The story of Rock`n`Roll made in Pula (and Istria)

This is a blog where you will find music from one of the richest rock-scene from Croatia, the city of PULA rock-scene.There will be some Istrian music too, as Istria is the region of Croatia to which Pula belongs to.You will find here how good and different was the Pula scene, with some of the bands recognised worldwide.

WELCOME TO PULA!

PS:All the infos about the bands are approximative, and will be changed with every useful info I get from the members of the bands!

PPS: Please notice that the NON-HIGHLIGHTED name of a certain release is a part of band`s audiography, but not available for download, for not having the permission or for respecting the authors rights. Or, of course, not yet in my possession.

Sunday 4 October 2009

GUSTAPH Y NJEGOVI DOBRI DUHOVI (1980-1986)

GYNDD are a band of the early Pula underground scene, they played a sophisticated New Wave style reminding the most rhytmical and alternative moments of Talking Heads and Gang Of Four.With the specific vocal of Edi Maruzin, the band released only one album, produced by Milan Mladenovic (R.I.P. , ex-Sarlo Akrobata, ex-Ekatarina Velika).The band, after the split-up, played for a while as Pino Papilon Band and Espirito Pampa, and then started the great Tex-Mex Rock band GUSTAFI, one of the leading croatian live acts.



demo "Fiesta Y Ostale Svjetovne Dogodovstine" 1981


BOLESNO GRINJE (2000-2020 )


One of the best Grindcore bands from the territory of the ex-Yu, Bolesno Grinje is a band of very musically talented guys. The band raised on the ashes of Anti Otpad, and with time strenghten in both production and execution.Two members of the band have their own one-man-side-projects, Jule as ELUJ and Hoc as COH.
In 2020, the band decided to disband for good.

Bolesno Grinje Website







Monday 3 August 2009

BLOCKADE RUNNER (1991-2002 , 2008)


Blockade Runner was a young Thrash Metal band founded in the beginning of the 90s, and lasted for more than a decade.Being an important part of the underground Metal scene trhrough the 90s, at the beninning of the 2000s the bands simply disappeared.There was a reunion gig in 2008, but after that the thing fell off and the band split up again.





Tuesday 28 July 2009

BARRAKUDA (2005-2007)

A Hardcore`n`Roll band made by guys from the PulaHC scene, lasted for just a short time but recorded an interesting EP trilogy (three sixpacks= 666).The band included Jule from Anti Otpad/Bolesno Grinje/Eluj on drums.



ep "It`s A Horror" sixpack no.1 2005

ep "Knockout" sixpack no.2 2005

ep "31 x yeah" sixpack no.3 2005

Live At The Castle, Pula 2006

DUSTY MILLER (1996-2000)


A Grungy Metal band formed in the mid 90s and made of talented musicians.They released only one tape for the Adam Records label from Pula, and split after few years.The founder members, the Sinkauz brothers later formed the Jazz/Experimental band East Rodeo.


PULSKA GAREZ (1993-1996)


One of the bands of the Pula Grindcore movement which gave birth to a dozen of bands and various projects. Pulska Garez lasted relatively briefly, with just a live recording taken at one of the "Destroy The Melody" festivals through 1993 and 1994. This cassette became cult.


Wednesday 22 July 2009

DISSECTION (1989-1993)


This is one of the first Technical Death-Metal bands in Croatia, and surely one of the best.They started as Dissection and lasted four years with that name, until they changed it to Aeon (because of the existance of the known swedish Dissection).



Live SKUC, Zagreb 18.06.1992

demo "Submit" 02.1993.

MENTALNI NERED (1985-1987)

Mentalni Nered is a cult band from Pula made of fans of extreme HC in the veins of Larm and similiar bands.the band existed few years and actually never made any serious recording and their whole existance was somehow not serious.But they became cult anyway, and no band thereafter had such noisiness and such impact as they did.


HATRöSS (1990-1997)

The band that went on where Devastation stops in 1990 (and that means, me again - in the pic, the one in the middle).It was a different musical style, more Thrash/Death Metal oriented in the beginning, and kind of darkened Death Metal by the end.The band played first as a trio, then a quintet, and then again as a trio.We released two demos and an official cassette, and in 1997. split-up for good.



demo "A Look At Tomorrow" (first mix) 1992

Monday 20 July 2009

POPEYE (1998-2011)

This is a band with members from Pula and Vodnjan.They released their second full lenght album out just recently, and the band seem to be fully recovered from turbulencies in the past years.The band plays an interesting mixture of Metal and Rap, and the second album shows it with full power. Unfortunately, they disbanded around 2011.




THE BLEEDING (1993-1998)

Probably the best Doom Metal band from Croatia ever, and one of those bands who got to be known wider in the worlds underground circles.Formed by the ex-Devastation bassist Walter Udovicic, the band existed for the bigger part of the 90s with few line-up changes.



demo "Winter" 1994

demo "The Sad Bloom" 1994

demo "Promo 96" 1996

Friday 17 July 2009

SUPER BOOSTER (2000-2007)

A great Stoner Rock band of brief existance, made of musicians from other bands like Headbanger and Gardenia. Touching the true sound of Stoner Rock.




demo "Gain" 2000

Tuesday 14 July 2009

ATOMSKO SKLONISTE (1976- )

Atomsko Skloniste is the biggest and most known band that came out from Pula.There were also bands that became known, but not any band ever matched the popularity of AS.The band started in the period when Punk was the big blast in music, and AS played their stubborn Hard Rock to the bone, along with the (strange but actually painfully clever) lyrics by the poet Bosko Obradovic.The band had several clue moments in their 30+ years carreer, the first was when the original drummer Sasa Dadic left the band (late 1980) and was replaced by Zdravko Sirola. The second was when the band ended the collaboration with Bosko Obradovic (late 1981), and the bassist Bruno Langer started his songwriting job.The third and most important point was
the death of the vocalist Sergio Blazic-Djoser (January 18th 1987), who died of bone cancer at the age of 36.At that point, Zdravko Sirola and the guitarist Dragan Guzvan left the band and Bruno remained alone, so he started again very soon with a completely new line-up.After many line-up changes, the final line-up with Ranko Svorcan on guitar and Nikica Durakovic on drums.This trio recorded two studio albums and is still playing.Nikica left the band due to health problems in 2011 and is replaced by Stjepan Bobic. An album is scheduled for the near future ! AS has an american part of their carreer as Atomic Shelter.The album Mentalna Higijena is one of the five top-selling rock albums of all the times in Yugoslavia.
Update 2020: the band is still playing, the line-up changes with two new young members replacing Stipe and Ranko. The guitarist Matija is the grandson of the first band`s drummer Saša Dadić!!!

PS: the video is a playback based on two songs from the "Atomska Trilogija" live-album, IMHO the best ex-yu rock live album ever.

Atomsko Skloniste Wiki English

Atomsko Skloniste Wiki - Hrvatska

Atomsko Skloniste Wiki - Bosna



BOSKO I BUHE (1992)

This is a Punk HC project by ex-members of Mentalni Nered, they were active just during 1992 and in that year they played some shows and recorded a demo.Cult.


Sunday 12 July 2009

ARINKA I TINGL TANGL (1975-1981)

Tingl Tangl was an interesting and bizzarre cabaret-rock band with Arinka Segando on lead vocals and keyboards, and (her husband) the Istrian rock-guru Franci Blaskovic on bass guitar and lead vocal on some songs.They released only one album and some singles, and then split by the end of 1981. Arinka released some singles and an album 
alone.






single "Da Sam Lijepa I Seksi" 1980

Saturday 11 July 2009

PNEUMONIA (1988-1992)

Another Crossover band, this time more Hardcore oriented.They lasted few years, and also left us without any proper studio work.Just few DIY recordings, a testimony that Pneumonia was also a band that left a mark in the Pula Rock scene.


CONDITION CRITICAL (1988-1991)

A very talented band of Thrash Metal fans playing HC-Thrash Metal, they existed just two years but left a trace in the Pula scene.They had no official recordings or demos, all they left are two rehearsal recordings.Most of the members continued playing in other bands (Hatross, Distorzija) after the split.


Wednesday 8 July 2009

ANTITODOR I TALENTI / TALENTI / ANTITALENTI (1995-1997)

A band that I formed with a stupid wish; I wanted to play drums in a band.And so I decided to form a Punk band.This band became relatively popular in a short time, and it lasted just 2 years.
After two demos (under two different names) the band split and reformed with a third name, but after only one gig the band split for good.
The first singer Todor later reformed the band under the name Antitodor, which still plays today.Here is only the first part which concernes my work with the band.

SEXTON (1988-1998)


Sexton was a Death/Thrash Metal band formed during the biggest explosion of Metal in Pula.They released only one semi-official cassette entitled Fade Out, and by the end of their carreer they played a lighter kind of Metal.
Reformed for one live show in 2018.


Monday 6 July 2009

ROSA NERA / CRNA RUZA (1988-1994)

Rosa Nera (at the beginning in Croatian CRNA RUZA) is a band made of experienced Hard Rock musicians that played more or less in the same bands since the beginning of the 80s.Rosa Nera was somehow their last band before they split for good.The vocalist Debac and the drummer Djole remained active since today, the guitarist still plays here and there, while the bassist Cina returned to activity with the reunion of Monah.


SUMRAK IDEJA (1985-1988)

A great Hard n` Heavy band that played just few years, and disappeared when all the members started to play in other bands.Here is the material I own, as nothing official is ever released.



Demo 1987

Rehearsal 1987

Sunday 5 July 2009

ANTI-OTPAD (1989-2000)

Anti Otpad was a HC band which became very popular in Croatia in their second phase.The work of the band can be divided into three parts; the first HC-Punk one with Niksa on vocals, the second one more Psychedelic HC oriented with Beli on vocals, and the third one, fully HC with the band reduced to a trio, and Jule taking the vocal job.


DEVASTATION (1986-1990 2007-)


I have to start this blog with something mine, this is, as you may know, my band from 1986. We were one of the first Speed-Thrash Metal bands in the ex-Yugoslavia, and this is the stuff we recorded in those 3-4 years and with different line-ups. Very soon, these two demos will be released on one CD by the chinese Area Death Productions label, and I am so proud about it. And in 2018 the second demo is released on vinyl by FOAD Records.
The band started to play again, I am the only member of all the line-ups that is in the saddle again, but the music we will make will remain 101% old school Speed Thrash Metal.

Update 2012: The band is not a band from Pula anymore, I transferred to Varaždin, and here is a full Varaždin line-up. The band worked from 2007 to 2011, played 8 shows during 2010-11 and split-up due to incompatibility of the members. At the beginning of 2010, the chinese label Area Death Productions released the retrospective on a cd "Devastation Complete 1987-1989".  The band started again in 2016 and by now is working at full steam, but this is not a band from Pula anymore. However, as the band is connected with Pula anyway, I will post our further works here.


demo "THE UPCOMING MAYHEM" 1987

demo "THE POSSIBILITY OF LIFE`S DESTRUCTION" 1989

CD "DEVASTATION COMPLETE 1987-1989" 2010

DEVASTATION (VARAŽDIN)

bootleg "LIVE VIVA LA POLA FESTIVAL, 14.08.2010."

I was guest vocalist on the last POST MORTEM (U.S.) album "Messages From The Dead" dedicated to my friend John McCarthy, who died just before the recording of the vocals for this album. Some songs of the album were recorded by some John`s friends, and I was blessed to be invited to record the vocals for "A Happy Life". Thanx to John Alexander.


POST MORTEM feat. Alex from Devastation (Croatia) - A Happy Life , 2009