Filed under: adventures, shows, Uncategorized | Tags: lawnmower boy, ljubljana, mobitel, movia, nous non plus, puro, roxly, slovenia, yeah yeah yeahs
Upon our arrival in the center of Ljubljana, we are greeted warmly at Movia’s wine shop with a bottle of Puro Rose.
We roll in to the Roxly, where we sound check and get ready to play.
View from the front of the Roxly. “Who would put a castle up there?” Clouds gather…
Our Slovenian cell phone commercial plays on a loop at the front of the bar.
…Crowds gather, packing the club past the bar, out the door… Amazingly, our song’s appearance in an ad seems to have captured Slovenia’s imagination. We are told repeatedly that everyone in Slovenia knows this song, and has wondered about the mysterious American artists behind it (some even [erroneously] concluding that we are secretly the Yeah Yeah Yeahs). The crowd sings along to “Lawnmower Boy” in a dizzying hybrid of Slovene-Franglish.
Verdict: Success, with the distinct possibility of returning to this magical part of the world some time in the future. Merci, Ljubljana!
Check out this Slovenian blog for some great photos of the show, offset by 180 degrees.
Filed under: adventures | Tags: gorizia, italy, movia, nous non plus, slovenia, wine cellar, winery
It’s really difficult to talk about our time in Slovenia, and particularly our time at the Movia winery, without attempting to convey a sense of place. So much of what we learned on this trip, both in terms music and wine, needs to be grounded in the natural environment and politico-historical context we found ourselves in. With what follows, I hope to shed some light.
Views from the back porch of the Movia estate.
The following days (at least the daylight parts) were spent somewhat more quietly at the winery, giving us time to poke around with the occasional excursions to nearby towns, eateries, etc.
Movia’s on-location wine shop
A leisurely lunch
A walk through the neighborhood
Swords used to ceremonially “circumcise” corks from their bottles.
A trip to Gorizia, on the Italian side of the border.
Mural at a restaurant where we ate dinner, nestled in the hills near the winery.
A World War I memorial, outside that restaurant.
More time was spent in the wine cellar, from whence, in one corner, the flash of a neon light emanated…
The words of the prophets, written on the cellar walls
Filed under: adventures | Tags: ales kristancic, brda, collio, david griffin, movia, music, nous non plus, puro, slovenia
Winding our way back and forth across the Italian border as we make our way to the Movia estate. Those yellow stars don’t lie– no border control. Slovenia’s in the EU now.
Nous Non Plus converged on Venice last Monday and took a drive along the Adriatic to the Movia winery, just on the other side of the Italian border in Slovenia. Our journey took us up and down hills and valleys…
…until we arrived, slightly sickened by our bumpy ride in a boxy diesel van with all our gear and luggage, but in one piece nonetheless.
Inside, the band gears up for a dinner party hosted by owner and our soon-to-be wine rabbi Aleš Kristančič. In attendance will be wine writers, sellers, and luminaries fresh from the important Vinitaly wine show held the week prior in Verona. Some high-level Slovenian political figures will also be present.
The Movia begins to pour, and we dine.
An invigoratingly fresh asparagus soup
Aleš decants. Much of the wine is made in a hyper-natural style which leaves an earthy sediment in the finished product.
After playing, we retreat to the cellar, bottles of sparkling Puro Rose in tow. Silliness ensues. It was this Puro, more than anything, that brought us religion in the coming days.
Vodpod videos no longer available.
In the dark of the cellar, Aleš draws a 2005 barrel sample with a decorative glass instrument, which he routes directly to our glasses.
More to come…
Filed under: adventures | Tags: graffiti, ljubljana, nous non plus, roxly, slovenia
As it turned out, neither time nor the availability of reliable data transmission permitted my posting while abroad, so Hebrew School returns to Brooklyn with a series of posts on my Italo-Slovenian adventures. As an appetite whetter, here are some pictures of graffiti taken in the center of the Slovenian capital, in the immediate area of our show at the Roxly Bar.
The politics of the graffiti ranged the full spectrum, often in a flux of interplay…
…and escaped into infinity.
Filed under: adventures, shows | Tags: gorizia, ljubljana, movia, nous non plus, slovenia, winery
…while Hebrew School packs, kvetches about getting the kosher meal, and hums “Rock & Roll Woman” by Buffalo Springfield through security.
Our engagements in Slovenia will be as follows:
Tomorrow (4/7, Tuesday)– Party at the Movia winery
Wednesday– Gorizia
Thursday– Ljubljana, in a secret location. If you happen to be in town or know someone who is, check out our event listing on myspace for instructions.
Friday– Back to Movia for a private show.
And keep an eye out for posts on the road, as time permits.
Hebrew School 