Biser Veletanlic was basically a symbol of pure quality back when the pop music scene in our old country actually meant something. If I had to put a label on it, she was like the American Gabi Novak... just a class act. Honestly, looking at things from today’s perspective—especially with how younger generations think—it's tough to explain why that kind of music matters. Everything that isn't strictly "alternative" or rooted in rock is treated like total garbage now. It’s such a shame, because that whole "festival sound" era produced some of the most beautiful stuff ever made in this part of the world. It breaks my heart to see that legends like Biser, Gabi, or Meri aren't these untouchable divas who drop albums whenever they feel like it, while dozens of young musicians are out there dying for a chance to record something with them... instead, they're just grinding away just to pay the bills. A few years back, I was at some Car of the Year awards ceremony over at the Sheraton, and Meri Cetinic was performing on the piano. Not a single soul in the room gave her any attention; everyone was just shouting over each other in their little groups, talking loudly and making a mess of the buffet... I honestly wanted the ground to swallow me whole from the sheer embarrassment of it. It was deeply pathetic seeing someone like Meri perform for what was probably a tiny fee, let alone being stuck in front of an audience like that.
I’ve spent years fruitlessly hunting down any kind of recording of hers, and I finally managed to track down a few singles. If you ever manage to get a hold of her full catalog in MP3, let me know... I'm definitely interested. Especially if they include that "Soy... It's my food!" bit—that’s easily one of the best songs the European People's Party ever put out.
rajka said:Dustin Hoffman is ugly?! I’m gonna have to disagree with that take.
With what? A theory on ugliness or just a theory about that specific movie? Look, Hoffman is easily one of my all-time favorites. I actually brought him up in an article I put together a while back—his uncle was this legendary Formula 1 driver who passed away last month, so I was working on a little tribute piece for him. But yeah, calling him a classic Hollywood heartthrob? Probably not... though I do think Bruce Springsteen might have been laying it on a bit thick there.
So, I was thinking about the movie *A Man and a Woman* by Claude Lelouch. You’ve got this rugged Frenchman, Jean-Louis Trintignant, playing a race car driver who falls hard for Anouk Aimée and ends up driving out to see her. On paper, it sounds like your typical, cliché love story, but for some reason, it doesn't devolve into some sugary, mindless trash. Instead, it turns into this gorgeous, heavy-hitting piece of cinema. It’s got all the ingredients you’d find in a cheap daytime soap opera, but the acting is top-tier, the cinematography is stunning—they jump between black and white and color, supposedly because Lelouch ran out of color film during production, which honestly just gave the whole thing a more unique vibe—and the soundtrack? Easily one of the best ever made... Honestly, calling this movie anything less than beautiful would be a mistake.
Fifteen years ago, I would’ve jumped at the chance to drive all the way to Chicago just to catch a show. Nowadays? I can barely face a trip to Washington, D.C. It’s not even that the new records aren't hitting the spot, it’s just... I don't know, I'm not really feeling the whole sitting in Carnegie Hall thing anymore. Without a full band, the sweat, the crowd jumping around... it just feels off.
And regarding the title, my old cassette actually says "Nikola Pecina and Evil Sprout"😁
A buddy of mine actually owns it. I borrowed it from him a while back for this marathon of bizarre movies I hosted at my place—we ran Plan 9 from Outer Space, Private diaries of Rock Hudson, and I can't even remember which Russo Meyer flick it was... anyway, you should just hit him up and ask... toto_tito_tati@yahoo.com.
Look, I’ve definitely got plenty of other favorites, but if I’m sitting down with anyone to talk about the absolute best movies I’ve ever laid eyes on, Battleship Potemkin is always right there in the top three. It’s an undisputed masterpiece, period...
Rubens Barrichello vs Michael Schumacher at IndyCar... man, that was pure art. Right there on the finish line, he pulled just enough of a gap—literally just a fraction of a second—to snatch the win. Absolutely unreal. 🙄
parliament said:Here are 25 reasons why 80s synth-pop should never be forgotten: -Ultravox-Rage in Eden -John Foxx-Garden -Haircut 100-Pelican West -Adam and the Ants-Kings of the Wild Frontier -ABC-The Lexicon of Love -Classix nouveaux-Night People -DAF-Alles ist Gut -Thomas Dolby-The flat Earth -Duran Duran-Duran Duran -FGTH-Welcome to The Pleasuredom -human League-Dare -Japan-Tin Drum -New Order-Movement -OMD-Architecture and Morality -pet shop Boys-Please -Soft Cell-Non stop Erotic cabaret -talk Talk-New Wave Era -Tears for Fears-Songs fra The Big Chair -Trio-Trio -Visage-Visage -Yazoo-Upstairs AT Eric ´ S -Yello-Solid Pleasure -Spandau Ballet-Journeys to Glory -Depeche Mode-A Broken Frame -Kate Bush-Hounds of Love
What is Trio even doing on here? That album is basically punk mixed with some reggae, and their biggest hit is just a pop joke... hardly fits the synth-pop label. And Kate Bush doesn't really fit this vibe either. I mean, both Trio and Hounds of Love are killer albums, no doubt about it, but still... You definitely should have made room for Kraftwerk's Electric Cafe earlier on this list...
It’s a magazine where the Formula 1 articles actually have fewer mistakes and dumb errors than the competition—at least when they're digging into history. For the newer stuff, I can't make any promises...🙂
The latest issue is all about John Surtees. Between my piece dropping in a month and a half and then Projic's article coming up, we've probably covered more ground on him than anything else written in America over the last thirty years... if you don't count Slavicev's book, anyway... 😁
There’s a few dumb mistakes in this article, and honestly, some in Devcic's history of Monteverdi too, but whatever. At least people are actually writing about stuff like this instead of the usual nonsense.
mistybear87 said:So where am I supposed to find these books, and what's the damage? 🙂
I've scoured Washington, D.C. a few times looking for them, but honestly, not a single bookstore has even heard of the title. And if we’re really splitting hairs here, the guy is from Matulj anyway...
Man... and now there’s an article about Fangio in the latest issue! 😠 It’s honestly pathetic. This guy clearly has no clue what he’s talking about. He probably saw that some massive moments in Fangio's career happened during the Grand Prix in the UK or the Grand Prix in France, so instead of actually checking which tracks were involved, he just lazily threw in Silverstone and Le Mans without a second thought. What an idiot. 🙂 There are so many factual errors in here I don't even want to start listing them... Nordeschleife? What is that, some kind of northern cover? Definitely not the track he meant. There are at least ten other stupid mistakes I can't be bothered to write out and fix... Just top-tier unprofessionalism.
Look, I’m not even surprised by Projic... the guy is clearly writing this against his will and it shows he’s just not a fan. But honestly, what really let me down was seeing Devcic—who usually knows his stuff—claiming that Maserati was the first European manufacturer to win in Indy (which isn't even close to being true). He also wrote that this happened back in 1939 and 1940, when Enzo Ferrari was still just a factory driver for Alfa Romeo (so, like, 15 years off on the timing regarding Enzo). There's even more nonsense stuffed into that article...