The Serbian-Montenegrin guitar band Savana continues to pave the way to the audience with their Quentin Tarantino-influenced desert rock, which has already been served their third single in just over two months.
The new song "Sposobnost za ubijena" is available on the YouTube service, and is the product of collaboration with one of the most popular Serbian bands of the new generation, the alt-American group Stray Dogg.
This collaboration could have been expected since Stray Dogg member Andrej Mladenović plays drums in Savana, which with him consists of Aleksa Majstorović and Aleksa Nedić from the Serbian bands Stepa and Vizelj, and former members of the Budva group Haze & Ash - Andrej Lovrić and Dario Vuksanović.
In May of this year, the new group premiered to the audience with the single "Vitalne sustance", which announced the debut album "Tarangira". It was then announced that the songs from the album will be released successively, one after the other, and "Sposobnost za ubije" is the third of the release that should have seven tracks. Budva guitarist Dario Vuksanović talked about all this for "Vijesti".
When and how was the song created, what was the process of working on it, what was the inspiration for it?
The song was created by Aleksa Majstorović's guitar idea, to which we added a story that runs through the album. This song is about a white wolf who sleeps in the "Dry Woods" until the moment comes for him to wake up. Humans burned his natural habitat and from that accumulated anger, he became a kind of king and wraith of those same forests. "Dry Forests" is also one of the songs on the album that, so to speak, continues the story. That same wolf wakes up in the song "Vital substances" and gallops towards the Sun, ready to eat it. Something like Fenrir (a character from Norse mythology) during Ragnarok (the end of the world in Norse mythology).
How did this collaboration come about, was it natural to expect it, since you work together and hang out for a long time, will it be reciprocated on a Stray Dogg release?
The collaboration came about because none of us managed to sing this song. In the meantime, Dukat (Strajnić, frontman of Stray Dogg) heard the song and he really liked it, so we decided that it was a great idea for him to be a guest. At the same time, it was interesting for us to hear Dukat's voice fitting into a slightly harder instrumental. After that, it was logical that Andrej Mladenović, Stray Dogg's drummer, also jumped into the sauce. Our appearance on a new Stray Dogg album was not planned, but these things often happen unplanned.
Regional cooperation is happening more and more, borders are being erased more and more, one regional scene is being homogenized. Are these kinds of collaborations and bands like this the future and is it a solution for Montenegrin artists to get more attention?
We really hope for that homogenization of the regional scene. I think that the Balkans have the potential for such a realization, and I believe that we are already moving towards it. Croatian musicians often perform in Serbia and Slovenia. Serbian musicians come to Zagreb, Rijeka and the rest of Croatia, as well as Slovenia. The same applies to Slovenians. I would like it if Montenegro were included in this "exchange", but, as a small country, there can hardly be as many quality original bands as there can be in larger countries. Is the recipe for reaching a larger audience actually going to one of those countries, moving in those circles: I think yes. But we should not forget our roots.
What are the reactions to your singles so far? How do you view this corona crisis, how much has this situation affected your everyday life and your work?
We are satisfied with the reactions, we believe that it would probably be on a higher level if it were not for the corona crisis. We simply do not have the possibility of promoting singles, which greatly reduces the possibility of building hype. Also, separated by countries, it is not easy for us to meet for the realization of a video, and now we already need it.
Where did this transition from an indie-alt-American to a stoner rock sound come from in your work?
So this question is aimed primarily at former members of Haze & Ash. The transition was natural, we actually grew up on this music and missed that distortion sound. However, alt-rock Americana is still something we like a lot and there will surely be more releases of that type from one of the members of Savannah.
What are the future plans - there are no performances, but when can we expect the next singles, music videos, a rounded release?
I think the next release will be in September, with a feature video. We look forward to that. We do not lack goals, and plans in this crisis are in a fluid state, I would say, they often have to adapt to the court in which they are.
Conditions are forcing Montenegrin musicians out
Do you think that you are at a certain advantage compared to other Montenegrin performers, given that you started to make your way in Serbia from the start, collaborating with their musicians and presenting to the audience there? Do you see yourself more as part of the Serbian or Montenegrin scene?
So, a little over half of Savana is from Serbia, so, I think that people from Serbia don't even see us as a band from their neighborhood. Therefore, if it has to be shared, I would say that we are part of the Serbian scene. The Montenegrin scene is complicated and difficult to explain. I believe that we have many talented musicians, but there is not so much emphasis on original work. People often turn to the stall because of financial problems, because it is well paid, and then it can disturb things a little in creative expression. Also, there is the problem of a lack of venues for gigs, festivals, and a lack of audiences. All this is enough to inspire a musician to try somewhere outside to break through. Personally, my intention is to enrich the Montenegrin scene with this band, but above all to blur the boundaries of those local scenes and create one regional, rich scene.
Bonus video:
