SARLO AKROBATA

I have to be honest: I tried to start writing review for this album at least ten times, every time wondering where to start, what to say and finally giving up and logging out. I wanted to do dedicate my 200th review to this oddity, but I didn't had enough strength, and I've made a weak review of a weak album instead.

I'm still not sure where to start. First of all, a word of warning. This is not for the faint-hearted. This is not for prog snobs. This is a punk record.

A damn good punk record. It's full of furious guitar riffs, raw bass sound, and wild shouting. Lyrics are either nonsensical, randonmly recited from the book, either rebelious - a true example of a punk angst, either minimalistic (like two or three versers through entire song) representing an auditive graffiti painting.

Punk, punk, post-punk, new wave, and some more punk. In literature, in reviews, on internet, in every possible source you will find SARLO AKROBATA mentioned in a punk context. Which is fine because they were a punk band indeed, with the authentic zeitgeist.

So where's prog?!?

Progressive approach is omnipresent. You can find in various sources phrases like arty attitude or elements of psychedelia, and that's true, but it's much more than that. This is not some more sophisticated moment in the career of XTC or intelligent approach of THE STRANGLERS. This is a record full of studio tricks that are de-constructing a classical approach to the songwriting, gradually(or abruptly) adding/subtracting instrumental layers in the songs, repeating simple one-two-three-four chorus ad nauseam, making at mantra at first, and then deconstructing it by simply adding polyrhytmical pattern on bass (and dissonant too), while drums get heavily processed with an echo effect (which paved the way for very popular genre in Belgrade startted in 80s, called dub, a sort of electronic reggae - but that's another story). There's much more: a tune where drums sound like they were performed on a snare with a broken skin, or on a concrete wall's wireframe, constantly shifting between two eight notes and triplets, with furious and nonsensical guitar solo. Or a moment where all the band members shifted their roles, and grabbed a different instrument while reciting some random sentences from the old medicine man's handbook. Lyrics are worth mentioning too, but if you don't know the language you will not be able to experience the magnificient shout I'm a typewriter!!, surrounded by the bass and percussion stampedo. Or the moment of total avantgarde where everyone is shouting Give me a cloth to wash our car while musical background being more than bizarre. Utilising major 7ths and diminshed chords. Those punks.

There's more, but I hope I described a picture enough to caought your attention. Do not be discouraged by a few pure punk rock tunes; most of them were not published on the album, only on various artists compilation called Paket Aranzman (A Package Deal). However, those tunes were always the most exposed ones (and representing a milestone in Yu-rock in a same way as London Calling did) but just get the right thing - this, one and the only, unique avant-punk album.