The day started with our Slovenian friend finishing his chest piece tattoo in Novi Sad, followed by settling the score with vegan food in a Chinese restaurant. During the remains of the day, root beer was drunk in Crna Ovca and friends were awaited for a trip to the plains where our dear Zrenjanin, or Petrovgrad and Bechkerek, how some like calling it, was.
Soon enough, Janak (All Except One) told us that yet another crew, consisting of Italians, got lost in the plains, being incapable of finding Zrenjanin. We found them in Detelinara, a part of Novi Sad, even though they claimed that they were on the highway, which was 5km away from their current location. However, the mess was more than compensated for, taking into consideration that the crew was great. This is the third Italian band that experienced GPS problems on their way to Zrenjanin, as far as I can recall. Something obscure is at hand here, for sure.
In the extremely cold weather, in Zrenjanin, Janak greeted us with a ton of lenten cookies and juices. That was a total win. Since the gig was in the suburban area of Zrenjanin, in Muzlja and the Zeppelin club, we made the 10 min trip from Zrenjanin to Muzlja shorter with at least a kilo of gulped cookies. Thanxxx Janak!
In Muzlja, Vuk Vukosav met us in his wedding tuxedo with a Chain of Strength around his neck. He managed to get there 2 hours before us by a van packed with NS youth crew members, setting the fun off.
The organizer of this awesome hardcore event, Pishta, played with his band, Remedy, first. Firstly, the sound was brilliant. The sound guy was shitfaced, swimming whole night long on the floor with his leather jacket companion, setting up the sound perfectly beforehand. Remedy kicked some serious ass. This band has gone far since I've first heard of them and I just need to mention Pishta's voice which can simply be described as excellent, old school vocal which lifted the atmosphere of the gig to a whole new level, giving Remedy a great final touch. The crowd met the band with confetti and chaos on the dancefloor. And boy was it chaos! People enjoyed themselves to the max, raging to the sounds of excellent old school hardcore.
After Remedy, Sakagija, lads from Sombor, came to the stage. Now, in order not to talk crap, honestly, I used the time during their set to spend some time with the people I don't see that often. Hence, I stayed at the merch stand throughout the gig. From there, I cold hardly hear any sounds coming from the stage. So, check out these guys on their Myspace page for more details: http://www.myspace.com/511975021/music.
Then, came us, Furtive Forest, onto the stage. I am not particularly fond of stages because I squeeze in with the crowds and protect our guitar player. I did the same thing after I saw that the atmosphere went berserk. At one moment, I glanced at Vuk, who was lying over the bass drum, trying his best to stand up. He was not used to such chaos – he seems to be a couple of hardcore push-ups behind on his schedule (*giggle*). The sound was, again, on a high level, the crowd were excellent and I can say, speaking for the entire band – this was the best gig we've had so far. I'm not sure if it was the best from the perspective of musical precision and punctuality; I cannot know that and be interested in it since I'm no metalhead. Yet, as far as the energy, atmosphere and hanging out are concerned, this is certainly a peak. When I heard “Hardcore is Life”, yelled out from the audience and saw Janko, Rogi and the whole All Except One crew, all friends of mine, I re-experienced the whole feeling which makes me glad to have been there in that very moment, sharing it with the rest of the guys.
All Except One!!!! I cannot be completely objective. These guys climb onto the stage and rip some 90s new school hardcore. There were some TRIAL and Integrity influences too. The crowds were on fire. The atmosphere was pretty much the same as the one you can see when watching an awesome USA-made video of similar gigs. Actually, this can only be better. Simply, AEO is, in my personal opinion, the best Serbian hardcore band which can and needs to do a lot more. The guys still lack a proper album after almost 8 years of being around, let alone a tour of two, since they kick ass. These Banat folks seem lazy, but Janak keeps convincing me that it will all change, and I remain positive that it will. The rest of the world is bound to hear about this band. To my embezzlement, they played an awesome emotional hardcore 4-5 min number. Actually, they have cut it in half, since it was already around 2:30am. When I say emotional, I mean the real stuff, reflected through bands like Dag Nasty, the last Turning Point, Embrace, and the likes, not the screaming and hysterical attacks from the 2000 scene. A great show.
La Prospettiva, came onto the stage last. The started their show with New Direction from Gorilla Biscuits and carried on in such a style. Melodic, aggressive, fast and hardcore. A younger band which holds great promise, provided they stick together. They brought their debut material with them and we assembled, printed, cut and burnt it ourselves, DIY, awesome. Hardcore by the book, far away from commercialization and exploitation. Pure energy, great music and a clear message.
The gig was over around 4pm. We haven't taken part at such a ferociously sincere gig for a long time. Our gig from Zemun, which took place a month ago, with our friends Deer in the Headlights, flashed before my eyes. The crowd, consisting of about 20 people, were beautifully properly dressed, far away from the stage and that would be the detailed description of the gig atmosphere. On the other hand, this is Zrenjanin was the thing we live for and the thing we sing about. So, that is why we will continue giving our best to keep on sharing this awesome thing called hardcore.
To wrap things up, the next day, around noon, we ended up in Novi Sad's skate park with La Prospettiva, who nailed the mini ramp, had a couple of shakes in the Ovca and said our goodbyes, but only until they come visit us again.
Bojan
XXX
