INDEXI

This is the third single on Diskoton label, and it appeared probably during summertime or early autumn of 1974. Packed in a minimalist sleeve design by Dragan S. Stefanović, with four colorful stripes against the brown background, the record contains two more songs from the November 1973 recording sessions. Mere few days before Davorin Popovic and Bodo Kovacevic left the band for the mandatory military service, Indexi recorded a bunch of tracks to be stockpiled and sequentially released by Diskoton to keep the market saturated until the band's forseen reunion. This was still the line-up with drummer Miro Saranovic and keyboardist Vlado Pravdic, along with standard bassist Fadil Redzic.

This is one of the least known Indexi releases and these songs remained obscure and deep cuts, never reaching a wider public exposure. Yet, they are worthy revisiting. Despite its nonsensical title and seemingly childish lyrics about a kid writing his first song only to be ridiculed by his parents that suggest a bubblegum approach, "Didn-da-da" is really a solid pop-rock tune with a catchy chorus. Starts with a complex time signature of bass and guitar, with a nice backing by a melodic organ tune. Kovacevic plays both acoustic and electric guitar. Instrumental bridge brings a somewhat heavy prog sound with brief soli of drums and organ. The track had potentials to become a hit but oddly it never charted, probably beacuse the band was in hiatus so Diskoton never bothered to promote it.

The flipside brings a ballad "Dal' smo ljudi" (Are We Humans) introduced by electric piano, organ and acoustic guitar. This time, the lyrics are more poetically serious, singing about coldness and distance of human relations. There are two brief electric guitar soli during the bridge but they never reach the hights of Kovacevic's strenght as a player. I am also not a fan of the chorus melody, but musicianship is top-notch with an organ section invoking for a moment the sound of DEEP PURPLE in "Child in Time". This was the last single release before the reunion of INDEXI with a new line- up in the late 1974, which introduced a new phase in their work.

Considered one of the most popular Yugoslav bands of all time, INDEKSI formed in Sarajevo (now the capital city of Bosnia & Herzegovina) in 1962 and would go through many lineups as a cover band for many years before finally realizing a debut album ten years later in 1972. Only guitarist Slobodan A. Kovacevic would stick around through all the changes up to the point when an album emerged. INDEKSI began as a bunch of college students playing for fun and spent the late 60s releasing EPs, singles and touring including a two-month stint through the USSR in 1967. The same year the band performed at the first Sarajevo festival called your Schlager of the Season and continued to establish itself as one of the very first Yugoslav bands that would continue to grow in popularity.

The 60s found the release of several short EPs and singles but this self-titled debut represents the recordings from 1969-72 and was only released once in cassette form and has yet to find a reissue. This debut featured seven tracks that for the most part showcased the band's early years as a rock band with some leftover sounds from the 60s beat movement. While known as a progressive rock band for the second album, INDEKSI did feature a full blown prog workout at this early stage with the track 'Negdje u kraju u zati'ju' which at nearly 12 minutes long featured various movements as well as extended instrumental workouts, pastoral acoustic guitar with flute segments that veer into folk meets classical territory but what makes it stand out as prog more than anything is the extensive use of atmospheric keyboards.

This album was preceded by a single titled 'Plima' which was recorded in 1968 and debuted the concept of lead guitar in the Yugoslavian rock scene but overall for 1972 this album feels woefully dated in comparison to the rest of Europe reaching a crescendo in the world of progressive rock and despite Yugoslavia being one of the most liberal nations in the Eastern block still showed signs of not being up to speed with the innovative sounds coming from the Western European nations. For the most part INDEKSI's debut is a standard rock with occasional hard rock affair with a few prog time signatures added in for good measure with the only exception being the prog behemoth 'Negdje u kraju u zati'ju' which probably sounds closest to the symphonic prog coming out of Italy a couple years earlier.

This seems to be a lauded album in many circles but to my ears it sounds a bit amateurish most likely due to the inconsistency of the material being recorded over a long period of time. It's not necessarily a bad album by any means but not up to par with the other interesting bands that emerged from the former Yugoslavia such as Time, Buldozer, Leb i Sol and Smak. The band would take another six years to release its more progressive sophomore release 'Modra Rijeka' and despite its lack of albums still became one of Yugoslavia's most successful bands. Being far removed from the time and place from when this was released may give me no context as to how relevant this was during its day but as someone experiencing it decades later with a very open mind i have to say i find this a bit underwhelming as it doesn't really deliver anything substantially original to the world of rock music. Relevant for a historical perspective.

I must confess, progressive rock music ( from the ancient Yugoslavia) definitely isn't my speciality ! The only good album that I can remember from this country is KORNELYANS: "Not an Ordinary Life" ! Although, this INDEXI "Modra Rijeka" is other very good album I could knew some time ago .They are very different , while the first as jazz-prog oriented album, the second is a few more flexible in style. In the first track as only a narration. The music really starts in second track ". Blago " whit some broken beats and a detached distorted bass guitar and a breath organ solo. The track 3 'Brod" the acoustic guitar gives the tune followed by a good vocal, melotron... a electric guitar sounding in "legato\' ( in fact this guitar seems to be mixed with the melotron in certain moments. The track 4 "More" ( one of best tracks in the album ) show some interesting moments, as in the case of acoustic guitar "intermission" followed by a breath "ascendant" electric guitar theme and a piano solo... at this moment the music reach their "'pice' with a "crying" electric guitar accompany by tubbullar bells/hammond-organ like a "bridge" to retake the main theme of track . The track 6 "Slovo O Covjeku" is a beautiful ballad whit a twelve-string guitar making the rhythm. I don't extend my review because the whole disk if it's not a masterpiece is really very good. My rate is 4 stars !!!

The year is 1973 and INDEXI are in a serious crisis. In early spring, keyboardist Vlado Pravdic became infatuated by interesting new ideas of young composer and guitarist Goran Bregovic, so he decided to spend more time with his band JUTRO (soon to become known as hugely popular BIJELO DUGME) than with Indexi. This opened a space for ex-Indexi member Djordje Novkovic who also witnessed the collapse of his band PRO ARTE, so he rejoined Indexi under condition that they all perform together with Pro Arte singer Vladimir Savic Cobi under the new moniker INDEXI-PRO ARTE as a sort of "supergroup". This unholy alliance between a prog rock band and a bubblegum pop combo lasted only until November when Davorin Popovic and Bodo Kovacevic (two of three key members of Indexi) had to go for compulsory military service. This effectively put Indexi in hiatus for almost a year. In the meantime, Indexi-Pro Arte had a successful tour across Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, where they even recorded a live album during summer gigs in Sofia. The summer also saw the end of contract with Jugoton label, so Indexi proper (without Novkovic and Cobi who were by now based mostly in Zagreb) signed a record deal with a newly established record label Diskoton, based in their home town Sarajevo. This prompted an intensive recording sessions in November, with Pravdic still engaged on keyboards as a guest member, to provide new material for Diskoton to release records while the band is temporarily inactive.

The first single on Diskoton label appeared soon and in the sleeve depicting Indexi as a quartet: Popovic, Kovacevic, Fadil Redzic and Miroslav Saranovic. A-side carries a light pop number "Jedina moja" (My Only Love), whose brass section reminds of another Sarajevan band, AMBASADORI. Penned by Redzic, it contains typical schlager singing and discreet piano backing. Nothing remarkable is present here. The only interesting part, I would argue, is a brief solo on acoustic guitar. The song is just listenable, nowhere near their best pop hits. B-side is much better, containing Kovacevic track "I tvoje ce proci" (Even Your Time Will Pass) with lyrics by singer Popovic. It is an uptempo rock number with a distinctive handclapping rhythm and nice organ backing. Fiery electric guitar utilizes a recognizeable rock and roll scheme, especially during the chorus, with a slight glammy touches. This is a well performed "party" song that actually became a minor hit during 1974. As if they anticipated its commercial potentials, Indexi even shot a music video for TV Sarajevo showing the band (with Pravdic still on board) sitting on parked cars, handclapping and miming to this song. Not a great single by any means, but an occassional spin or two of the B-side won't hurt your prog-sensitive ears. 2,5/5

In January 1969 INDEXI signed a new record deal with Jugoton, thus abandoning their previous label PGP RTB. Although their most recent EP for RTB was yet to be released in March, the band already in early February prepared two new songs for their premier 7" single on Jugoton label. At this juncture, the band was still a sextet consisting of old members: vocalist Davorin Popovic, rhythm guitarist Ismet Arnautalic, lead guitarist Slobodan A. Kovacevic, bassist Fadil Redzic, and drummer Miroslav Saranovic. The only newcomer was classically-trained keyboardist Djordje Novkovic, who replaced the former member Kornelije Kovac. Novkovic also, as if anticipating that his tenure with the band was to be short (he left during the spring of 1969), made a strong mark on this record by proving himself as a complete author of music, lyrics and arrangements for both of these songs. They were recorded at the Radio Sarajevo studio with the help of Radio Sarajevo staff engineers, their long-time collaborators Antun Markovic and Esad Arnautalic.

The A-side track "Ne zelim tvoju ljubav" (I Don't Want Your Loving) was recorded on March 14, and performed live on March 22 during the "Zagreb 69" pop festival. INDEXI were backed by RTV Zagreb Revue Orchestra, conducted by renowned Miljenko Prohaska. The song is arranged in several parts making it a sort of mini-suite in four minutes. A brief intro contains the orchestra backing the electric organ and guitar. Following a short organ solo, the main theme with vocal verse is performed with a strong beat. Orchestral strings then take the lead while Kovacevic's guitar keeps utilising the sound distortion effects all the time. The chorus contains a vocal melody reflecting a typical schlager expression, the one Novkovic would frequently use with his future pop band PRO ARTE. Instruments of INDEXI seemingly retrieve to the background, allowing the orchestra to lead. Here, a percussive sound of strings played pizzicato is pronounced. The bridge consists of complex arrangements with orchestra, guitar and drums playing in unison, wherefrom the composition goes into a slower tempo section marked by "dreamy" Popovic's vocals. Within this rather psychedelic part, his vocals are nicely backed by a flute and a lead guitar with its obligatory use of a wah-wah pedal. Following a short break, the composition returns to the main theme in beat style and ends with a chorus. We can hear that this song "Ne zelim tvoju ljubav" actually introduced a template that the band would frequently use in the future - verses and bridges contain complex arrangements in a progressive rock style, while the chorus exemplifies a typical pop-schlager hook for mass audience. This stylistic format, in a lack of better words, may be called "progressive schlager".

The B-side title "Sabn-dabn-sabn-du-bajo" was recorded earlier, on January 15. Despite its nonsensical title, suggesting it's a sort of light pop tune in the vein of the BEATLES' "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da", it is really a song sticking to the then trendy psychedelic style of the band. The first few bars, with lots of fuzz effects of guitar and bass played in unison, remind of a heavy rock in the style of CREAM, while the song continues in a beat manner, with touches of soul music. Besides piano, which rhythmically carries the theme, the bridge features echo/reverb-treated vocals, including falseto vocalise (most probably Redzic's) and laughter, while the lead guitar continuously enriches the theme with its wah-wah effects. When interviewed for Novi Dzuboks magazine issue of February 3, 1969, singer Popovic said about this song: "The title means nothing, but we are sure it will be easily memorised given that the melody is catchy too. There was a lot of laughter during the recording session, and the effects we used were unheard of in Yugoslavia previously."

Yet, for various reasons, this single remained relatively less-known, and these songs never achieved hit status in spite of their quality. They were still too experimental and psychedelic for larger audience, while Jugoton notoriously pushed them to come up with more pop-oriented material. Thus, they were deemed not enough commercial so they are not to be included on future compilation albums released by Jugoton. This single was released in April 1969 with a "psychedelic" sleeve depicting a dreamy, ghost-like nude female figure as seen through a bush or grass.

Not a bad compilation if Indexi or of 60's music please you. The style is similar to Shadows but with more skill. It is clear that in this compilation Prog is not present but, in my humble opinion, the music is good and still fresh. Interesting, for me, "Sedam velicanstvenih" ("The Magnificent Seven" theme), because because, at the time, was really very technical. All CD, in truth, is very good if you love 60's music, especially in oroginal songs (In this sense Indexi prove to be very ahead of its time, with very personal songs, in a style very codified).

The last two songs (as bonus) are from 1976 solo single by Davorin Popović but the style is POP.

Good CD, in definitive if you love 60's music. But not for die hard progsters.

Modra Rijeka by Indexi is a showcase of musical craftsmanship, with each piece a testament to complex songwriting and gifted musicianship. I wish I could understand the language, because even to a listener spoiled by English, the lyrics flow and adhere to the music perfectly. I highly recommend this to Kansas lovers, particularly "Magnum Opus" and Point of Know Return.

"Modra Rijeka" The recitation of poetry ("Blue River") commences.

"Blago" Florid poetry is quite the antithesis to this creeping and spiraling combination of punchy symphonic rock and psychedelic brooding. The bass warbles and growls as the organ twists and turns in this snarling beast of a song; it's quite ELP-ish in places.

"Brod" Fresh-sounding acoustic guitar with an agreeable melody and keyboards to match initially impart something in progressive folk territory, while the distorted organ and boisterous singing amplify this track into harder rock. To and fro it goes.

"More" Starting out like Camel's "Lunar Sea" (and almost the same length), "More" gives just what the title implies: More heavy progressive rock laced with acoustic guitar and a downright sinister bass. One may expect a few interludes, including an acoustic guitar one full of fingerpicking and alternate tunings as well as a delicate piano that just glistens. The keyboard work is outstanding, especially the organ.

"Zapis O Zemlji" A second poetic excerpt follows.

"Slovo O Covjeku" Dynamic vocals (a Yugoslavian Roger Daltery?) and a distant piano lead into a light acoustic rock tune.

"Pustinja" In addition to the organ and energetic drumming one could come to expect by this point, the guitarist treats the listener to the tasteful use of a Talk Box.

"More II" Bright guitar and synthesizer shine together to generate one happy instrumental. Compositionally, it channels Steve Hackett, whilst the organ nods in the direction Canterbury fellows like Dave Stewart.

"Modra Rijeka II" Stunning textures over a halcyon acoustic, followed by equally soothing vocals, soon erupting into a satisfying amalgamation of all the aforementioned ingredients, topped off with a catchy refrain. This is a suitable finale to an excellent and consistent album.

My very first review here and what drives me to write it is the "confusion" I got listening to this album.

There are claims that this album is a concept album. Well, the concept might be hidden in the lyrics, but musically this is far for the cohesion a concept album should display, actually the music is rather unfocused, good, sometime with brilliant moments - but not essential. I understand the "patriotism" of our friends from this site which live in or have Ex-Yugoslavian heritage. I personally think a concept album is first about the music, lyrics beeing some secondary layer, something that just emphasize somehow the music's message. I felt in love with prog 35 years ago without understanding a word in english and I don't think I missed that much.

A way overrated album even if the crossover prog label attached to it might somehow soften the expectations.

After Indexi turned more pop in the early 70's , you could mostly forget about going after their singles, as the albums "Modra Rijeka" or even the last album "Kameni Cvijetovi" will hold more interest to any prog fan.

So to raise this single from tens of others that would be maybe one-star ratings, this one holds one of the best and catchy pop songs they ever made in my opinion, "Njene oci, usne, ruke" ; one of the rare ones for which exists a music video. It's very ballad like and relies on vocals and lyrics (about love, no surprise), and has good bass playing. To fans, this is an excellent pop song.

"Oj,Neretvo" is more progressive as B sides of Indexi usually go, so also worth checking out. As song structures go it's pretty straightforward with verse-chorus-verse-chorus but it's guitar work does give a bit of a nod to some gentler "Modra Rijeka" material.

So it's two stars rating cause it describes it the best: for collectors and fans who liked previous work, and to rate it higher than most of other singles. Most of these singles songs can be found on various video streaming sites as a lot of them are not present on any compilations that can be bought.

Indexi were apparently a big deal in the former Yugoslavia, but I don't personally find much that's truly distinctive about Modra Rijeka, their venture into prog concept albums. With a sound ranging from keyboard-dominated prog-psyche to straight-aheard hard rock, the album seems rather directionless and unfocused musically speaking, though I understand that if you understand the lyrics it's a fairly cohesive concept album. Still, the album has a nice meaty organ sound to it, which is a plus, and will doubtless be of interest to anyone interested in Croatian/Yugoslavian rock music. However, it should be remembered that Indexi adopted many different styles over the years, often at the prompting of fashion, and to my ears it seems that their adoption of a progressive approach for this album was a mere affectation rather than something they felt passionately about.