This week, Balkan Express makes another stop in Slovenia. Not in the least because this here show has a new web lodgings. Thus, we’ll be taking a look at the freshest of the cuts from the land where they shot the third season of The Witcher. Say hi to Roma Child.

Roma Child is, well, a brain child of Roman Ratej and Martin Štibernik. RO-man and MA-rtin, hence RO-MA. Get it? Admittedly, not very inventive, but seeing as the entire project does seem to be Roman’s and Martin’s love child, we’ll allow it.

What Roma Child lack in trademarking, they more than make up in their musical abilities. Roman Ratej has been around since mid-80s, when he started drumming for the legendary Slovenian underground jazz-funk band Miladojka Youneed and then made his international name with the popular Russian duo T.A.T.u. Martin Štibernik, however, is an industrious producer and musician, considered an integral part of Slovenian music industry.

Roma Child released their first single a while ago, but it took them until last week to release their first EP. Although it should be said that calling a 10-track release an EP is underselling it a bit. Many bands would happily call this a fully fledged album. But since it includes a couple of live sessions, I guess we can say they played it safe.

But when it comes to music, Roma Child are playing it anything but safe. A mixture of surf- and punk-rock, the EP they titled Matador is a rock and roll tour the force which would not be out of place on a surf beach. Or on a road trip gone wrong. Just in case anyone is looking for a soundtrack to an independent film. Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge.

Most of the tracks on Roma Child’s first EP are in English. Which sort of gives away the play as to where they see their future. That is not to say that they don’t have songs with Slovenian lyrics – case in point this next track – but the fact they can hold their own in a foreign language should help with the airplay. At any rate, if this is the EP, we should really be looking forward to the full studio release

And that’s all the time we have for today. Check out Roma Child on YouTube, Spotify and wherever you get your music from. And Balkan Express will be back next week.

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Balkan Express brings you the latest and/or the greatest in music from the Balkans. On air every Tuesday at 11am on Ara City Radio, it is hosted by Aljaž aka @pengovsky who once did the world a solid and vowed never to sing again in public. Which is how he ended up doing radio.