DJ Delay presents “Beyond The Kolo”
This is a project, which invited 9 different artists to interpret the Čačak Kolo (Serbia) in the context of their current musical direction.

Čačak kolo is the name of many Shope type dances found in Eastern Serbia, Northeastern Macedonia, and Western Bulgaria. They are characterized by their fast 2/4 metered music. Čačak dances are often referred to by the town or region from which they come.

Whilst this traditional tune is well known to anyone from the former Yugoslavia, this has not been a part of the handful of tunes, which have been remixed and re- presented in the last 10 years.

FLeCK, Joro Boro and Gypsy Syndicate give burning Dubstep remixes, with killer club tunes from DJ Superstereo, Unsoundboy, Gypsy Syndicate and DJ Delay. Tricky D stands tall with a Cumbia dub version, Curse Ov Dialect show their abstract Hiphop skills and Benjamin Skepper bows in with a tense Contemporary Classical piece.

This release shows how far traditional music can be taken beyond standard club fare. A must for all lovers of traditional and upful club music!


Artists’ Statements
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FLeCK
I decided to name the tune "Musala" which is the highest mountain peak of the Balkans! From such a high position you can see the whole earth metaphorically speaking, as the project is transnational!

Tricky D
Mrzim Narodnjake (I Hate Folk): Growing up in Yugoslavia (I left the country b4 the bloody separation) we were surrounded and overloaded with plenty of bad folk versions. When Dj Delay gave me "Kolo" to remix i though: "oh no , that tune again"...reawakening the feelings i used to have towards folk music as a young punk rocker . So i had 2 choices: not to do a remix or destroy and squeeze the sample and do something different out of it. Hence the title: I Hate Folk

DJ Superstereo
I was inspired to make the track this way by the disco of the 90's (for example the vocals) and the modern kuduro-balkan-ghetto-tech (bass and rhythms). I feel it is completely a SuperStereo-track in its sounding, although it is my first creation in kolo style.

Unsoundboy
After listening to the horns i decided i wanted to do something a bit slower and bit less urgent, so i went in search of some sheet music, found a piano and clarinet arrangement in a book on the bottom shelf of the office, noted some chords and some of the clarinet hooks then set about pulling them apart and dirtying it all up over a heavy bass and some scatty breaks.

DJ Delay
When I first heard this Kolo it reminded me of the energy of jump-up ragga jungle, which led me to Chchchachak.

Gipsy Syndicate
Send a group of music nerds to east Europe with lots of electronic equipment inclusive slivovitz and the dancfloor will be to the biggest balkandisco! At this time the Gipsy Syndicate have done two remixes for Beaming Productions. The basic was a relly nice trumpet loop which inspired us to do something crazy. A bottle of slivovitz, a long night and two tracks was the result. The final score is a slow Dub version and a fast Breakcore tune. Call it Balkanrave!

Curse Ov Dialect
I juxtaposed the dopeness of the kolo’s focus in order to create a musical hiphop locust!! Sounds that mixed together to create harmony.

Benjamin Skepper
I Deconstructed the harmonic structure of the Kolo, and developed the idea of the diminished minor seventh inherent in the Kolo melody. "Doro Odori" is written for 5 violoncellos and features a driving bass rhythm with textural melodic patterns to create an orchestral and instrumental body of sound.

Joro Boro
Once a year in late August/early September the Nevada desert becomes home to roughly 50,000 people who gather for the Burning Man festival. The dry bed lake of the Black Rock Desert is called playa.