ROSOL

DUNAJ was formed in 1986 in Brno (now Czech Republic) while the Czech Republic and Slovakia were still the one-unit Czechoslovakia. In the beginning this band collaborated with the avant-garde performer Iva Bittová, a renowned violinist, singer and composer. Her on again, off again relationship with DUNAJ started with the inception of the band and she performed with DUNAJ until 1989. Both artists debuted collaboratively with their debut album "Impuls" which was released under the moniker "IVA BITTOVÁ & DUNAJ" but Bittová was very much an independent artist and went her own way to craft her own musical realities. The debut was an interesting example of the perfect collaborative effort where each artist perfectly melds with the other to create something dynamic that neither could possibly achieve on their own. 
With Bittová leaving the band (at least for a while), DUNAJ forged ahead with its own musical vision of crafting a creepy mix of post-punk angst with the higher artistic visions of avant-prog and the results were the band's first non-collaborative album ROSOL (Czech for "Jelly") which was recorded in 1990 right after the Velvet Revolution and then released the following year when the whole Soviet communism thing was collapsing. ROSOL therefore reflects a unique moment in Czech history and provided the perfect confluence of events to allow DUNAJ to craft one of the best albums ever to emerge from within the borders of the former Czechoslovakia.

Following Bittová's departure, DUNAJ crafted a tighter, harsher and more claustrophobic sound that sat somewhere in between the bleak industrial atmospheres of early Einstürzende Neubauten and the post-punk quirkiness of NoMeansNo especially in the busy, oft-complex bass grooves. DUNAJ was all about an extremely tight rhythm sections that took the nihilistic attitude of punk and propelled it into the high brow art rock zone of avant-prog. The cohesive flow of drummer Pavel Fajt and bassist Vladimír Václavek provided the fundamental canvas for the jangly dual guitar delivers of Jirí Kolsovsky and Jozef Ostransky to engage in spidery, atonal complexities that have gotten he band compared to such acts as Estonia's Ne Zhdali at least in terms of the fusion qualities of mixing avant-prog with more accessible sounds.

For all its dark dreariness, ROSOL never strays too far from energetic punk rock bombast however the heavier outbursts are contrasted with more theatrical and dramatic freak-festivities with angular avant-prog motifs accompanied by the occasional creepy clown laugh or two and while the clear emphasis is on the massive attack of the guitars, bass and drums, keyboards provide bleak atmospheric backdrops that sound like tortured souls weary from the oppressive hand of political uprisings throughout the region. Without Bittová's quirky vocals charisma, the Czech language only lyrical delivery is provided by the low register vox boxes of three male members with the most distinct coming from Jiří Kolsovský's ability to croak out his narrations in a detached yet affirming manner.

ROSOL is considered to be DANUJ's most celebrated moment as the album constructs the perfect middle ground between hypnotic repetitive grooves associated with the post-punk and new wave world of the 80s along with jittery angularities of avant-prog accompanied by bleak industrial atmospheres, dissonant guitar tunings and high energy angst which alternates with slower arpeggiated tracks like the guitar dominated "Cassiniho Dělení ? Cassini Division" or the claustrophobic keyboard terror of "Mazáček ? Pet Child." ROSOL is one of those albums that reflects a very intense moment in history and perfectly translates those emotions through the sheer power of sound despite the fact it is sung entirely in a foreign language. This album is considered to be a blueprint for the entire Czech avant-garde art rock scene to follow and it's apparent only after a single listen why this album has earned its reputation. For anyone wanting a more prog infused version of punk music in the same camp as Cardiacs or NoMeansNo only darker, then DUNAJ is a band you simply must experience.

4.5 stars. DUNAJ were a five piece band from the Czech Republic who formed in the mid eighties. "Rosol" is their first proper studio album after collaborating with female vocalist Iva Bittova on a 1989 release. Experimental/Post Punk fits the description of the music here. So much energy, and so much going on. Lots of repetitive sounds. We get three guys playing guitar, and just imagine one of them strumming a lot, while a second plays electric and then a soloist. It seems like there's a lot of beats, but really we just get a very active drummer. Although the bass player adds a bass drum, and that bass is upfront and very good. The keyboardist adds a lot of synths that create atmosphere, and some piano. We get three singers but Jiri is the main vocalist.

The music here is so addictive and catchy. So much going on, so much depth. It really reminds me of fellow Czechs THE PLASTIC PEOPLE OF THE UNIVERSE, but without the violin. DUNAJ were quite active from 1991 to 1996 when they released five studio albums before breaking up in 1998. Jiri the vocalist passed away shortly after that. The band did make a comeback releasing an album in 2022 with the bass player taking the lead vocals and Iva Bittova returning to add backing vocals this time. So we get a 54 plus minute album here with 13 tracks. The cover art shows a boy with an ear-piece, hearing for the very first time in his life.

While I like the first half over the second half, this is a consistent recording, and uniform which I like. Those first four songs are incredible, with the fourth one "The Flea" possibly being my favourite track on here. That fifth song "Southwards" has these pulsating synths that are so eighties. I like them. "Locusts" has this crazed laughter almost throughout. "Cassini Division" is a little different as we get reserved vocals and sounds. The synths seem to swirl endlessly on "Pet Child". And talk about repetitive, check out "Stilly". And lastly we get the track "Loiterers" which could have been a single. The lyrics are pretty funny here.

I'm bumping this up. Tis the season. Love this time of year, and this record just makes me want to celebrate.