(CD) 
Vinyl Maija Rec. Tantadruj (SL, 1997)**° (VG)
(CDR) private/demo Tandruj : demo (SL,rec. 2002)***° (EX)
After having played various tracks of Tantadruj on my radioshow and having published some remarks on my webpage the group contacted me telling me they had another recording ready for publication, but they did not find any recording company in Slovenia interested in their music. I don't know how much after-war conditions lead companies in making their decisions, so I wanted to hear this release to figure out who else could be better interested. For me Tantadruj is one of the most promising new releases of new groups I heard from the newly formed states out of Yugoslavia, from Slovenia. The group changed it's name from Tantadruj into Tadruj. I believe their music improved in "seriousness". This instrumental music on the new release are arrangements of acoustic classical guitar based instrumentals and chamber folk. It's basically played by classical guitar with second acoustic guitar, tabla and additional touches of triangle & tambourine.
Their first CD release, "Tantadruj" contained different elements, one part was folk pop music structured with chamber folk arrangements (flute, cello, acoustic guitars), other tracks had some blues elements (harmonica, guitars), a part of the songs (and instrumentals) were in a very beautiful and outstanding acid (/psych) folk style, with male and female vocals ("Lenora",("Topal"), "Otroski Bog", "Talisman", "Lorelei", "Strunam","Na Poljani",..).
The group contained two acoustic guitarists influenced by Jansch/ Renbourn/ Graham), a cello player and a vocalist. I heard from Roman Pavlin "most of the songs contains words of famous Slovenian poets from 19th century. They recorded their first album in 1989 (available on LP only; rare). The second album was recorded in early 90's, but not released until 1997 (CD only). The CD, "Strunam" contains some songs from their first album, too."
The new sound of the group with more attention to the guitars works very well and gives the music a beautiful consistent solid and mature sound. Most of the time we hear a nice interplay between the two guitars. On the first four tracks it did sound very classical arranged (on the second track fused with some blues theme), but there are more tracks that reveal a unique and original style. "Sish-Kebab Raga" for instance after that and on almost all tracks that followed there are blends of different styles (Kyoto Blues seems a perfect World folk guitar Fusing style). A few times there are sparse extra arrangements. On "Brahmaputra" we here an additional tabla solo with a flute like noise accompaniment. "Tirolka/Tirol woman" sounds as if it has sparse violin orchestral arragement, and "Disgiskhan" sounds like it has some extra oboe, although these are so much integrated on the background I am not sure of that. These fit beautifully. Lots of themes are perfect combinations of classical contemporary music, with folk and often with Indian echoes. There are even fusing styles to be aware of, in the titles, like the earlier mentioned "Kyoto Blues" or "Edelweiss Raga". Only the 8th track, "Village in May" is a blues folk track, still somewhat classically arranged for two guitars.
This is a release that needs different listens to reveal all different hidden aspects. The result surely is beautiful.
Interesting remarks by the group (I also asked for the signification of the band's name) :
"All themes are originally written (or composed ), although they sometimes maybe sound like they were imported from other cultural sources. When I was youger I listened quite a lot bands like Popol Vuh, Pentangle, Fairport Con., ISBand and also the music from India and Balkan, especially Macedonian, which is for me some kind of ideal fussion of East and West. Maybe more organic than morrocan music!? Some parts
( but not many ) sounds like macedonian folk music because of 7/8 rhytmical patterns. I think that some of songs, which have total european melodical structure ( Brahmaputra, Kyoto ) sound a bit exotic because of open tunings on second guitar, which are used rationally to get more space and airy feeling between the dialog of two guitars. The very similar approach has D. Graham.
The name of band Tantadruj is a hybrid word; it means in one of our dialects : This and this and other person. It is very rough transition. Tantadruj is also the nick name of a man, taken from very famous slovenian novel with the same title. Tantadruj was real person, a half mad man or lunatic from the countryside, who collected cow bells and who desperatelly wanted to meet Death (in Slovenija Death is a woman ) and talked with her. At his end he really met her. Tadruj is just the same word but shortened. It means the other or the others (plural). We changed the name because we changed the group, but the feeling stays on. Tantadruj is metaphorically in a way also a some kind of a symbol for freedom and lunacy, mixed together.
We have some ideas for a cover. Our tabla player Joe Slak is in Slovenija one of the more important painters. He paints on different perforated wooden plates various surrealistic scenes. He is the oldest in group, a true artist, surviver from hippy era. " Botjan
A few new items related with the Sedmina group are reviewed at the Sedmina page.
