After the clusterfork that was the Eurovision Song Contest, it is time for Balkan Express to return to calmer waters. But seeing as Croatia almost won the whole thing, we’ll take this opportunity to park the Balkan Express in this Adriatic country once more and tune in to Radio Luksemburg.

Listener, you heard that right. This is Radio Luksemburg on Balkan Expresss and no, this is not a case of corporate identity issues. Radio Luksemburg is, or by some accounts, was, a Croatian pop rock band that made quite a splash back in the day and then faded into the static.

Radio Luksemburg hail from Croatian capital Zagreb. Starting in the proverbial garage back in 2007, the band went though several interations and names, before finally settling on Radio Luksemburg. Which, yes, references the iconic and now defunct Radio Luxembourg and its cultural influence in Europe, especially after World War II.

In the before times of Yugoslav socialist brotherhood and unity (and kudos if you get this particular reference), western cultural influences were aplenty. And it showed in the Yugoslav music production which kept apace with the capitalist west. But no source of music and trends was as important as Radio Luxembourg. Which is why naming one’s band after the legendary radio station also means setting the bar pretty high.

But Radio Luksemburg did manage to clear that particular bar. And with ease. At least at the time. Merely a year after they were founded, they were already playing their first solo concert in front of several hundred people, with a full complement of their own tracks.

The music of Radio Luksemburg sounds as if it was born old. Fully formed, without any infantile rage or teenage self-importance. The band came to this world for tell us their story and then blend into the background until it was needed again. In this, they are a rarity among contemporary Balkan bands who rarely know when to ease off.

Radio Luksemburg are, or maybe were, vocalist Danijel Dizdar, guitarists Zoran Beloša-Beli and Ivan Makovec-Mak, bass guitarist Vedran Kovačić-Beli and drummer Davor Smotalić-Smotke. The band released released two albums to date, with the last one being more than eleven years old. To some, this would indicate a defunct band. Especially since even their last Facebook post is more than five years old. The music, however, remains. And as long as we have their music we’ll always have Radio Luksemburg.

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

—

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.