So, as expected the blog a day during the tour proved a little bit ambitious. I think i'd need to get one of those little computers that are smaller than laptops to have a good chance of blogging that often when were away. Something to think about.
A Slovenian marzipan hedgehog, yesterday
We had a great time on Slovenia where we played a good assortment of shows. Our first one was in the Metropolitan Library in Ljubljana which was the first time we'd played anywhere like that. It was part of a Scottish day which also featured a talk from our tour manger Katarina Juvancic who worked really hard to make the tour happen. One of the things i like the most is when after a gig somewhere new and a few beers after, you get taken to the best kebab shop in a new town as 1. I like kebabs, and 2. Its what i do when im showing people around unless its in the borders where kebab shops are a bit thin on the ground. Not to labour the point, but its a never ending source of interest to me how kebabs differ from country to country. I was thinking of writing a book about kebabs or starting a web site at one point but i think that projects shelved for the time being.
So, after a really good gig in the libarary hosted by Matjaz who curates the music dept of the library we headed to Kranj to play in an arts centre called Creinativa. Our host for this, Iztok offered to pick us up from the station and while we were waiting we thought we might have a quick beer as you do. In slovenia there are 2 beers, Union or Lasko and most people seem to be a supporter of one or the other. We kind of found that Union is better a bit earlier in the day but Lasko seems to be the thing to drink as the afternoon gives way to evening. Anyway the gig again was great and Iztok recorded the show. Speaking of which, all the shows were recorded so given a little bit of luck we may be able to get something out of it. im going to try and put up some of the stuff ive recorded in the next week or so and then see how the rest of the recordings sound as we get them.
After the show at Creinativa we went around the corner to the opening of a new gallery in the town which was a sort of street party with a DJ playing in the gallery and people drinking and having a good time until, predictably, the police came along and pressed the off button. After Schnapps for breakfast (and an omlette if truth be told, but its not as rock and roll to mention that) Iztok and Tina took us to the cruch of St. Markus in Verba where we were allowed to record a few songs in the amazing acoustic inside. There had been a church on that spot for hundreds of years and although the church had been rebuilt at least once the ruins of previous buildings were visible through glass panels in the floor.
St. Markus church, Verba
in the church
Rdeca Ostriga is a student squat club on the site of a former Yogoslav army barrcks in Skofja Loka. It had been quite a long time since we had played somewhere that was primarily set up for rock bands but we had a reinforcement in the shape of Dejan Lapanja, a massively talented guitarist, who had just released his first CD. We jammed out some blues which was pretty cool and then enjoyed the absence of any closing curfew which feels a bit strange when your not used to it.
O
nstage on Ostriga, Skofja Loka (gallery.kss.si)
Rdeca Ostriga (gallery.kss.si)
Saturday the 6th saw us play at Kantfest near Ruse. Kantfest is a travelling festival that takes in many Slovenian towns and occasional forays in to Austria and Italy. For me, anyway, this was one of those all too rare nights when i felt i could play anything i wanted and it was recorded too which is even better. Iona had one these nights the next night at Pilskovica where i didnt quite have the same feeling, so now i guess the trick is to coordinate this sort of thing. We were again met at the train staion by the festival coordinator, Peter Andrej who along with organising this festival is a noted singer-songwriter in his own right, and who took care of everything for us. We had a few drinks after with Peter and some other guys including Slovenian songwriter Adi Smolar who went drinking with a couple of days afterwards in Ljubljana.
Singing the night away with Adi
Pilskovica Hostel was an acoustic show with no amplification at all. The hostel itself is a renovated building typical of this part of Slovenia. to preserve the building you had to take your shoes off before going upstairs which isnt a huge sacrifice. To get to the hostel, we had to get a taxi from the train station in Sezana about 15km form the hotel. Marjetka, who runs the hostel had booked a taxi to meet us at the station, and although i don't think we were difficult to spot, the taxi driver was holding a sign up for us while looking like he wanted the ground to swallow him for doing so! He was a very friendly guy though and turned the meter off when it got to the price he had quoted us which is a nice trait in a taxi driver. We met Marjetka who is lovely, and is working very hard to try and bring entertainment to the hostel and to the village in general and i hope she succeeds. We really enjoy playing without amplification as it kind of removes a barrier when you play without it. Marjetkas friend, Spela Volcic was also there to help out and she took some amazing pictures of the night, and next day she took the whole day to show us around the area including some big caves. Please check out her website to see some work of this very talented and original photographer and we plan to work with her in the future which we are looking forward to very much.
Flaggons of wine before the show(photograph by Spela Volcic)
Iona makes apoint at Pilskovica(photograph by Spela Volcic)
So, the last gig of this tour found us in Ljubljana at the Celica hostel. the hostel is again a in another former Yogoslav army barracks comprised of several buildings, with the hostel itself the former prison. the hostel was been redesigned by architect Janko Rozic who is also responsible for the programme of music every Tuesday which is an gig (on tihs occasion, us) followed by an open session. This was also our second ever outdoor gig and our longest continous set without a break at an hour and 40 mnutes. The whole thing was fantastic with a lot of very nice people, and again everything we needed was taken care of by Janko. The week previouly when we had just arrived in slovenia, myself and Iona were chatting on a bus, when the guy next to me asked where we from and told us he was from Helensburgh (nr. Glasgow) and had moved to Slovenia a decade before. Naturally, we plugged our gig, and it was really nice to see him there the week after. We also really enjoyed the jamming between some well known musicians after our gig, but those Balkan rhythms were mangling my brain a bit much to allow me to join in.
Celica Hostel show(photograph by Katarina Juvancic)
Photograph by Katarina Juvancic
One of the rooms in Celica Hostel
scary Celica
I think i forgot to say in our last blog, about a couple of gigs we played the week before we went to Slovenia. We played at Montrose music festival, but also the week before we played 2 gigs at Dumnfries and Galloway Arts Festival. We really enjoy these sorts of gigs which in towns which are a bit off the usuual gigging track, so to speak and we played in Wanlochhead, Scotlands highest village, and Kirkpatrick Durham
Kirkpatrick Durham
A session in between Dumfries and Galloway festival shows with Wing & A Prayer and Hugh Taylor
kazoo you
These we played with our Friends, Wing & a Prayer, organised by Hugh Taylor of Moniaive Festivals fame, and cracking sound provided by John Wetherby of soundsense. I don't wany this blog to read like the end credits of Star Wars, but i think its very important that people organise events which benefits both people like us, and, hopefully, people in the area. There wasn't a whole load of music in Selkirk when i was growing up, and i think i can remember all the people who came to play in the borders while i was there, particlarly a bluesman called Philip Walker who played in a hall in Galashiels when i was about 15 and he seemed like a door to another world. Not that im claiming to be a door to another world or anything like that, but hopefully its clear where im going with this, so thanks again to everyone above.
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(photo by Matthijs van der ven)
