Fancy an Electric Orgasm?

By Rada Djurica

(continued)


During the '80s, one member of the band, Ljuba, left to live to New York, finally returning in the last few months of 2004, joining the band on their last Serbian Tour. Many old and always new fans of this band looked forward to finally seeing the good old Electric Orgasm live again.

The band also lost their drummer, Cavke, who had been a real celebrity in ex Yu, during the 80s when he immigrated to Australia and then died there.

In the '90s, Electric Orgasm band members, together with afew other ex Yu rock 'n' roll legends, started their acting careers in the theatre for children called Bosko Buha, with a play called Rock 'n' Roll for Children.

In the early '90s, the band, together with other ex Yu legends, performed all over Europe, in Prague and Berlin especially. Electric Orgasm was the first Serbian band to perform in Slovenia during the civil war in former Yugoslavia. Legendary singer Gyle performed the first gig after the civil war in ex Yu, in Croatia in Zagreb. The gig was filled with people from both sides, but the second day was cancelled because police found a bit of the heroin on Gyle, the singer. Gyle was busted in a Zagreb police cell, in the middle of post-civil war Croatia. The affair gained lots of publicity, because cops in the prison spent all night taking pictures with Gyle, begging him to sign their pictures.

In the '90s most of the band members focused on their acting careers. Music took second place, because the elections and political issues dominated the television and the street. There were no way, at that time, for a legendary rock band to survive.

In the mid-'90s, Gyle was a DJ at the legendary Serbian radio station B92. Just before drummer Cavke's death, he played Mark Boland in a very well received Bitef Theatre play about David Bowie, Ziggy Stardust. Cavke had been playing music in Australia. Just after he died in 1997, Sound of Island released his CD, Regression, which was a blend of improvisation, techno and standard rock'n'roll forms.

Ljuba, the keyboard player and back up vocalist, occasionally played music in New York for a club audience, rarely performing Electric Orgasm songs.

Next year they will release a documentary film about their 25 years as a band. Their last album is called Harmonizer. For a long time now, the band has been waiting for the suitable media gap to promote their last CD in Serbia. After it was released, the band performed in the ex Yu countries Croatia, Slovenia and Bosnia.

Electric Orgasm is now eager to revive their career, especially now that original Ljuba has returned from New York. The band today prefers to perform more Bob Dylan's way, than the glamorous way of the Rolling Stones, with their special effects and big screen on stage. Those circus techniques are too stagy for this band today. So no blow up dolls and mean flashy light effects. For them, the main focus is playing music.

Mind you, it is no secret, from a commercial point of view, the rock 'n' roll scene in Serbia and ex Yugoslavia is not exactly flourishing. The disintegration of rock 'n' roll continues. Urban rock 'n' roll music in today's Serbia has no bright future.


 

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