Darkwood Dub

Darkwood Dub
Company type	Band
Industry	Music
Founded	1988 in Belgrade, Serbia
Headquarters	Belgrade, Serbia
Products	Studio albums, singles, film and theatre music

Darkwood Dub was an alternative rock group originating from Belgrade, Serbia in 1988. Throughout their career, they established themselves as a significant presence within the Serbian rock landscape of the 1990s and 2000s, also impacting the broader regional music scene of the former Yugoslavia. Their sound uniquely combined live drum performances with electronic percussion elements, incorporating slide guitar, synthesizers, samplers, and contemplative lyrics delivered by frontman Dejan Vučetić. The band collaborated with prominent jazz figures such as Vasil Hadžimanov and Bisera Veletanlić. In addition to their albums, they composed music for film and theatrical productions, ultimately releasing eight studio records before disbanding in 2017.

Formation and Early Work (1988–1991)

Established in the fall of 1988, the band initially experimented with a fusion of reggae and noise music genres. The original ensemble featured an unusual lineup including two drummers, two bass guitarists, a vocalist, and a rhythm machine. The name "Darkwood Dub" was inspired by the Darkwood forest setting from the Italian comic Zagor. Following several lineup adjustments, the stable core consisted of Vladimir Jerić "Vlidi" on guitar, Bojan Drobac "Bambi" also on guitar, Dejan Vučetić "Vuča" as vocalist, Milorad Ristić "Miki" handling bass duties, and Lav Bratuša on drums.

Their debut live performances occurred in May 1991 at Belgrade's Students' Cultural Centre. That same year saw the release of their first recorded material: "Veliki duh" ("The Great Spirit") and "Srećna glava" ("Happy Head"), which appeared on the Nova Aleksandrija label’s compilation Želim jahati do ekstaze (I Want to Ride to Ecstasy). This compilation also featured acts like Presing and Kazna Za Uši. Due to the onset of the Yugoslav Wars, this release became a collector’s item as it was produced in Zagreb and distributed solely within Croatia.

Establishing Their Reputation (1992–1999)

Between December 1992 and May 1993, Darkwood Dub recorded their first full-length album titled Paramparčad (Splinters), with production by Željko Božić. It was eventually released in 1995 through Take It Or Leave It Records. This album compiled early compositions characterized by punk rock and reggae influences, featuring lyrics penned by Vučetić alongside music collaboratively created by the band. Despite limited media coverage, Paramparčad garnered a cult following and attracted substantial audiences at concerts in Belgrade. In 1995, director Miloš Stojanović produced a television film centered on the band; additionally, they contributed to the soundtrack of the omnibus film Package Arrangement and appeared in Geto, directed by Mladen Matičević and Ivan Markov.

In May 1996, Darkwood Dub independently released their sophomore album U nedogled (Into the Indefinite) under B92 Records. This record featured vocal renditions of tracks originally created for Package Arrangement, including guest performances by Dušan Petrović from Plejboj on saxophone and double bass. The album cemented their distinctive sound and was met with favorable reviews from critics and fans alike. Noteworthy songs such as "Treći Vavilon" ("The Third Babylon"), "Imamo situaciju" ("We Have a Situation"), "Hej! Gringo" ("Hey! Gringo"), and the title track received particular acclaim. Marking an evolution in their style, sampling techniques were introduced with some tracks incorporating elements from artists like Aswad and Lee Scratch Perry. Several Serbian music critics honored U nedogled as the best album of 1996, leading to the group's inaugural promotional tour.

In 1997, Darkwood Dub composed original music for a theatrical adaptation of Irvine Welsh's novel Trainspotting, staged at BITEF theatre under director Đorđe Marjanović. This body of work was later issued as an album entitled Darkwood Dub, which included five remixes crafted by Chiq Toxiq, Velja Mijanović, and Boris Krstajić. Songs such as "Sila" ("Force"), "Strategija bumerang" ("Boomerang Strategy"), and "Sistem" ("System") demonstrated the band's exploration into dub and drum and bass styles.

Mainstream years (1999–2017)

The album Elektropionir (translated as Electropioneer), recorded between September 1998 and February 1999 at the Belgrade Akademija studio, experienced a postponed release because of the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, finally coming out in September 1999. Co-produced by the group alongside Aleksandar Radosavljević, it featured guest appearances from Ana Žunić, Filip Krumes, Vasil Hadžimanov, Dušan Petrović, and Nemanja Kojić "Kojot". This record helped broaden their fan base and solidified their position within the mainstream music scene. The album's promotion included a two-year regional tour that featured the debut Novi Sad EXIT festival in 2000. In 2001, the band contributed the track "Molitva Blagom Hristu" to the compilation Pesme iznad istoka i zapada, which set to music the poetry of Bishop Nikolaj Velimirović. Additionally, a remix of their song "Zapremina" was included on the Munje! soundtrack released by B92.

Their fifth studio release, Život počinje u 30-oj (meaning Life Begins at 30), arrived in 2002 and was produced by Saša Janković with guest musician Zoran Radović "Kiza" from Presing. Critics at Popboks praised it as one of the standout albums of that year. The same year, they created the soundtrack for Dejan Kovačević's film Ogledalo. In 2003, the album U nedogled was remastered and reissued with additional tracks, while they also contributed the song "Geto" to the Milan Mladenović tribute compilation titled Kao da je bilo nekad... (Posvećeno Milanu Mladenoviću).

Their sixth album, titled O danima (or About the Days), was self-produced and released in 2004. It featured collaborations with Vladimir Kolarić "Kole" from Veliki Prezir and Vladimir Đorđević of Lira Vega. Initially named Melos, the album’s title was changed to avoid any association with turbo folk music. During this period, the band also performed live in the theatrical production Rat/Sećanja staged at Atelje 212 theatre. In 2006, they had the opportunity to open for Morrissey during his concert in Zagreb.

The year 2008 saw the release of Jedinstvo (translated as Unity). Prior to this release, guitarist Vladimir Jerić left the group; subsequently, keyboardist Vasil Hadžimanov joined, bringing his jazz expertise to the ensemble. The single "Ženeva" achieved notable success, ranking sixth on B92’s and fifth on Studio B’s year-end charts. In 2009, Darkwood Dub earned a nomination for Best MTV Adria Regional Act at the MTV European Music Awards. Their singles "Šećer" and "Robot" were well-received on Popboks’ annual rankings, while "130" reached number one on Jelen Top 10 charts in March 2010.

April 2011 marked the release of "Nešto sasvim izvesno," a collaboration featuring acclaimed Serbian jazz vocalist Bisera Veletanlić, offered as a free digital download through Exit Music to promote their eighth studio album. A follow-up single titled "Kraj oktobra" was released in June. The full album, Vidimo se (meaning See You), was made available in July via free digital download on Exit Music and on CD through Odličan Hrčak; this physical edition contained two exclusive tracks.

During autumn 2012, Darkwood Dub toured Serbia alongside Veletanlić, focusing mainly on performances in theaters including an appearance at the Belgrade Jazz Festival. They also re-recorded some of her classic songs such as "Milo moje" and "Ručak za dvoje". Keyboardist Hadžimanov departed from the band in 2013, after which Darkwood Dub continued performing as a four-member group.

By mid-2014, the band announced they were working on new studio material; however, persistent internal conflicts ultimately led to their disbandment in 2017.

After the breakup

Once the band parted ways, Bojan Drobac and Milorad Ristić embarked on a new venture called Bella Technika, a clever play on words combining beautiful technique and the Serbian term bela tehnika meaning white tech. Their first album, titled Section, was released in 2016 and included contributions from opera vocalist Katarina Jovanović. Meanwhile, Dejan Vučetić advanced his musical journey with Minilinija (translated as Mini Stereo System), an evolution of the earlier side project Teget (meaning Navy Blue), which he had developed alongside Ristić.

Influence and legacy

In 2021, the albums Elektropionir, Darkwood Dub, Život počinje u 30-oj, and Paramparčad were positioned at 9th, 21st, 42nd, and 79th places respectively on the ranking of the 100 Best Serbian Albums Released Since the Dissolution of SFR Yugoslavia, as featured in the publication Kako (ni)je propao rokenrol u Srbiji.

The tracks "Kolotečina" ("The Rut") and "Treći Vavilon" secured spots number 33 and 35 on the B92 Top 100 Domestic Songs chart in 2006.

Verses from "Zapremina tela" were incorporated into Petar Janjatović's collection of ex-Yugoslav rock lyrics entitled Pesme bratstva, detinjstva & potomstva: Antologija ex YU rok poezije 1967 - 2007.

Additionally, the composition "Usamljeni hašišar" ("The Lonesome Hashish Eater") served as inspiration for an animated short directed by Đorđe Marjanović and Nikola Majdak Junior, which earned the Yugoslav ASIFA award recognizing excellence in animation.

Studio albums

Paramparčad (1995)
U nedogled (1996)
Darkwood Dub (1997)
Elektropionir (1999)
Život počinje u 30-oj (2002)
O danima (2004)
Jedinstvo (2008)
Vidimo se (2011)

Singles

"Kraj oktobra" (2011)
"Nešto sasvim izvesno" (2011)
"Milo moje" / "Ručak za dvoje" (collaboration with Bisera Veletanlić; 2012)

Other contributions

"Srećna glava" / "Veliki duh" (from Želim jahati do ekstaze; 1991)
"Ptice" (featured on Academia vol.1; 1993)
"Molitva Blagom Hristu" (included in Pesme iznad istoka i zapada; 2001)
"Zapremina (WS Remix)" (part of Muzika iz filma Munje!; 2001)
"Geto" (appeared on Kao da je bilo nekad... (Posvećeno Milanu Mladenoviću); 2002)
"Ja te potpuno razumem" (from Groovanje devedesete uživo; 2009)

Honors and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Outcome
2009	MTV Europe Music Awards	Best Adriatic Act	Template:Nom

External links