Vlada Divljan
Encyclopedia
Vladimir "Vlada" Divljan (Serbian Cyrillic: Владимир Дивљан), is a Serbia
n singer and songwriter
. He is known as the frontman for the Serbian and former Yugoslav rock band
Idoli, as well as for his solo works.
, a seaside resort where he went on a holiday with his family. After coming back to Belgrade
he asked Zdenko Kolar and Boža Jovanović, two of his friends and neighbors, to form a band. The first instrument Divljan played was a small mandolin because he was a fan of Dubrovački Trubaduri. Later he got a guitar, Kolar bought a bass and Boža Jovanović used a tin barrel as a drum with metal sticks made by Kolar's father. The band was called Faraoni (Pharaohs) since Divljan had a necklace from Egypt
, given by his grandmother, with a Tutankhamun
medallion. Since there was a popular band from Koper named Faraoni, the band was renamed to Holipe. Both Divljan and Kolar attended guitar course at the RU "Braća Stamenković" held by professor Branko Perišić who later appeared in the "Sve laži sveta" video.
In order to have rehearsals the three would skip school. The rehearsals were held at the boiler-room in their building. The three had rehearsals there for about ten years. They held a free gig at the Dadov's upper floor.
, Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix
songs and their own songs. The band performed at Zaječar
Guitar festival and Novi Sad
BOOM festival. They also had some sessions at Radio Belgrade but due to Kokan Popović's departure to serve the army, the band ceased to exist.
's Faculty of Medicine and his friend Nebojša Krstić
decided to form a band and Divljan jokingly offered to be the band's drummer. He took Šaper and Nebojša Krstić
to his building's basement where he had rehearsals and where Kolar's and his equipment was placed. Having realized that the two could not play bass and guitar as they planned, Divljan invited his old fiends Kolar on bass and Jovanović on drums, so the band had a musician a non-musician factions. The band was called Dečaci (The Boys). At the same time Dečaci met Dragan Papić, photographer and journalist, who became the band's creative mentor, who published Dečaci photos in a well known youth magazine Vidici. The photos had subtitles featuring gay-hinting comments. It was a conceptual band without recordings.
While the public got interested in the band through photos and graffiti which could be seen on Belgrade
's walls, the band had to show some proof of existence. Dečaci were renamed to Idoli (The Idols) on March 1, 1980 at the first rehearsal on which Divljan wrote the first song "Retko te viđam sa devojkama" ("I Rarely See You With Girls"), one of the first gay-hinting songs ever written in Yugoslavia
. In a month's period "Retko te viđam sa devojkama" and "Pomoć, pomoć
" were recorded and released as a present with the April release of "Vidici" magazine. The positive critics opened many doors to Idoli including an opportunity to sign a contract with Jugoton
a major Yugoslav
record label.
By the time Maljčiki
single came out Idoli were already working on the Paket aranžman
(Package Deal), a various artists compilation which proved to be one of the most influential Yugoslav rock releases. The next release was the VIS Idoli EP
featuring six new songs. Divljan appeared as writer and lead vocalist for most of the tracks. The EP
was sold in about 200.000 copies.
For the recording of the first album Kokan Popović, Zvuk Ulice drummer, became the new Idoli drummer. Odbrana i poslednji dani was released in early 1982. The album represents a conceptual effort dealing with an anthropological approach towards orthodoxy. Divljan beside guitar played piano and provided lead vocals for most of the tracks. Odbrana tour proved to be a success unlike the album which was sold in 50.000 copies which. The record company considered a failure even though it was pronounced the best album and best album design of 1982. Foreign magazines also released positive critics and in 1985 "Džuboks" pronounced Odbrana i poslednji dani the best Yugoslav rock record of the 20th century.
The next release was recorded in London
with producer Bob Painter. Zdenko Kolar went to the army and was replaced by Branko Isaković. The sound was strictly commercial and proved to be the band's greatest success. For Čokolada Divljan did not put a lot of effort as he was preparing a university degree at the time. He wrote Radostan dan", "Vetar i zastave" and "Ja sam tu" (for which Divljan added a verse from Mišo Kovač track "Plakat će zora" written by Drago Britvić).
After the Ljubljana
show, on Čokolada tour, the band members had a quarrel which resulted in the breakup of Idoli. The last Idoli release was a soundtrack album for Šest dana juna movie for which Jugoton
insisted to be released as an Idoli album. The entire soundtrack was written by Divljan (he considers this album his first solo release), while the rest of the band plus some guests recorded their parts.
on guitar, but decided to pursue a solo career.
The album Tajni život A. P. Šandorova was recorded with Aleksandar Šandorov who used to work only on classical music. Keyboard player Đorđe Petrović also appeared on the album. The album brought a variety of musical styles, instrumentals "1986" and "1987", minimalistic swing "Neću ništa da znam" ("I Don't Want To Know Anything"), ballad "Više nisam tu" ("I Am Not Here Anymore") and sampled hit "Patuljci" ("Gnome
s"). For the first time Divljan used sampled music, including sound recordings of Zastava 750
engine, glass breaking, cricket
and anvil percussion sounds. The tour for Tajni život A. P. Šandorova featured Zdenko Kolar on bass, Aleksandar Šandorov on keyboards and Marko Milivojević on drums. He also appeared live with the Film faction Le Cinema and the song "Maršal" ("Poslednji dani" with the missing verse) appeared on Le Cinema's live album Rocking At The Party Live! released by Suzy Records in 1989.
For the soundtrack of "Čovek u beloj jakni" ("Man In A White Jacket") TV series, Divljan recorded cover version of The Beatles
songs mainly from their self title record also known as the White Album. He recorded songs for the TV show "Podijum" ("The Stage"), for the "Kako je propao rokenrol" ("The Fall Of Rock 'n' Roll") omnibus movie, Divljan recorded soundtrack for the "Do izvora dva putića" ("Two Paths To The Spring
") section directed by Zoran Pez. With Srđan Gojković Gile of Elektricni Orgazam
he participated the theater piece "Rokenrol za decu" ("Rock 'n' Roll For Children") and the music from the piece was released on a record and featured cover versions of popular children songs. Rokenrol bukvar (Rock 'n' Roll Alphabet) was another children's music project this time a soundtrack of the famous Ljubivoje Ršumović children TV show "Fazoni i fore".
During 1990 Divljan, Piko Stančić, Gile and Zoran Radomirović Švaba released the Lutka koja kaže ne album faturing lyrics by Divljan and Gile and a cover version of Đorđre Marijanović's song "Lutka koja že ne". The track "Vi ž'tem mon amur", dedicated to Serge Gainsbourg
and his hit "Je t'aime... moi non plus
", featured samples of the recordings by Black Sabbath
, Time, intro by Žika Jelić, YU grupa
bassist, for "Kosovski božuri" recorded live at BOOM pop festival and the voice of Milena Dravić
taken from her aerobics
tape. A cover version of the song "Srećan ti rođendan" ("Happy Birthday"), which Divljan wrote for Slađana Milošvić, also appeared on the album. In the Summer of 1991 Divljan helped Srđan Gojković Gile on his second solo project which is actually the "Crni bombarder" ("Black Bomber") soundtrack album.
. He started playing rock standards with local bands, collaborated with singer Max Sharam
and worked in a local Serbian
radio station. Having started working on TV and movie soundtracks he was included into the Movie Composer's Society and in 1996 started studying at the University of Sydney
, section Sound studies of the Movie Academy. He got the "Audio Excellence" award by Ampex Corporation for the short movie "Flying Over Mother" for which he did sound design and music. He was also awarded by the CBS
for the short soundless movie "Drip".
During a short visit to FR Yugoslavia in late 1995 / early 1996, he formed the Old Stars Band consisting of Aleksandar Šandorov (keyboards), Zdenko Kolar (bass), Srđan Gojković Gile (guitar, vocals), Marko Milivojević
(drums) and Boris Bunjac (percussion). The band held two concerts at Novi Sad
Studio "M", an NS Plus Unplugged and a regular show with electric equipment on January 18 and 23, 1996. The material recorded from the shows was released on a live album entitled Odbrana i zaštita released through B92 Records records.
In January, 1997 back in Australia
Divljan worked on a project with Leb i Sol
keyboard player Kiril Džajkovski
entitled Apartchiks. The first CD entitled Dekada (Decade), released by Avant Garde Records, featured four tracks with sampled speeches by former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milošević
. The next release, Recorded Supplement, featured nine tracks dealing with Divljan's and Džajkovski
's exploration of the modern music.
Divljan recorded the soundtrack album for the movie Tri palme za dve bitange i ribicu ("Three Palms Trees For Two Punks And A Chick"). With new techno oriented themes, the obscure Idoli track "Pomoć, pomoć
" appeared in a new version recorded by Divljan and Ghuru Ghagi from the band URGH!. Ghagi with Šaban Bajramović
also appeared on the cover version of "Tri palme na otoku sreće" ("Three Palms Trees On The Isle Of Happiness) sang by Divljan and Bilja Krstić
. The soundtrack also featured "Dekada" ("Decade") by Apartchiks, "Mačo" ("Macho") by Pressing and "Duboko disanje" ("Deep Breaths") by URGH!. Beside the Old Stars Band, the recording sessions featured guitarist Dušan Bezuha Duda (Banana
, Zona B).
In July 1998 the Old Stars Band had a successful tour of Slovenia
and Divljan appeared as guest on Buldozer
concerts. During the same year Divljan with his companions entered the studio in Novi Sad
to record his comeback album Sve laži sveta, the album was released in 2000. The album featured slower songs, a cover version of Buldožer
's hit "Novo vreme" ("New Age"). The closing track "Rodina" was sang in Russian and used in an Australian documentary about a Russian
astronaut. Guest appearances featured Kiril Džajkovski
(synthesizer), Mladen Đorđević (trumpet), Laslo Dieneš (trumpet) and Andrej Maglovski (accordion). The CD also included a multimedia biographies of musicians, recordings of live performances and sections from the documentaries for which Divljan wrote the soundtrack.
. The original idea was to stay for a short period of time, but eventually it turned out to be their residence to this day.
Shotly after moving to Vienna
, Divljan started working on different sound design projects. He also released an instrumental album Vlada Divljan presents Die Tonzentrale released in 2003 by B92 Records Records. The style of the album was a combination of jazz, blues, pop, rock and electronic music. He also participated the Milan Mladenović
tribute album Kao da je bilo nekad with the cover of "Radostan dan" ("Joyful Day"). He composed music for the theater piece "Paviljoni" ("Pavilions") by Zijah Sokolović. He appeared as guest on Kiril Džajkovski
's soundtrack for "Balcancan" (released in 2005 by Lithium Records) on the track "Baba zumbula" which became a hit in the Republic of Macedonia
. Divljan and Bunjac recorded a soundtrack for Sedam i po ("Seven And A Half") directed by Miroslav Momčilović.
In 2006 Divljan formed a new backing band called Nevladina Organizacija and did several live shows. He also started working on his new album with the work title Esperanto in the "Digimedia" studio in Belgrade
. The album would feature songs in Serbian
, German
and Esperanto
. In an interview he also stated that there are plans of making a web site about the album featuring the album itself, out-takes, instrumental tracks etc.
In 2008 he recorded the soundtrack for the film Na lepom plavom Dunavu ("On The Beautiful Blue Danube"), Kosovski dnevnik by Željko Mirković and is currently working on the Miroslav Momčilović movie Zovi me, ja sigurno neću biti tu (Call me, I surely will not be there).
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n singer and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
. He is known as the frontman for the Serbian and former Yugoslav rock band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
Idoli, as well as for his solo works.
Early activity
Divljan got interested in music in 1968, after a Drago Diklić concert in TučepiTucepi
Tučepi is a small town and municipality in the Split-Dalmatia County of Croatia. It is located on the Adriatic coast of Dalmatia known as Makarska riviera, about 5 km southeast of Makarska, population 1,763...
, a seaside resort where he went on a holiday with his family. After coming back to Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
he asked Zdenko Kolar and Boža Jovanović, two of his friends and neighbors, to form a band. The first instrument Divljan played was a small mandolin because he was a fan of Dubrovački Trubaduri. Later he got a guitar, Kolar bought a bass and Boža Jovanović used a tin barrel as a drum with metal sticks made by Kolar's father. The band was called Faraoni (Pharaohs) since Divljan had a necklace from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, given by his grandmother, with a Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun , Egyptian , ; approx. 1341 BC – 1323 BC) was an Egyptian pharaoh of the 18th dynasty , during the period of Egyptian history known as the New Kingdom...
medallion. Since there was a popular band from Koper named Faraoni, the band was renamed to Holipe. Both Divljan and Kolar attended guitar course at the RU "Braća Stamenković" held by professor Branko Perišić who later appeared in the "Sve laži sveta" video.
In order to have rehearsals the three would skip school. The rehearsals were held at the boiler-room in their building. The three had rehearsals there for about ten years. They held a free gig at the Dadov's upper floor.
Zvuk ulice
The first serious band Divljan formed after graduation, in 1976 called Merlin soon renamed to Zvuk Ulice (Sound Of The Street). The band featured Divljan (guitar, vocals), Zdenko Kolar (bass), Dragan Mitrić (keyboards), Kokan Popović (drums) and Bora Atić (saxophone). The band was a combination of melodic rock, hard rock and jazz rock. The band performed cover versions of The BeatlesThe Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
songs and their own songs. The band performed at Zaječar
Zajecar
Zaječar is a city and municipality in the eastern part of Serbia. According to the 2011 census the town has a population of 36,830, and its coordinates are 43.91° North, 22.30° East...
Guitar festival and Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
BOOM festival. They also had some sessions at Radio Belgrade but due to Kokan Popović's departure to serve the army, the band ceased to exist.
Dečaci and Idoli
In late 1979 Divljan, a college student, met his close high school friend Srđan Šaper at a party. Šaper, a student at University of BelgradeUniversity of Belgrade
The University of Belgrade is the oldest and largest university of Serbia.Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it merged with the Kragujevac-based departments into a single university...
's Faculty of Medicine and his friend Nebojša Krstić
Nebojša Krstic
Nebojša Krstić is an Advisor of the President of Serbia for public relations appointed by Boris Tadić. He was also a member of the Serbian rock band Idoli.- Biography :...
decided to form a band and Divljan jokingly offered to be the band's drummer. He took Šaper and Nebojša Krstić
Nebojša Krstic
Nebojša Krstić is an Advisor of the President of Serbia for public relations appointed by Boris Tadić. He was also a member of the Serbian rock band Idoli.- Biography :...
to his building's basement where he had rehearsals and where Kolar's and his equipment was placed. Having realized that the two could not play bass and guitar as they planned, Divljan invited his old fiends Kolar on bass and Jovanović on drums, so the band had a musician a non-musician factions. The band was called Dečaci (The Boys). At the same time Dečaci met Dragan Papić, photographer and journalist, who became the band's creative mentor, who published Dečaci photos in a well known youth magazine Vidici. The photos had subtitles featuring gay-hinting comments. It was a conceptual band without recordings.
While the public got interested in the band through photos and graffiti which could be seen on Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
's walls, the band had to show some proof of existence. Dečaci were renamed to Idoli (The Idols) on March 1, 1980 at the first rehearsal on which Divljan wrote the first song "Retko te viđam sa devojkama" ("I Rarely See You With Girls"), one of the first gay-hinting songs ever written in Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
. In a month's period "Retko te viđam sa devojkama" and "Pomoć, pomoć
Pomoc, pomoc
"Pomoć, pomoć" is the first song which appeared on the first single by Serbian new wave band Idoli. The song, with "Retko te viđam sa devojkama" appeared on the A-side while the B-side contained Slobodan Škerović's narrative poem called "Poklon"...
" were recorded and released as a present with the April release of "Vidici" magazine. The positive critics opened many doors to Idoli including an opportunity to sign a contract with Jugoton
Jugoton
Jugoton was the largest record label and chain record store in the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia based in Zagreb, Socialist Republic of Croatia. After the breakup of Yugoslavia the company continued to work in independent Republic of Croatia under the name Croatia...
a major Yugoslav
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
record label.
By the time Maljčiki
Maljciki
"Maljčiki" is the second single by the Serbian and former Yugoslav New Wave music band Idoli. It also appeared on the Yugoslav New Wave compilation Paket aranžman which is one of the most important Yugoslav rock releases.- History :Vlada Divljan, the member of Idoli wanted to create a song which...
single came out Idoli were already working on the Paket aranžman
Paket aranžman
Paket aranžman is a New Wave music compilation album released in 1980 by Jugoton and its one of the most important and influential records ever made in the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It features the eminent Belgrade artists: Šarlo Akrobata, Električni Orgazam and Idoli...
(Package Deal), a various artists compilation which proved to be one of the most influential Yugoslav rock releases. The next release was the VIS Idoli EP
VIS Idoli (EP)
VIS Idoli was the first and only EP by the Serbian new wave band Idoli. The cover of the EP is the Red Nude, an act by Amedeo Modigliani.- History :...
featuring six new songs. Divljan appeared as writer and lead vocalist for most of the tracks. The EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
was sold in about 200.000 copies.
For the recording of the first album Kokan Popović, Zvuk Ulice drummer, became the new Idoli drummer. Odbrana i poslednji dani was released in early 1982. The album represents a conceptual effort dealing with an anthropological approach towards orthodoxy. Divljan beside guitar played piano and provided lead vocals for most of the tracks. Odbrana tour proved to be a success unlike the album which was sold in 50.000 copies which. The record company considered a failure even though it was pronounced the best album and best album design of 1982. Foreign magazines also released positive critics and in 1985 "Džuboks" pronounced Odbrana i poslednji dani the best Yugoslav rock record of the 20th century.
The next release was recorded in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
with producer Bob Painter. Zdenko Kolar went to the army and was replaced by Branko Isaković. The sound was strictly commercial and proved to be the band's greatest success. For Čokolada Divljan did not put a lot of effort as he was preparing a university degree at the time. He wrote Radostan dan", "Vetar i zastave" and "Ja sam tu" (for which Divljan added a verse from Mišo Kovač track "Plakat će zora" written by Drago Britvić).
After the Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
show, on Čokolada tour, the band members had a quarrel which resulted in the breakup of Idoli. The last Idoli release was a soundtrack album for Šest dana juna movie for which Jugoton
Jugoton
Jugoton was the largest record label and chain record store in the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia based in Zagreb, Socialist Republic of Croatia. After the breakup of Yugoslavia the company continued to work in independent Republic of Croatia under the name Croatia...
insisted to be released as an Idoli album. The entire soundtrack was written by Divljan (he considers this album his first solo release), while the rest of the band plus some guests recorded their parts.
Yugoslav years (1985-1991)
When Idoli disbanded, Divljan had an idea of forming a band Hondini Sinovi (Honda's Sons) featuring Branko Isaković on bass, Ivan Stančić Piko on drumms and Dragomir Mihajlović "Gagi"Dragomir Mihajlović
- Musical career :Mihajlović started his career as a guitarist in a progressive rock group Limunovo Drvo, which, formed in 1978 by himself and Milan Mladenović , after performing for two years moved towards New Wave, with the arrival of Dušan Kojić "Koja" and Ivan Vdović "VD" . In April 1980,...
on guitar, but decided to pursue a solo career.
The album Tajni život A. P. Šandorova was recorded with Aleksandar Šandorov who used to work only on classical music. Keyboard player Đorđe Petrović also appeared on the album. The album brought a variety of musical styles, instrumentals "1986" and "1987", minimalistic swing "Neću ništa da znam" ("I Don't Want To Know Anything"), ballad "Više nisam tu" ("I Am Not Here Anymore") and sampled hit "Patuljci" ("Gnome
Gnome
A gnome is a diminutive spirit in Renaissance magic and alchemy, first introduced by Paracelsus and later adopted by more recent authors including those of modern fantasy literature...
s"). For the first time Divljan used sampled music, including sound recordings of Zastava 750
Zastava 750
The Zastava 750 was a car made by the Yugoslavian car maker Zavod Crvena Zastava. It was a version of the Fiat 600 made under licence from 1965, it was longer in length than the Fiat version. The Zastava 750 has a 767 cc engine and is the smallest car ever made by Zastava. Later on during...
engine, glass breaking, cricket
Cricket (insect)
Crickets, family Gryllidae , are insects somewhat related to grasshoppers, and more closely related to katydids or bush crickets . They have somewhat flattened bodies and long antennae. There are about 900 species of crickets...
and anvil percussion sounds. The tour for Tajni život A. P. Šandorova featured Zdenko Kolar on bass, Aleksandar Šandorov on keyboards and Marko Milivojević on drums. He also appeared live with the Film faction Le Cinema and the song "Maršal" ("Poslednji dani" with the missing verse) appeared on Le Cinema's live album Rocking At The Party Live! released by Suzy Records in 1989.
For the soundtrack of "Čovek u beloj jakni" ("Man In A White Jacket") TV series, Divljan recorded cover version of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
songs mainly from their self title record also known as the White Album. He recorded songs for the TV show "Podijum" ("The Stage"), for the "Kako je propao rokenrol" ("The Fall Of Rock 'n' Roll") omnibus movie, Divljan recorded soundtrack for the "Do izvora dva putića" ("Two Paths To The Spring
Spring (hydrosphere)
A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...
") section directed by Zoran Pez. With Srđan Gojković Gile of Elektricni Orgazam
Električni Orgazam
Električni Orgazam is a Serbian rock band from Belgrade. Originally starting as a combination of New Wave, punk rock and post-punk, the band later slowly changed their style, becoming a mainstream rock act.- New Wave years :...
he participated the theater piece "Rokenrol za decu" ("Rock 'n' Roll For Children") and the music from the piece was released on a record and featured cover versions of popular children songs. Rokenrol bukvar (Rock 'n' Roll Alphabet) was another children's music project this time a soundtrack of the famous Ljubivoje Ršumović children TV show "Fazoni i fore".
During 1990 Divljan, Piko Stančić, Gile and Zoran Radomirović Švaba released the Lutka koja kaže ne album faturing lyrics by Divljan and Gile and a cover version of Đorđre Marijanović's song "Lutka koja že ne". The track "Vi ž'tem mon amur", dedicated to Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
and his hit "Je t'aime... moi non plus
Je t'aime... moi non plus
"Je t'aime… moi non plus" is a French duet written by Serge Gainsbourg. It was written for and sung with Brigitte Bardot in 1967, but that version was not released until 1986. In 1969, Gainsbourg recorded a version with his lover, Jane Birkin. It reached number one in the UK, but was banned in...
", featured samples of the recordings by Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
, Time, intro by Žika Jelić, YU grupa
YU grupa
YU grupa is a Serbian and former Yugoslav rock band. One of the pioneers in combining rock music with the elements of the traditional music of the Balkans, YU grupa is considered the longest-lasting rock band to come from Serbia....
bassist, for "Kosovski božuri" recorded live at BOOM pop festival and the voice of Milena Dravić
Milena Dravic
Milena Dravić is a Serbian actress.Born in Belgrade, Dravić was involved with the performing arts from the age of four: first with dance and later classical ballet...
taken from her aerobics
Aerobics
Aerobics is a form of physical exercise that combines rhythmic aerobic exercise with stretching and strength training routines with the goal of improving all elements of fitness...
tape. A cover version of the song "Srećan ti rođendan" ("Happy Birthday"), which Divljan wrote for Slađana Milošvić, also appeared on the album. In the Summer of 1991 Divljan helped Srđan Gojković Gile on his second solo project which is actually the "Crni bombarder" ("Black Bomber") soundtrack album.
Australian years (1991-1998)
On August, 1991 Divljan moved to AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. He started playing rock standards with local bands, collaborated with singer Max Sharam
Max Sharam
Leanne Maree "Max" Sharam is an Australian musician, writer and artist. In the mid-1990s, Sharam had three top 40 hit singles, "Coma", "Be Firm" and "Lay Down" from her top 10 album, A Million Year Girl...
and worked in a local Serbian
Serbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
radio station. Having started working on TV and movie soundtracks he was included into the Movie Composer's Society and in 1996 started studying at the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
, section Sound studies of the Movie Academy. He got the "Audio Excellence" award by Ampex Corporation for the short movie "Flying Over Mother" for which he did sound design and music. He was also awarded by the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
for the short soundless movie "Drip".
During a short visit to FR Yugoslavia in late 1995 / early 1996, he formed the Old Stars Band consisting of Aleksandar Šandorov (keyboards), Zdenko Kolar (bass), Srđan Gojković Gile (guitar, vocals), Marko Milivojević
Marko Milivojevic
Marko Milivojević is a Serbian musician. He played drums and keyboards in various Yugoslav bands Marko Milivojević is a Serbian musician. He played drums and keyboards in various Yugoslav bands Marko Milivojević is a Serbian musician. He played drums and keyboards in various Yugoslav bands...
(drums) and Boris Bunjac (percussion). The band held two concerts at Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
Studio "M", an NS Plus Unplugged and a regular show with electric equipment on January 18 and 23, 1996. The material recorded from the shows was released on a live album entitled Odbrana i zaštita released through B92 Records records.
In January, 1997 back in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
Divljan worked on a project with Leb i Sol
Leb i sol
Leb i sol is a Macedonian rock group founded in the 1970s by Vlatko Stefanovski , Bodan Arsovski , Nikola Kokan Dimuševski and Garabet Tavitjan . Tavitjan ceded the drumwork to Dragoljub Đuričić for some of the albums, while Kiril Džajkovski replaced Kokan on Kao Kakao and Putujemo...
keyboard player Kiril Džajkovski
Kiril Dzajkovski
Kiril Džajkovski , often credited as simply Kiril, is an internationally acclaimed Macedonian electronic musician and music composer.-Biography:...
entitled Apartchiks. The first CD entitled Dekada (Decade), released by Avant Garde Records, featured four tracks with sampled speeches by former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
. The next release, Recorded Supplement, featured nine tracks dealing with Divljan's and Džajkovski
Kiril Dzajkovski
Kiril Džajkovski , often credited as simply Kiril, is an internationally acclaimed Macedonian electronic musician and music composer.-Biography:...
's exploration of the modern music.
Back in Yugoslavia (1998-1999)
On his second return to YugoslaviaYugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
Divljan recorded the soundtrack album for the movie Tri palme za dve bitange i ribicu ("Three Palms Trees For Two Punks And A Chick"). With new techno oriented themes, the obscure Idoli track "Pomoć, pomoć
Pomoc, pomoc
"Pomoć, pomoć" is the first song which appeared on the first single by Serbian new wave band Idoli. The song, with "Retko te viđam sa devojkama" appeared on the A-side while the B-side contained Slobodan Škerović's narrative poem called "Poklon"...
" appeared in a new version recorded by Divljan and Ghuru Ghagi from the band URGH!. Ghagi with Šaban Bajramović
Šaban Bajramovic
-Biography:He was born in Niš where he attended primary school for only the first four years. On quitting school, he picked up his musical education on the street.When he was 19 he ran away from the army out of love for a girl...
also appeared on the cover version of "Tri palme na otoku sreće" ("Three Palms Trees On The Isle Of Happiness) sang by Divljan and Bilja Krstić
Bilja Krstic
Biljana "Bilja" Krstić is a Serbian singer. She was born on November 9, 1955 in Niš and brought up on the folk traditions of central Serbia. Biljana first studied music in Niš at the music school "Dr. Vojislav Vučković", after graduating she continued her education by travelling to Belgrade to...
. The soundtrack also featured "Dekada" ("Decade") by Apartchiks, "Mačo" ("Macho") by Pressing and "Duboko disanje" ("Deep Breaths") by URGH!. Beside the Old Stars Band, the recording sessions featured guitarist Dušan Bezuha Duda (Banana
Banana (band)
-Band history:Banana was formed in 1985 in Belgrade. They released their debut album Ponoćni pasaži in 1986 in the following lineup: Aleksandra Toković , Dragan Lončar , Boban Šaranović , Srđan Cincar and Igor Borojević...
, Zona B).
In July 1998 the Old Stars Band had a successful tour of Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
and Divljan appeared as guest on Buldozer
Buldožer
Buldožer was Yugoslav-Slovenian progressive rock band from 1970s and 1980s. They were one of the first bands in communist Yugoslavia that could be considered alternative, and forefathers of the Yugoslav New Wave...
concerts. During the same year Divljan with his companions entered the studio in Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
to record his comeback album Sve laži sveta, the album was released in 2000. The album featured slower songs, a cover version of Buldožer
Buldožer
Buldožer was Yugoslav-Slovenian progressive rock band from 1970s and 1980s. They were one of the first bands in communist Yugoslavia that could be considered alternative, and forefathers of the Yugoslav New Wave...
's hit "Novo vreme" ("New Age"). The closing track "Rodina" was sang in Russian and used in an Australian documentary about a Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
astronaut. Guest appearances featured Kiril Džajkovski
Kiril Dzajkovski
Kiril Džajkovski , often credited as simply Kiril, is an internationally acclaimed Macedonian electronic musician and music composer.-Biography:...
(synthesizer), Mladen Đorđević (trumpet), Laslo Dieneš (trumpet) and Andrej Maglovski (accordion). The CD also included a multimedia biographies of musicians, recordings of live performances and sections from the documentaries for which Divljan wrote the soundtrack.
Vienna years (1999-present)
In the meantime Divljan met his Dina who is now his wife and got married. In January, 1999 he got a son Stevan. He was only two months old when the NATO bombing campaign in Yugoslavia started. Since both Divljan and his wife did not want to bring up a child in war conditions, they decided to move to ViennaVienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. The original idea was to stay for a short period of time, but eventually it turned out to be their residence to this day.
Shotly after moving to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Divljan started working on different sound design projects. He also released an instrumental album Vlada Divljan presents Die Tonzentrale released in 2003 by B92 Records Records. The style of the album was a combination of jazz, blues, pop, rock and electronic music. He also participated the Milan Mladenović
Milan Mladenovic
Milan Mladenović was a Yugoslav and Serbian musician best known as the frontman of Serbian art rock band Ekatarina Velika.-Early life:...
tribute album Kao da je bilo nekad with the cover of "Radostan dan" ("Joyful Day"). He composed music for the theater piece "Paviljoni" ("Pavilions") by Zijah Sokolović. He appeared as guest on Kiril Džajkovski
Kiril Dzajkovski
Kiril Džajkovski , often credited as simply Kiril, is an internationally acclaimed Macedonian electronic musician and music composer.-Biography:...
's soundtrack for "Balcancan" (released in 2005 by Lithium Records) on the track "Baba zumbula" which became a hit in the Republic of Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
. Divljan and Bunjac recorded a soundtrack for Sedam i po ("Seven And A Half") directed by Miroslav Momčilović.
In 2006 Divljan formed a new backing band called Nevladina Organizacija and did several live shows. He also started working on his new album with the work title Esperanto in the "Digimedia" studio in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
. The album would feature songs in Serbian
Serbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and Esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
. In an interview he also stated that there are plans of making a web site about the album featuring the album itself, out-takes, instrumental tracks etc.
In 2008 he recorded the soundtrack for the film Na lepom plavom Dunavu ("On The Beautiful Blue Danube"), Kosovski dnevnik by Željko Mirković and is currently working on the Miroslav Momčilović movie Zovi me, ja sigurno neću biti tu (Call me, I surely will not be there).
Studio albums
- Tajni život A. P. Šandorova (PGP-RTBPGP-RTBPGP-RTB was a major record label and chain record store in the former SFR Yugoslavia based in Belgrade, Socialist Republic of Serbia. PGP-RTB was established in 1958...
, 1988) - Sve laži sveta (Automatik, 2000) - as Vlada Divljan Old Stars Band
- Vlada Divljan presents Die Tonzentrale (B92 Records, 2003) - as Die Tonzentrale
Live albums
- Odbrana i zaštita (B92 Records 1996) - as Vlada Divljan Old Stars Band
Studio albums
- Rokenrol za decu (PGP RTB, 1989) - with Srđan Gojković Gile
- Rokenrol bukvar (PGP-RTBPGP-RTBPGP-RTB was a major record label and chain record store in the former SFR Yugoslavia based in Belgrade, Socialist Republic of Serbia. PGP-RTB was established in 1958...
, 1990) - with Srđan Gojković Gile - Lutka koja kaže ne (PGP-RTBPGP-RTBPGP-RTB was a major record label and chain record store in the former SFR Yugoslavia based in Belgrade, Socialist Republic of Serbia. PGP-RTB was established in 1958...
1991) - with Srđan Gojković Gile, Ivan Stančić Piko and Zoran Radomirović Švaba - Recorded Supplement (Avan Garde Records, 1997) - with Kiril DžajkovskiKiril DzajkovskiKiril Džajkovski , often credited as simply Kiril, is an internationally acclaimed Macedonian electronic musician and music composer.-Biography:...
(as Aparatchiks)
Studio albums
- Tko mari za čari (JugotonJugotonJugoton was the largest record label and chain record store in the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia based in Zagreb, Socialist Republic of Croatia. After the breakup of Yugoslavia the company continued to work in independent Republic of Croatia under the name Croatia...
, 1987) - guitar on the track "Ne dozvoli" by Cacadou LookCacadou LookCacadou Look was a five-piece pop rock band from Opatija, Croatia that was the first Yugoslav all-female band to release a long play record.Cacadou Look was formed in Opatija in 1983... - Zaljubiška (PGP RTB, 1991) - writer of the track "Srećna Nova Godina" by Lepa Brena & Slatki GrehLepa BrenaFahreta Jahić Živojinović is Yugoslavian pop-folk singer, better known as Lepa Brena , . Born in Tuzla and raised in Brčko, Bosnia and Herzegovina , she moved to Novi Sad in 1980 to pursue her career in singing. In 1982...
- Crni bombarder (ZAM, 1992) - guitar and backing vocals on Srđan Gojković Gile soundtrack album
- Pirat (Round Records, 1999) - guitar on Zona BZona B-History:Former Idoli bassist Zdenko Kolar and drummer Dušan Ristić "Rista" officially formed Zona B on November 29, 1986. After several personnel changes, the band got a default lineup featuring Jovan "Lole" Savić , Dušan "Duda" Bezuha , Tomislav "Toma" Rakijaš and Vladimir "Buca" Filipović...
album - First & Last (Automatik Records, 2000) - vocals on Eva Braun version of "Hajde sanjaj me, sanjaj"
- Harmonajzer (PGP RTS, 2002) - guitar on the track "Zato stojim sam" by Električni OrgazamElektrični OrgazamElektrični Orgazam is a Serbian rock band from Belgrade. Originally starting as a combination of New Wave, punk rock and post-punk, the band later slowly changed their style, becoming a mainstream rock act.- New Wave years :...
- Balcancan (Lithium Records, 2005) - vocals on Kiril DžajkovskiKiril DzajkovskiKiril Džajkovski , often credited as simply Kiril, is an internationally acclaimed Macedonian electronic musician and music composer.-Biography:...
's soundtrack album on the track "Baba zumbula" - Autobus Calypso (Aquarius Records, 2007) - vocals on CubismoCubismoCubismo is a Croatian music band of eleven members playing salsa and latin jazz. The band was founded at the beginning of 1996 by a gathering of eight eminent musicians from various Croatian music bands...
version of "Devojko mala" entitled "Nina Bonita"
Live albums
- Rocking At The Party Live! (Suzy Records, 1989) - Guest on the Le Cinema live album on the track "Maršal"
- Koncert (Nika, 2005) - Guest on Vlada kreslin's live album on tracks "Malena" and "Dok dobuje kiša"
Various artists compilations
- Pop-Rok (Beogradsko Proleće '81) (PGP RTB, 1981) - as writer of Slađana Milošević & Ljudi track "Srećan ti rođendan"
Soundtracks
- Kako je propao rokenrol (Taped Pictures, 1989) - with Srđan Gojković Gile and Dušan Kojić Koja
- Tri palme za dve bitange i ribicu (Favi, 1998)
Various Artists projects
- Malcziki (Single) - lead vocals on tribute version of "Malcziki" (yugo-wersja)
- YugotonYugotonYugoton is a tribute album to the former Yugoslav rock scene released in Poland by ZIC ZAC Music Company and BMG Poland in 2001.It features cover versions of eminent ex-Yugoslav artists performed in Polish language by the cover band named Yugoton, composed of several notable Polish...
(BMGBMGBertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann...
, 2001) - did backing vocals on tribute versions of Idoli songs - Kao da je bilo nekad... (posvećeno Milanu Mladenoviću) (Circle Records, 2002) - appears on Milan MladenovićMilan MladenovicMilan Mladenović was a Yugoslav and Serbian musician best known as the frontman of Serbian art rock band Ekatarina Velika.-Early life:...
tribute album with the song "Radostan dan"