their creations into a hit in an instant. Although their growing popularity would make many people - especially those envious - attribute superiority, haughtiness to them, the boys remain grounded, confident and true to themselves and their work.