Patareni - UNRL 1986-2015



I nuked the '86 demo post because Hado intends to reissue it on vinyl kinda-soonish (so...the 11" version from '99 was a hoax?). As an out-of-nowhere gift, he offered up these unreleased trax specifically for Selfish Few, as well as this backstory on the group's beginnings in an unfortunately typical Eastern Bloc puppet-state...

Well it could be done a book about weird stuff on Patareni, but I don't know no one who can be interested in reading that crap. But this one time I tell you... 

In short about demo #1, Patareni changed drummer in October 1985 and in November we accidentally found a guy who wanted to play although he never played drums before (he played sometimes bass at home). And for 3 rehearsals we were ready to play live on 1.3.1986 in Krsko (Slovenia) festival gig with past UBR members, Odpadki Civilizacije, Tozibabe, Polska Malca, and Pasmaters. After that gig we were unlucky to make any rehearsal due of school timing, place for rehearsal, we never had complete instruments, our parents bothering us etc. 

But one girl made TV show about best underground bands in Yugoslavia and she wanted us to make 2 songs for it. So we met on and did short recorded rehearsals on camera and let them decide which songs they would like to take. At the end it turned out as 20 minutes video and time shall be shared with few other bands so each band got a song but Patareni got parts of two and open the documentary video recordings with song ‘Obrij Me Majko Motornom Pilom’. Later without any rehearsal we played festival on 24.5.1986 in Ljubljana and audio and video tape were released from that gig. Should be LP too but no one knows what happened. ‘Cudeza Ne Bo’ was audio tape and ‘Ni Strahu’ was VHS compilation. 

After that I met a guy who played covers of popular songs on terraces of hotels and clubs around Europe and (his kid was school friend of mine) he helped me to book studio for 3 hours and told studio owner/sound engineer that young band he likes want to record one short rock song live just to give to some youth underground competitions. You know in that time it was not so easy to get to studio in Yugoslavia due of many reasons like it was real expensive, studio owners wanted to hear band before (due of politics and lyric of the songs shall be given in advance for permission) and you couldn't just get to boss and say hey mister we would like to make recording. 

A day before studio I had to go twice by walk and bus to different part of city to borrow drum set and it was the only one I could get after 2 weeks of asking, praying and crying to everyone just to rent me for few hours. And it all was taken by hands two times because I didn't get any help of no one. I didn't have money to pay for taxi and my parents didn't have a car nor should know that I would like to waste/spend money I borrowed. You know it took me months and months to return that cash back. 

So after 3 rehearsals since autumn of 1985, 2 gigs and one TV session (we call it like we had 6 rehearsals since autumn of 1985 hehe) we got to studio and without bass player because his mom didn't let him get out. Our helper-friend went before us to get earlier and started to drink with studio boss and got him a little bit drunk and happier before we got there. We got in front of studio and boss said ok let guys record a song. You know it should be confirm twice just to be sure you will be lucky to record. When boss saw our drum set (no amps at all because we didn't have it and no one wanted to borrow and at last I couldn't take it all by hands for 3 times on the way from home to studios place etc) he was laughing and asked where is bass player and we said he will be a little bit late and I gave money to boss in hands just to keep it going. 

Boss was surprised for late of bass player but said ok lets make the sound check. We got more surprised because we thought studio is as same as live recording so just play once and take a tape after gig. We didn’t have any rehearsal as I noticed so we had to jams a lot but this time drummer was isolated in drum cabin with little window and we had to get up on the table to give him look to see our chords (he played bass as I noticed so it helped to get it faster to get into music) and singer were showing him with hands when is refrain and how long it lasts.Funny but scared a lot using headphones and trying to control singer and drummer and playing at once and not be drop down from high table. Hehe it was real shitty. 

But ok, boss just put tape to roll on and we started to play song by song without gaps and after few songs boss asked are we still tuning instruments and we said no we did big part of stuff. He started to laugh and asked is it for real and we said yes it's how we play. He was laughing more and said fuck I never heard it before and hopefully will never hear again so boys keep playing and let me know when to stop the recorder and we did it all at once. 

Studio guy was laughing all the time during recording (all was done live no overdubs) and said no way to leave stuff without bass guitar so he phoned his friend in neighborhood and that guy borrow us bass guitar for free for half hour so 10 minutes to take it and return it and 20 minutes to play all material at once. It is reason why some songs that were planned were not recorded, just because of time and money at last. We didn't have time to listen how bass was played/recorded and even didn't have time to mix the material. All was confused so during first song we made channels positions on mixer and left it to get that way till the end of recordings. We didn’t have time to make nothing but getting drums, guitar and ourselves out of studio. You know a new band were hanging outside door and wanted to get in at their paid time. So even rough mix was not done but I was happy that we did it anyway. People can like it or spit on it but people don't know nothing how hard way it was. 

Next day I made a copy of first demo and sent to label from France and soon got offer for a LP but I was not able to send them original reel so instead of full length LP they used the song ‘Broj’ from normal C60 audio tape and put it on Welcome To 1984 The 3rd Comp LP. 

Anyway, for free download for your blog, I send some unpublished songs. If you think it is too melodic to grind freaks it is ok but Patareni never cared about styles, cliches etc. You know people think that lyrics of Patareni are out of mind and naïve and stupid but it is real and more important than music (for me at last) and possible only guys from this part of living places (lets call it Balkan) can understand lot of jokes and problems we singing about. 

But who cares anyway. 

86... 
Sniffing Glue Version 1 (alternate version from ‘Pignoriranje’ 12") 

87... 
Omladini Treba Pomoći (alternate version from ‘Pignoriranje’ 12") 

88... 
Živim Život Ne Osjecam (alternate version from ‘Pignoriranje’ 12") 

Stuff that was singing by Giulio in 2001, lost studio rehearsal with many lost channels of each songs during ADAT back up (Giulio did singing for many more new Patareni songs in 2001, but it's somewhere in basement...it's full length LP material and completely speedy stuff)... 

No Rules (GG Allin) 
Stop Girl (Stalin) 
Tear Their Syphilitic Vaginas To Pieces (Gism) 

&... 

Pitanja I Odgovori 
Baterije 4 
Mogucnost Izbora (alternate version) 

2015... 
Fuck You Dude (this one supposed to be done by Blaine from Fartz/Accused but he never sent vocal recording that he promised some time ago)