Magazin – “Put Putujem”
So, a while ago a friend of mine who Croatian ancestry gave me a bunch of her aunts old records that came to Canada from Croatia. This band, Magazin, (not to be confused with the Manchester Post-Punk band, Magazine) just looked real interesting on the two albums I was given. I’m finally putting one on the turntable.
So, I will try my best as I go over this album to use my trusty Google translate to translate at least the song titles. The title track, “Put Putujem” (“I Am On a Journey“) starts off, it’s a bit slower and the it’s definitely got that late 80’s sound to the music, I am liking the mandolin sound that’s going on in the back. Vocally, it’s pleasing to the ears. “Sanjam” (“I’m Dreaming“) comes next, and I am digging the backing music on this one, and the chorus has a pretty solid beat to it. Not bad at all. “Nakon Mnogo Godina” (“After Many Years“) follows up next, and it seems to slow down again and on this album I’m quite impressed with the musicianship, this song features some male vocals, I’m assuming it’s the tall guy in orange from the cover. The chorus comes around and this group sure can deliver on their choruses. “Zna Srce Zna” (“The Heart Knows, It Knows“) comes next, and we’ve got another banger here, I am actually surprised at how much I am digging the beat of this album. I definitely thought I wasn’t going to vibe with it, but here I am. “Idi” (“Go“) closes out the A-Side, it’s bassy with a steady drum beat as the vocalist continues to sing, and wow, when they open this song up, it’s great. This album has been a surprise so far!
The B-Side opens with the song “Sve Bi Seke Ljubile Mornare” (which apparently translates to “All the Girls Would Love Sailors” – I’m not quite sure if that is correct or not, but I’m intrigued) and it starts with almost like a military marching drum thing before we get into more of the pop sound and the female vocals come in. I’m 50/50 with this track, it’s got a good beat and the female vocals are good. Not a fan of the male vocals going in the back. “Boli Me” (“It Hurts“) follows next, and it’s a slower, softer ballad type song, but I’d imagine so with a name like that. I will say this is a lot better than Jiří Korn. “Nataša” (“Natasha”) comes next, and we go back to that more upbeat pop sound, and I’m really like this one. This is a good song. “Dva Zrna Grožđa” (“Two Grapes“) comes next, and we kind of dial it back some, but we keep up with that good beat and these vocals that are pretty good. “Igraju Igraju” (“They’re Playing, They’re Playing“) follows next, and it’s not my most favorite song on the album, the good thing is it’s second to last, and I definitely recognize those guitar chords from another song, but I really can’t place them. The album closes out with a small little instrumental piece titled “Odlazak” (“Departure“) and you know, it comes off more like an outro to the previous song, and if I wasn’t paying attention I’d probably end up thinking that, but overall, not a bad album. Neat little discovery here.
Catalog Number:
LSY-62166
Credits:
Recorded at J.M. Sound Studio, Zagreb
Mixed at J.M. Sound Studio, Zagreb
Printed by GIP “Beograd”
Backing Vocals – Vesna Srećković
Coordinator – Rajko Milosavljević
Design – Ivica Rađa
Editor – Vojno Kundić
Editor – Siniša Škarica
Engineer – Hrvoje Grčević
Logo – Ivica Jurić
Lyrics by Nenad Ninčević (tracks: A1 – B3, B6)
Music by Tonči Huljić (tracks: A1 – B3, B5, B6)
Photography by Jadran Babić
Producer, Arranged by Mato Došen
Programmed by Duško Mandić
Released:
1986
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