EYOT

EYOT is the Nirvana of European jazz; their sound fusion can best be described as a marriage of Kurt Cobain and Keith Jarrett. They have recently won the 2012 MIDEM OFF Competition, and are open for interviews about their war-singed lives and electrifying music.

New York, NY (PRWEB) January 25, 2012
EYOT is the winner of the 2012 Cannes, France MIDEM Festival OFF Competition. Click here to see the MIDEM announcement.
Internationally acclaimed jazz quartet EYOT is a winner of the MIDEM OFF Competition in 2012, winner of the Umbria Jazz Balkanic Windows Competition in 2009, video and mp3 of the day on prominent jazz website "All About Jazz", and has been featured at many international jazz festivals, including Nišvill Jazz Fest in Serbia, World of Jazz in Dubai, DOKfest in Munich, Alarma Punk Jazz in Sofia, along with club gigs on regular basis (see a few notable performances below).
Within the chiaroscuro between east and west, good and evil, members of the band EYOT spin a web of hushed tones and howls with their new brand of eastern jazz. All About Jazz did a recent review of EYOT's debut album here: AllAboutJazz Review
This is not our parents' jazz. There are no smooth licks here. EYOT is full-to-the-hilt emotion, stemming from the troubled past of the band members' childhoods and the real, pent-up emotions of a period in history many eastern Europeans would like to forget. From the soft solo piano stylings bandleader Dejan Ilijic ekes gently from the keys to Sladjan Milenovic's hypnotic microtonal Bill Frisell-esque guitar atmospheres, and with the metamorphic rhythm section of Marko Stojiljkovic and Milos Vojvodic, this band of brilliant young musicians is "all-in" for every tune.
This is the music of ancient civilizations, of traditional moonshine, of dervishes and religious festivals. It is the music of blood running through the streets and of hatred. It is the music of love,

reconciliation, friendship and peace. It is the marriage of east and west, and the meeting of ancient and modern. The twisted steel of the musical arrangements in EYOT's first record have earned them ebullient praise from critics, and their live shows cannot be missed. The intensity is palpable.
The haunts of John Coltrane and the spirit of Kurt Cobain permeate the now-Keith-Jarrett-like and then-free improvisatory sets of eccentric Serbian pianist Dejan Ilijic and his band EYOT. Their dynamic sets have earned them praise in their home country and around Europe, and audiences leave energized and enlightened.
Notable Performances:

2009 Umbria Jazz Balkanic Windows

2009 Nishvill Jazz Festival

2010 World of Jazz / Dubai Jazz Festival / UAE

2010 Jazz & Blues Festival Petrovac

2010 Nisomnia Rock Festival

2010 Jazz Festival Novi Sad

2010 Jazziré Festival Subotica

2010 Jazz & Blues Festival „Geza Balaž-Gari“

2011 DOKfest Munich / Germany

2011 Sounds of Summer

2011 Belgrade of light festival

2011 Alarma Punk Jazz Fest / Sofia / Bulgaria

2011 Serbia in Thessaloniki / Greece

2011 Veisa Jazz / Saransk / Russia
Members of EYOT available for interview, and review copies of their debut CD "Horizon" are available to the media. Download sample track here.
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Dr. Kent Gustavson
Ninety and Nine Records
1-631-316-8742
Email Information
- YAHOO NEWS

Nick: Hello Dejan. Thank you for making this interview possible. How are you doing?
Dejan: Thank you for approaching me (us). I am like the weather these days, up, down, left right and then in the center.
Nick: Let’s start from an obvious spot, which is introducing your band, EYOT. How did it all start? What is your musical background?

EYOT
Dejan: We all have different musical backgrounds but it would take me a lot of time to say everything. So I will start the story about EYOT from 2006 when I released my first solo-piano album for Ninety and Nine Records, New York independent label. And from then on I and later the band had the great support in everyday from the label president and owner Dr. Kent Gustavson. After one more solo piano album and one more in collaboration with Kent, It was the time to move forward and to start a band which will be a continuation of my solo-piano story. (The first album is called EYOT). And we started somewhere in 2008. Marko Stojiljkovic (bass) Sladjan Milenovic (guitar) Miloš Vojvodic (Drums) Dejan Ilijic (Piano). The Band. In these two years the main things that we did are winning in the final (selected among 3 winners) of Umbria Jazz Balkanic Windows contest, Performance at Nisville Jazz Festival, (this performance was daily featured video at All About Jazz web site) World of Jazz, Manifestation as a part of Dubai International Jazz Festival and the fact that we recorded our debut album.
Nick: EYOT is surely one of the most quality and promising young bands out there right now. You blend jazz with a bit of fusion and a lot of other influences. What can you say about your musical direction?
Dejan: Well, we declare as an ambiental – world – jazz band, something like that, but I am not sure how to describe the music. To be honest, I am not thinking a lot about it, I just need that description for websites like myspace e.t.c. But it is important to say that we are not exactly a jazz band. We keep the jazz word for the end of the description. I see our roots in classical background more then jazz. But I like the both directions.
Nick: Your debut album is about to be released and I know how much of sweat and blood you’ve put into its creation, so please tell us something more about it. Also feel free to tell us where it was recorded.
Dejan: Sweat, blood, time and money. We started working on it from the first day, so it was a year and a half process when we decided it was a time to draw a line on the material. It was recorded in F.A.M.E.S. Projects studio in Skopje, Macedonia in two days and basically the album is almost live recording in the studio with very few double tracks and edited parts. And that was the only way to record our music, sound, energy and I can say after all that I am very happy how the things worked out at the end. I know people don’t care, when they listen to the music what you had to do to give them that last product, it is only important what they hear, but if I take all the aspects this is the best that we could do in this period of our lives. It was recorded great by Georgi Hristovski, mixed by me and then we had a final touch from Nathan James in Vault Mastering Studio in New York. I hope we will work with this team in the future again.
Nick: “Horizon” has been put up for free download, and it’s also the first single of the upcoming album. This particular track blew my mind when I first heard it. I have to say here to our readers that this song is going to be presented on our second volume of the Progstravaganza compilation and it is my personal opinion that this track describes the music EYOT creates very well. Would you like to tell us anything about this piece in particular?
Dejan: I am not sure I could say anything in particular about it, but I agree, in some way it contains all the parts that build EYOT sound. There are some private stories around it but we’ll keep that for some Autobiography books in the future. ) I am glad to see/hear it on your compilation.
Nick: I could see some of your live videos on your MySpace profile and the fact that’s really astonishing is the energy you guys transmit through your performances. Is it hard to capture that energy from the concerts for a studio recording?

Photo: Bojan Stojadinovic
Dejan: It is hard, but we had a great team in the studio and nice atmosphere, without any pressure so I think we have managed to catch that energy that we transpose on our live performances.
Nick: It’s interesting that the guitar in EYOT sounds pretty atmospheric, which is a bit weird for a band with jazz roots. Where do you get those atmospheric elements from?
Dejan: All the instruments have their own parts in melodic, rhythm, harmony parts in the songs, it depends on the orchestration e.t.c. but generaly we all produce that atmosphere. Is it from emotions or something else,I don’t know.
Nick: Which artists and bands have mostly influenced your work with EYOT? Would you share with us some of your favori - http://www.prog-sphere.com

Si chiamano EYOT. Nascono in Serbia, nella città di Nis, dove naque anche COSTANTINO il GRANDE, il primo imperatore Cristiano di Roma, di madre Serba, che trasformò il Cristianesimo da una piccola setta dei perseguitati in una delle religioni più importanti oggi e lo fece in un arco di soli cento anni!
In altre parole: grandi si nasce! EYOT sono così: GRANDI! Basta percorrere la loro discografia per capire che ci troviamo davanti ad una delle più importanti giovani Jazz band d’Europa. Parlando di loro i BIG del JAZZ non hanno badato a spendere i loro migliori complimenti per EYOT. Dopo averli sentiti si capisce il Perché!
EYOT sono: Dejan Ilijic – Piano; Sladjan Milenovic – Chitarra; Milos Vojvodic – Batteria; Marko Stojiljkovic – Basso.

Il “segno”, la croce, che apparve a Costantino nel sogno, ispirò la sua grandezza. Sotto quale segno nascono gli EYOT ce lo dirà il Tempo, ma una cosa è certa già: con la loro musica EYOT fanno sognare gli altri. Per quanto riguarda TeslaLUX, l’arrivo degli EYOT è il segno migliore per iniziare una nuova stagione ricca di sorprese..... - http://www.webmetropolis.org

Si chiamano EYOT. Nascono in Serbia, nella città di Nis, dove naque anche COSTANTINO il GRANDE, il primo imperatore Cristiano di Roma, di madre Serba, che trasformò il Cristianesimo da una piccola setta dei perseguitati in una delle religioni più importanti oggi e lo fece in un arco di soli cento anni!
In altre parole: grandi si nasce! EYOT sono così: GRANDI! Basta percorrere la loro discografia per capire che ci troviamo davanti ad una delle più importanti giovani Jazz band d’Europa. Parlando di loro i BIG del JAZZ non hanno badato a spendere i loro migliori complimenti per EYOT. Dopo averli sentiti si capisce il Perché!
EYOT sono: Dejan Ilijic – Piano; Sladjan Milenovic – Chitarra; Milos Vojvodic – Batteria; Marko Stojiljkovic – Basso.

Il “segno”, la croce, che apparve a Costantino nel sogno, ispirò la sua grandezza. Sotto quale segno nascono gli EYOT ce lo dirà il Tempo, ma una cosa è certa già: con la loro musica EYOT fanno sognare gli altri. Per quanto riguarda TeslaLUX, l’arrivo degli EYOT è il segno migliore per iniziare una nuova stagione ricca di sorprese..... - http://www.webmetropolis.org

Bend Eyot postoji oko 3 godine. Za to vreme dosta se pricalo i pisalo o njima.

Kako i da ne kada je ovaj bend svirajuci svoj moderni jazz nastupao na festivalima u Nemackoj, Grckoj pa cak i u Dubaiju. Posle tolikih putešestvija bend je rešio da napravi koncertu svom maticnom gradu. I to ne bilo kakav koncert vec snimanje DVD-ja.

Kao mesto je izabrano Lutkarsko pozorište. Pokazalo se da je to bio pravi izbor jer je prostor bio taman pun, što i nije toliko puno ali sasvim dovoljno za ovakvu priliku. Još na ulazu su se kroz gužvu muvale kamere. Koncert je poceo samo sa par minuta zakašnjenja dok se nisu svi smestili na svoja mesta(pardon, izvinite, pardon, oprostite, samo da prodjem).

Na binu su izašla cetvorica muzicara koji su se bez ikakvih odugovlacenja prihvatili instrumenata i zapoceli koncert za pamcenje. Svirali su numere sa svog prvenca „Horizon“ koje se krecu negde izmedju fusion jazza, ambijentale, post rocka i ko-zna-cega-sve-ne. U Jazz se ne razumem preterano ali to je i prednost ovog benda. Niste morali u životu da pustite Ellingtona, Monka, Davisa, Coltranea i ekipu da bi vam ovo prijalo uhu. Štaviše za razliku od klasicnog jazza(koji manje više potpuno razumeju samo muzicari) ono što Eyot svira nije uopšte naporno za slušanje.

Možda ima nekih koji nisu navikli na pesme od 10 minuta ali s albumom „Horizon“ se to vrlo lako može promeniti. Bend je zvucao fantasticno tumarajuci po misticnim i orijentalnim deonicama gradeci vanprostorni zid tenzije koji kulminira necim u žargonu nazvanim eargasm. Publika je posle svake pesme fenomenalno reagovala(ipak nece da se bruka na snimku). Cak su u pocetku zapocinjali aplauzi kojima i nije bilo vreme ali to nije ni bitno. Takodje, možda je od samog pocetka osvetljenje trebalo da bude dinamicnije zbog zajebanijeg efekta.

Bilo kako bilo, Eyot je sinoc svima dokazao zašto je putujuci svetom zaradio epitet „Nirvane evropskog jazza“. Cak i da vam se ne svidja ovo poredjenje neminovno je da zvuk Eyota vodi do nirvane. Onakva klavirska energija, lucidnost basa, svemirsko sviranje gitare i jacina bubnja ne vidjaju se svaki dan u ovoj vrsti muzike. Nastup je trajao sat i po zajedno sa bisom koji se završio eksplozijom jedne bucne granate. Prisustvovali smo koncertu bez reci koji je tako puno rekao. Ne znam za ostale ali ja sam se osecao kao delic neceg bitnog.

Ovo je samo još jedan pocetak za Eyot koji ce tek pisati svoju pricu. Vec se radujemo DVD-ju i novom albumu. - http://niscafe.com

Bend Eyot postoji oko 3 godine. Za to vreme dosta se pricalo i pisalo o njima.

Kako i da ne kada je ovaj bend svirajuci svoj moderni jazz nastupao na festivalima u Nemackoj, Grckoj pa cak i u Dubaiju. Posle tolikih putešestvija bend je rešio da napravi koncertu svom maticnom gradu. I to ne bilo kakav koncert vec snimanje DVD-ja.

Kao mesto je izabrano Lutkarsko pozorište. Pokazalo se da je to bio pravi izbor jer je prostor bio taman pun, što i nije toliko puno ali sasvim dovoljno za ovakvu priliku. Još na ulazu su se kroz gužvu muvale kamere. Koncert je poceo samo sa par minuta zakašnjenja dok se nisu svi smestili na svoja mesta(pardon, izvinite, pardon, oprostite, samo da prodjem).

Na binu su izašla cetvorica muzicara koji su se bez ikakvih odugovlacenja prihvatili instrumenata i zapoceli koncert za pamcenje. Svirali su numere sa svog prvenca „Horizon“ koje se krecu negde izmedju fusion jazza, ambijentale, post rocka i ko-zna-cega-sve-ne. U Jazz se ne razumem preterano ali to je i prednost ovog benda. Niste morali u životu da pustite Ellingtona, Monka, Davisa, Coltranea i ekipu da bi vam ovo prijalo uhu. Štaviše za razliku od klasicnog jazza(koji manje više potpuno razumeju samo muzicari) ono što Eyot svira nije uopšte naporno za slušanje.

Možda ima nekih koji nisu navikli na pesme od 10 minuta ali s albumom „Horizon“ se to vrlo lako može promeniti. Bend je zvucao fantasticno tumarajuci po misticnim i orijentalnim deonicama gradeci vanprostorni zid tenzije koji kulminira necim u žargonu nazvanim eargasm. Publika je posle svake pesme fenomenalno reagovala(ipak nece da se bruka na snimku). Cak su u pocetku zapocinjali aplauzi kojima i nije bilo vreme ali to nije ni bitno. Takodje, možda je od samog pocetka osvetljenje trebalo da bude dinamicnije zbog zajebanijeg efekta.

Bilo kako bilo, Eyot je sinoc svima dokazao zašto je putujuci svetom zaradio epitet „Nirvane evropskog jazza“. Cak i da vam se ne svidja ovo poredjenje neminovno je da zvuk Eyota vodi do nirvane. Onakva klavirska energija, lucidnost basa, svemirsko sviranje gitare i jacina bubnja ne vidjaju se svaki dan u ovoj vrsti muzike. Nastup je trajao sat i po zajedno sa bisom koji se završio eksplozijom jedne bucne granate. Prisustvovali smo koncertu bez reci koji je tako puno rekao. Ne znam za ostale ali ja sam se osecao kao delic neceg bitnog.

Ovo je samo još jedan pocetak za Eyot koji ce tek pisati svoju pricu. Vec se radujemo DVD-ju i novom albumu. - http://niscafe.com

Carissimi,

non ho più capito niente ! Daniele ci dato un link tradotto in italiano. Chi è stato nin sò, ma ha fatto cosa buona e giusta !


Si chiamano EYOT. Nascono in Serbia, nella città di Nis, dove naque anche COSTANTINO il GRANDE, il primo imperatore Cristiano di Roma, di madre Serba, che trasformò il Cristianesimo da una piccola setta dei perseguitati in una delle religioni più importanti oggi e lo fece in un arco di soli cento anni!
In altre parole: grandi si nasce! EYOT sono così: GRANDI! Basta percorrere la loro discografia per capire che ci troviamo davanti ad una delle più importanti giovani Jazz band d’Europa. Parlando di loro i BIG del JAZZ non hanno badato a spendere i loro migliori complimenti per EYOT. Dopo averli sentiti si capisce il Perché!
EYOT sono: Dejan Ilijic – Piano; Sladjan Milenovic – Chitarra; Milos Vojvodic – Batteria; Marko Stojiljkovic – Basso. - http://balkan-crew.blogspot.com

Carissimi,

non ho più capito niente ! Daniele ci dato un link tradotto in italiano. Chi è stato nin sò, ma ha fatto cosa buona e giusta !


Si chiamano EYOT. Nascono in Serbia, nella città di Nis, dove naque anche COSTANTINO il GRANDE, il primo imperatore Cristiano di Roma, di madre Serba, che trasformò il Cristianesimo da una piccola setta dei perseguitati in una delle religioni più importanti oggi e lo fece in un arco di soli cento anni!
In altre parole: grandi si nasce! EYOT sono così: GRANDI! Basta percorrere la loro discografia per capire che ci troviamo davanti ad una delle più importanti giovani Jazz band d’Europa. Parlando di loro i BIG del JAZZ non hanno badato a spendere i loro migliori complimenti per EYOT. Dopo averli sentiti si capisce il Perché!
EYOT sono: Dejan Ilijic – Piano; Sladjan Milenovic – Chitarra; Milos Vojvodic – Batteria; Marko Stojiljkovic – Basso. - http://balkan-crew.blogspot.com

. - http://www.vsar.ru

. - http://www.vsar.ru

Maybe you know, maybe don’t, but term eyot is used for small island in river or lake. Why did then four guys from Niš, Serbia named their band Eyot? Maybe because they feel like they are on some eyot.

These four guys play mixture of jazz, ethno, electronic and rock’n'roll music where classical piano, played by Dejan Ilijic. is dominating, but it wouldn’t be band if I don’t mention other three musicians Sladjan Milenovic on guitar, Milos Vojvodic on drums and Marko Stojiljkovic on bass.

“This band has the organization that holds the music together like a
film score telling a story from beginning to end.
Each piece is a masterful reminder that nothing stays the same.
The passion that each member contributes to this band pulls the
listener in to a place of something that I can only describe as “The
Complete Experience.”
Kudos to EYOT for their passion and commitment to the forward motion
of music, life and love. ”
- Sarah Jane Cion

Eyot started its existence three years ago, and they had performances at some world-known festivals. Some of them are Umbria Jazz Balkanic Windows in 2009, same year Nishvill Jazz Festival, World of Jazz / Dubai Jazz Festival, Jazz & Blues Festival „Geza Balaž-Gari“ both in 2010 and DOKfest Munich this year.

“EYOT is surely one of the most quality and promising young bands out
there right now.” – http://www.prog-sphere.com/

Last year they recorded their first album “Horizon” launched in Serbia (Constantinus), Croatia (Listen Loudest) and USA (Ninety and Nine Records, Magnatune).

Album “Horizon” is one of the five best albums in Serbia in opinion of Serbian daily newspaper Blic.

On Friday, October 21st at 9:00 pm they’ll perform at ?????-Jazz festival 2011 in Saransk, Russia. If you planed to visit this festival we are strongly recommending you too listen to this young fusion-jazz quartet. You will fall in love with their music at first hearing.

Also visit their website http://www.eyotmusic.net/ or their profile on MySpace http://www.myspace.com/eyotmusic and enjoy in this beautiful music. - http://www.wisn.in

Maybe you know, maybe don’t, but term eyot is used for small island in river or lake. Why did then four guys from Niš, Serbia named their band Eyot? Maybe because they feel like they are on some eyot.

These four guys play mixture of jazz, ethno, electronic and rock’n'roll music where classical piano, played by Dejan Ilijic. is dominating, but it wouldn’t be band if I don’t mention other three musicians Sladjan Milenovic on guitar, Milos Vojvodic on drums and Marko Stojiljkovic on bass.

“This band has the organization that holds the music together like a
film score telling a story from beginning to end.
Each piece is a masterful reminder that nothing stays the same.
The passion that each member contributes to this band pulls the
listener in to a place of something that I can only describe as “The
Complete Experience.”
Kudos to EYOT for their passion and commitment to the forward motion
of music, life and love. ”
- Sarah Jane Cion

Eyot started its existence three years ago, and they had performances at some world-known festivals. Some of them are Umbria Jazz Balkanic Windows in 2009, same year Nishvill Jazz Festival, World of Jazz / Dubai Jazz Festival, Jazz & Blues Festival „Geza Balaž-Gari“ both in 2010 and DOKfest Munich this year.

“EYOT is surely one of the most quality and promising young bands out
there right now.” – http://www.prog-sphere.com/

Last year they recorded their first album “Horizon” launched in Serbia (Constantinus), Croatia (Listen Loudest) and USA (Ninety and Nine Records, Magnatune).

Album “Horizon” is one of the five best albums in Serbia in opinion of Serbian daily newspaper Blic.

On Friday, October 21st at 9:00 pm they’ll perform at ?????-Jazz festival 2011 in Saransk, Russia. If you planed to visit this festival we are strongly recommending you too listen to this young fusion-jazz quartet. You will fall in love with their music at first hearing.

Also visit their website http://www.eyotmusic.net/ or their profile on MySpace http://www.myspace.com/eyotmusic and enjoy in this beautiful music. - http://www.wisn.in

Ambijentalni jazz s elementima balkanskog folka dinamicki je instrumentalan album na kojem prednjaci sjajni virtuoz na pianu - Dejan Ilijic.

Eyot je instrumentalni jazz kvartet iz Niša u kojem dominira pijanist Dejan Ilijic, dobro znan umjetnik lokalne scene. Premda suraduje sa rock izvodacima, njegov glavni poligon je jazz i ambijent, a kao bitne utjecaje navodi tradicionalnu glazbu, John Coltranea, John Scofielda, te razliciti spektar od Mozarta preko Piazzolle i Bill Frisella do Mobyija. Bend cine još Marko Stojiljkovic (bas), Miloš Vojvodic (bubnjevi) i Sladan Milenovic (gitara), a startali su s radom 2008.

Ovo im je prvi album, snimljen je u Skoplju u studiju F.A.M.E.S. Projects Studio M1, a masterirao ga je Nathan James iz New Yorka koji je izmedu ostalog radio na angažmanu oko zvuka Davea Brubecka, Charlie Huntera, te Staind, The Bravery, Default, Blondie, Joe Jacksona, Signal To Noise... Što ce reci da Eyot imaju fantastican zvuk, te kada se posluša uvodni broj "Far afield" komotno se može dobiti dojam da je rijec o nekom svjetskom izvodacu koji podjednako zagovara kraut i post-rock sa ezotericnom minimalistickom dinamikom poput The Necks. No, u principu, to je jedini komad u kojem se mogu osjetiti natruhe necega što miriše na rock, dok je preostali dio materijala vješto ambijentalno manevriranje sa piano melodijama i uglavnom minimalistickim jazz poigravanjima pratece ekipe.

Prošaranost sa gitarskim efektima koji sežu od ambijentalne glazbe do jazza uz fino izabrani spektar razlicitih ritmickih opservacija ("Stone upon stone upon stone", 10 minuta dugacka "Surge", završna "It's time to go home") može se kategoricki utrpati otprilike u onaj fah nu-jazza kakvog su na debiju prikazali Zerkman Big Bang, samo s razlikom što je Ilijic daleko više fokusiran na emotivnost izvedbe, osobito kod romanticnih tema koje su manje-više njegovi solo izleti na pianu ("If I could say what I want to say"). Ne može se reci da je prateca ekipa suhoparni faktor koji samo opslužuje pozadinu Ilijicevih virtuoznih bravura; ima tu ponešto jazz-funka ("All I want to say") kojeg kompaktno razgraduju, kompleksnijih aranžmana u koje su utkani duhaci iz makedonske grupe Sethstat (trombon Vladan Drobicki i saksofon Vasko Bojadžiski u "3 months later"), elemenata neparnog folk ritma s odlicnim gitaristickim tretmanima (naslovna "Horizon"), pa i necega što bi se moglo nazvati svojevrsni acid-jazz/ trip-hop ("Whale song"), no nekako se cini da trojka stalno cuci u sjeni kao da nisu pronašli adekvatan izraz s kojim bi mogli parirati sjajnim piano dionicama.

Imati velikog umjetnika u bendu težak je kreativni zalogaj za ostatak ekipe koja se mora svojski truditi iz momenta u moment; njegove piano dionice su vješto sofisticirane i naredane su u neocekivanim oblicima od ležernih i temperamentnih fluidnih ambijentalnih protoka sve do sjajno improviziranih tema koje cesto variraju i odlaze u nepredvidljivim pravcima. No, kako god, momci bi u nekom rock bendu sasvim sigurno razorili svirku buduci da se osjeca neprekidno prisustvo kreativnog duha, a u ovom prakticki fusionu sa klasicnim i jazz pianom, te elementima balkanskog folka, iznjedrili su strasan i tecan glazbeni oblik koji ima sve predispozicije zaigrati i na pozornicama izvan njihove domovine. - http://www.terapija.net

Ambijentalni jazz s elementima balkanskog folka dinamicki je instrumentalan album na kojem prednjaci sjajni virtuoz na pianu - Dejan Ilijic.

Eyot je instrumentalni jazz kvartet iz Niša u kojem dominira pijanist Dejan Ilijic, dobro znan umjetnik lokalne scene. Premda suraduje sa rock izvodacima, njegov glavni poligon je jazz i ambijent, a kao bitne utjecaje navodi tradicionalnu glazbu, John Coltranea, John Scofielda, te razliciti spektar od Mozarta preko Piazzolle i Bill Frisella do Mobyija. Bend cine još Marko Stojiljkovic (bas), Miloš Vojvodic (bubnjevi) i Sladan Milenovic (gitara), a startali su s radom 2008.

Ovo im je prvi album, snimljen je u Skoplju u studiju F.A.M.E.S. Projects Studio M1, a masterirao ga je Nathan James iz New Yorka koji je izmedu ostalog radio na angažmanu oko zvuka Davea Brubecka, Charlie Huntera, te Staind, The Bravery, Default, Blondie, Joe Jacksona, Signal To Noise... Što ce reci da Eyot imaju fantastican zvuk, te kada se posluša uvodni broj "Far afield" komotno se može dobiti dojam da je rijec o nekom svjetskom izvodacu koji podjednako zagovara kraut i post-rock sa ezotericnom minimalistickom dinamikom poput The Necks. No, u principu, to je jedini komad u kojem se mogu osjetiti natruhe necega što miriše na rock, dok je preostali dio materijala vješto ambijentalno manevriranje sa piano melodijama i uglavnom minimalistickim jazz poigravanjima pratece ekipe.

Prošaranost sa gitarskim efektima koji sežu od ambijentalne glazbe do jazza uz fino izabrani spektar razlicitih ritmickih opservacija ("Stone upon stone upon stone", 10 minuta dugacka "Surge", završna "It's time to go home") može se kategoricki utrpati otprilike u onaj fah nu-jazza kakvog su na debiju prikazali Zerkman Big Bang, samo s razlikom što je Ilijic daleko više fokusiran na emotivnost izvedbe, osobito kod romanticnih tema koje su manje-više njegovi solo izleti na pianu ("If I could say what I want to say"). Ne može se reci da je prateca ekipa suhoparni faktor koji samo opslužuje pozadinu Ilijicevih virtuoznih bravura; ima tu ponešto jazz-funka ("All I want to say") kojeg kompaktno razgraduju, kompleksnijih aranžmana u koje su utkani duhaci iz makedonske grupe Sethstat (trombon Vladan Drobicki i saksofon Vasko Bojadžiski u "3 months later"), elemenata neparnog folk ritma s odlicnim gitaristickim tretmanima (naslovna "Horizon"), pa i necega što bi se moglo nazvati svojevrsni acid-jazz/ trip-hop ("Whale song"), no nekako se cini da trojka stalno cuci u sjeni kao da nisu pronašli adekvatan izraz s kojim bi mogli parirati sjajnim piano dionicama.

Imati velikog umjetnika u bendu težak je kreativni zalogaj za ostatak ekipe koja se mora svojski truditi iz momenta u moment; njegove piano dionice su vješto sofisticirane i naredane su u neocekivanim oblicima od ležernih i temperamentnih fluidnih ambijentalnih protoka sve do sjajno improviziranih tema koje cesto variraju i odlaze u nepredvidljivim pravcima. No, kako god, momci bi u nekom rock bendu sasvim sigurno razorili svirku buduci da se osjeca neprekidno prisustvo kreativnog duha, a u ovom prakticki fusionu sa klasicnim i jazz pianom, te elementima balkanskog folka, iznjedrili su strasan i tecan glazbeni oblik koji ima sve predispozicije zaigrati i na pozornicama izvan njihove domovine. - http://www.terapija.net

Najnovija domaca fjužn atrakcija dolazi iz Niša i zove se Eyot. Ovu stilsku odrednicu treba shvatiti uslovno u odnosu na istorijske izvore kao što su Miles Davis, Mahavishnu Orchestra ili Weather Report, a bukvalno kada govorimo o samoj muzici – fuziji razlicitih žanrova, s osnovom u džezu i improvizaciji. Njihov izraz naginje modernoj eklektici, ali ne gubi dodir s esencijom žanra iz koga potice.

Nišku cetvorku cine voda benda i pijanista Dejan Ilijic, basista Marko Stojiljkovic, gitarista Sladan Milenovic i Miloš Vojvodic na bubnjevima. Prisetimo se hronologije uspona Eyota: prvo znacajnije pojavljivanje beleže na Umbria Jazz – Balkanic Windows kvalifikacijama leta prošle godine. Iste sezone nastupaju na Nišvillu, a video It's Time To Go Home s tog koncerta obilazi svet preko najpoznatijeg džez sajta AllAboutJazz. Pocetkom 2010. sledi nastup na manifestaciji “World of Jazz” u sklopu džez festivala u Dubaiju, a u nastavku godine i koncerti širom Srbije.

Na poslednjem gostovanju u Beogradu, frontmenu Dejanu Ilijicu je po završetku svirke prišao prijatelj i radosno uskliknuo: „Esbjörne Svenssone!“. Referenca na tragicno preminulog švedskog pijanistu, koji je ostavio neizbrisiv trag na džez sceni novog milenijuma, ima uporišta u Ilijicevom svirackom liricizmu kombinovanom s modernim ritmovima i pop-rok nabojem pesama.

Veoma sofisticirane i melodicne pijanisticke deonice su zaštitni znak i najveci kvalitet Eyota. Narocito su ubedljiva Ilijiceva sola – fluidna i ležerno razbacana po taktovim jedinicama, tako da tvore savršen kontrapunkt s ostatkom benda zaduženim za ritmicki preciznu svirku. Bice tu i molske svirke s osvrtom na ECM tradiciju i gracioznih klasicarskih pasaža, i odmerene etno arome i šetnji kroz istoriju džez klavira (poslušati razmahani solo u završnoj It's Time To Go Home).

Zvuk Milenoviceve Ibanez gitare mogao bi biti blizak ljubiteljima hard-roka i metala, pa daje bendu širinu i potencijal da privuce raznoliku publiku. Dakako, uz Ilijicev elegantni performans ne bi valjalo ni preterivati s maco-distorzijom, i takve izlete srecemo tek u par numera. Na ostatku materijala uglavnom je to zauzdan i pažljivo doziran zvuk prožet efektima – pomalo nalik „prigušenoj“ varijanti svirke Terjea Rypdala.

Na polju kompozicije, bend se uglavnom drži svedenog izraza u kome gradiranje tenzije igra kljucnu ulogu. Negde je to melodicni neo-fjužn, drugde u prvi plan izbijaju neparni ritmovi i istocnoevropska egzotika, a ishodište je u pijanistickim solima ili glasnoj kolektivnoj svirci. Ovde je i najveci prostor za napredak, jer ritam sekcija odvec rezervisano prati dešavanja u prednjoj liniji, držeci se pratece role. Kada bubnjar Miloš Vojvodic u 3 Months Later da sebi oduška, a u slobodnim pasažima se prikljuce gostujuci duvaci (trombonista Vladan Drobicki i saksofonista Vasko Bojadžiski iz makedonske grupe Sethstat), uvidamo da Eyot ima potencijala da povuce svirku i u nekim novim, neocekivanim pravcima.

Naravno, na Ilijicu i društvu je odluka u kom pravcu žele da se razvijaju. Na nama je da uživamo u zreloj instrumentalnoj svirci i jednom od najboljih domacih (ne samo džez) albuma iz ovogodišnje produkcije.


- http://www.jazzin.rs

I’ve recently discovered Serbian jazz fusion thanks to my friend and colleague Mr. Nikola Savic. I’ve liked the Vasil Hadžimanov Band for a while now, but the other day I started listening to Smak and fell in love. I’ve just begun to plumb the jazz-depths of this country that is unfortunately more well-known in the West for its terrorism and genocide than excellent musical tradition. It would be as if the Nazi Holocaust invalidated hundreds of years of German classical music.
EYOT is a newcomer to the Serbian jazz scene. Nick knows a lot more about them, and was actually supposed to write this review, but I think I can do a good job. Anyway if you want to find out more about the band, feel free to read the interview Nick did with Dejan Ilijic almost a year ago. We also have the title track of their album on our second Progstravaganza compilation Nick actually just saw them play in their home town of Niš, Serbia, the other day. Lucky, him!
EYOT is a very musically interesting band. Horizon makes me think of Miles Davis’ In a Silent Way because of its “quiet intensity”. Miles Davis’ album has a sort of divine subtlety to it that belies its incredible complexity. It’s a rhythmic masterpiece of delicate complexity. Horizon is similar in this way, but not musically. It achieves this same wonderful feeling via completely different methods, and this leads me to believe it was unintentional (despite Davis being listed as an influence). That said, the fact that they achieved it at all is wonderful, in my eyes. Another comparison could be made to Pekka Pohjola – the Finnish jazz fusion artist known for his tenure in Wigwam. I am reminded strongly of the title track on my favorite Pohjola album, Katkavaraan Lohikaarme (if you try to google the album keep in mind that it has a lot of umlauts that I can’t type on my American keyboard). Again, the music isn’t similar, but the basses manage to achieve the same goal for me – a sort of rhythmic bliss.
The quiet intensity on Horizon comes from the juxtaposition of Dejan’s grand piano over the driving beat of the rhythm section (Miloš and Marko on drums and bass, respectively). To complete the sound, we have Sladan with his incredibly spacey guitars. The best example of this that I can think of is their track “Stone Upon Stone Upon Stone”. The music is composed so subtly that it manages to build to a thundering crescendo without the listener even realizing it. Once you finally get it, waves of sound are crashing over you and suddenly fall down again to begin the next track. I also love that there are parts of the album that deviate strongly from this, such as the experimental parts of 3 Months Later, which includes a horn section, and the energetic finale, It’s Time to Go Home. This helps to ensure it doesn’t get monotonous, which is a good thing considering the album is over an hour long.
Musically I wouldn’t call this pure jazz, but spiritually and aesthetically it couldn’t be jazzier. It has jazz’s unpretentious “coolness” seeping throughout, just welcoming you in. It’s very spacy in a way though, somewhat like the various forms of psychedelic rock that Nick insists are different but to me all sound like twisted parodies of Ozric Tentacles (which is itself a twisted parody of a few things, so you figure it out).
Anyway, buy the album. Support new bands in countries far across the globe! Eat some Serbian kajmak and pljeskavica while listening to Eyot.
Here is Eyot’s Myspace.
And here is their regular website thingy.
Tracklist:
01. Far Afield
02. Stone Upon Stone Upon Stone
03. If I Could Say What I Want to Say
04. All I Want to Say
05. Surge
06. 3 Months Later
07. Horizon
08. Whale Song
09. It’s Time to Go Home
Line-up:
* Dejan Ilijic – grand piano
* Marko Stoiljkovic – bass
* Sladan Milenovic – guitars
* Miloš Vojvodic – drums
* Vladan Drobicki – trombone (6)
* Vasko Bojadžiski – saxophone (6) - www.prog-sphere.com

I’ve recently discovered Serbian jazz fusion thanks to my friend and colleague Mr. Nikola Savic. I’ve liked the Vasil Hadžimanov Band for a while now, but the other day I started listening to Smak and fell in love. I’ve just begun to plumb the jazz-depths of this country that is unfortunately more well-known in the West for its terrorism and genocide than excellent musical tradition. It would be as if the Nazi Holocaust invalidated hundreds of years of German classical music.
EYOT is a newcomer to the Serbian jazz scene. Nick knows a lot more about them, and was actually supposed to write this review, but I think I can do a good job. Anyway if you want to find out more about the band, feel free to read the interview Nick did with Dejan Ilijic almost a year ago. We also have the title track of their album on our second Progstravaganza compilation Nick actually just saw them play in their home town of Niš, Serbia, the other day. Lucky, him!
EYOT is a very musically interesting band. Horizon makes me think of Miles Davis’ In a Silent Way because of its “quiet intensity”. Miles Davis’ album has a sort of divine subtlety to it that belies its incredible complexity. It’s a rhythmic masterpiece of delicate complexity. Horizon is similar in this way, but not musically. It achieves this same wonderful feeling via completely different methods, and this leads me to believe it was unintentional (despite Davis being listed as an influence). That said, the fact that they achieved it at all is wonderful, in my eyes. Another comparison could be made to Pekka Pohjola – the Finnish jazz fusion artist known for his tenure in Wigwam. I am reminded strongly of the title track on my favorite Pohjola album, Katkavaraan Lohikaarme (if you try to google the album keep in mind that it has a lot of umlauts that I can’t type on my American keyboard). Again, the music isn’t similar, but the basses manage to achieve the same goal for me – a sort of rhythmic bliss.
The quiet intensity on Horizon comes from the juxtaposition of Dejan’s grand piano over the driving beat of the rhythm section (Miloš and Marko on drums and bass, respectively). To complete the sound, we have Sladan with his incredibly spacey guitars. The best example of this that I can think of is their track “Stone Upon Stone Upon Stone”. The music is composed so subtly that it manages to build to a thundering crescendo without the listener even realizing it. Once you finally get it, waves of sound are crashing over you and suddenly fall down again to begin the next track. I also love that there are parts of the album that deviate strongly from this, such as the experimental parts of 3 Months Later, which includes a horn section, and the energetic finale, It’s Time to Go Home. This helps to ensure it doesn’t get monotonous, which is a good thing considering the album is over an hour long.
Musically I wouldn’t call this pure jazz, but spiritually and aesthetically it couldn’t be jazzier. It has jazz’s unpretentious “coolness” seeping throughout, just welcoming you in. It’s very spacy in a way though, somewhat like the various forms of psychedelic rock that Nick insists are different but to me all sound like twisted parodies of Ozric Tentacles (which is itself a twisted parody of a few things, so you figure it out).
Anyway, buy the album. Support new bands in countries far across the globe! Eat some Serbian kajmak and pljeskavica while listening to Eyot.
Here is Eyot’s Myspace.
And here is their regular website thingy.
Tracklist:
01. Far Afield
02. Stone Upon Stone Upon Stone
03. If I Could Say What I Want to Say
04. All I Want to Say
05. Surge
06. 3 Months Later
07. Horizon
08. Whale Song
09. It’s Time to Go Home
Line-up:
* Dejan Ilijic – grand piano
* Marko Stoiljkovic – bass
* Sladan Milenovic – guitars
* Miloš Vojvodic – drums
* Vladan Drobicki – trombone (6)
* Vasko Bojadžiski – saxophone (6) - www.prog-sphere.com