Intervju / Interview
T here was a long wait for the vinyl re- lease of this album, so when it final- ly happened I felt like Geppetto at the moment of Pinocchio’s comple- tion, commented Dušan Kojić, aka Koja, wit- tily regarding the release of the latest album of the group Discipline A Kitschme, which he founded back in 1981. The new album, entitled Opet. (Again), is available on all au- dio media – such as CD, vinyl and as a digital album for streaming and downloading. And what is that Again in the title, to whom is it addressed, how is the new music audience entertained, how is the elite provoked and how can one persevere as the frontman of an alternative rock band... these are just some of the questions that imposed themselves. How and in what way does the album Opet. reflect the times in which we live? - Opet. is like all previous Discipline al- bums. Noisy music, lyrics, the cover design and videos speak clearly about the time in which it originated, the time of shopping malls, the internet and the vulgarity that rules both the mainstream and the alternative, inviting the listener to be patient and to consider such mo - ments. At the same time, Opet. is also a cry for lawfulness that is slowly being lost. Hence the long ending to the so-called “showers” at the end of the song Forgotten Rock’n’Roll. However, the most important thing is that it all compels listeners to dance, which is a doctrine established in the post-punk period, at the very end of the seventies – a dance rhythm, over which anything can go. What are your favourite lyrics from the new album and why? Who do they re- late to, what kind of audience, the pub- lic or the political elite? - As they say, that’s like asking a parent which child is their favourite, isn’t it? Howev- er, I can cite, for example, the lyric from the song Reci ruke u vis! (Say hands in the air!): “Not in a bank, not at a party, not in a trap – at a distance”, which just confirms the ad - vice about the aforementioned consideration. The words of Disciplin are always simple and very rarely abstract, so everyone can under- stand them and possibly identify with them. I don’t think the turbo-political elite is worth mentioning, anywhere around the world, we cannot give space to absurd people, espe- cially not in music, which is a sacred thing. How would you classify Opet. in your opus, and how would you categorise it onthecontemporaryrockscene?What does the new album bring? - It shouldn’t be forgotten that, since its inception in mid-1981, this band has always been without a solo guitar, which is a recog- nisable part of rock’n’roll music, and that has never been viewed or recognised as a short- coming. Moreover, most ordinary rock groups sound quite harmless compared to Disciplin A
Kitschme. I see this album as another perfect album of Disciplin, even firmer than some of the previous ones, which is not often the case with longstanding groups, who know how to lose their edge after a while. There is always something different and new compared to previous times – among other things, this is the first album with a harmonica, which for several years already has been an integral part of the sound of Disciplin A Kitschme. How do you adjust your music to the new audience and to technological in- novations? How do you know when a song is good and finalised for re- cording? - Adaptation has never been a problem for us; we simply have an ear and a sense for new musical aspirations, which, unfortunate - ly, there has not been a lot of in the last ten years. We also respect technological inno-
- World scene – what’s that? There is a UK-US monopoly, which once upon a time, when rock’n’roll was in its infancy, was maybe okay, but today, in the Internet era, when, for example, a person from Romania can follow the Indonesian scene, that no longer makes any sense. Of course, there is a good and even interesting rock music on other meridians, and that’s a fact that will not be able to be avoided for much longer. From the perspective of an enduring band like Disciplin A Kitschme, how do you experience the waning of the mu- sic and cultural scene from the 1980s onwards? - If the question relates to this, obvious - ly always, rotting area, it is clear why it hap - pened – military conflict and the fratricidal war disrupted everything, it is up to the new generations to somehow cover and connect,
Nama prilagođavanje nikada nije bio problem, jednostavno, imamo uho i njuh za nova muzička stremljenja Adaptation has never been a problem for us; we simply have an ear and a sense for new musical aspirations
vations, we record analogously and mix dig - itally, and that’s the formula I recommend. Songs are practised before entering the stu - dio, but there are always a couple of themes that start at rehearsals and additionally end at the actual recording. Jamming in the stu- dio always brings pleasant surprises and good results. On this album those are Nepokole- bljivost pokaži ti (uz neophodnu dozu neoz - biljnosti), as well as Manitu VII. How is ti possible to live from music in Serbia today? - From rock music it’s very tough, and from alternative rock music even tougher. However, the scene exists, despite media in - difference and the small territory on which it operates. There are also enthusiasts like pub- lisher Mascom Records, who put in a lot of ef- fort to release this album in all available for- mats, even including a double vinyl LP, which is again very modern today. Where is our rock scene in relation to the world – to what extent do we keep pace with world trends and in which way?
which they are doing. When it comes to the English scene, it has been in trouble for a long time, saturation has been reached, and the music industry that is always hungry for money dictates what will be listened to and what will be fashionable. This more or less also applies to the American scene, although it covers a much larger territory. America is a continent and a huge market, just enough for itself, and there is greater and more mu- sicallt diverse groups that compete on that territory. We are here to notice all of that. What does the process look like af- ter the recording of an album - how much do you question and do you doubt what you have done, and how and where do you relax? - Questioning oneself as a lifestyle con - cept is mandatory, but there is no doubt, only pure enjoyment and approving nods of the head with every new listening to the cur- rent album. Sometimes I hear something new and interesting that I didn’t notice during re - cording and later mixing, so that additional - ly pleases me.
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