It has been a while since Belgrade garage punk trio Šajzerbiterlemon unleashed Na Dugačkim Poljima, their second full-length album that gathered many praises from the crowd and media. That’s not coming as much of a surprise, considering that Šajzerbiterlemon are pretty much active by playing everywhere across the Balkan peninsula as much as possible. It’s also good to mention that Na Dugačkim Poljima is the first material these folks put on a vinyl record, and they remained loyal to Geenger Records, who tirelessly promote their entire roster in every possible corner of the underground and indie scene.
The artwork showcases interesting imagery photographed at quarry or some other similar location. It could easily pass as an abstract photo if you gaze for a while, but you’ll notice clear artsy lines between the pond, sand, and the sky, while the interesting black sculpture serves as a centerpiece of the cover. The band also did a set of promo photos at the exact location, so this cover art is a nice touch that perfectly pairs with their current visual aesthetics. Of course, there’s a tracklist on the back and all the necessary information about the recording process, Geenger Records and Pop Depresija, which also jumped into co-producing this vinyl record. The yellow record labels are also a nice touch that instantly reminded me of the cassette and vinyl labels Jugoton Records (now Croatia Records) used to print at some point. It’s also good to mention that Na Dugačkim Poljima comes on standard black vinyl, which is a perfect choice considering the rest of the packaging.
Soundwise, Šajzerbiterlemon slightly changed the sonic direction of their latest effort. It’s up to you to decide if it’s for the better or for worse. The band expanded its sound in many different areas and introduced many complementary styles, so Na Dugačkim Poljima sounds different compared to their debut. Iza Naših Zidova resonated with more straightforward garage rock, garage punk, and post-punk sound, while Na Dugačkim Poljima bursts with some of the finest properties of punk rock, art-punk, noise rock, alternative, grunge, and indie. Therefore, you may expect a more polished ambiance where the band retained a surprising amount of rawness, abrasiveness, and fuzziness and introduced much cleaner sonic maneuvers and rhythmic acrobatics. I assume these experimentations with their established sound will piss off some garage punk purists, but these improvements are a good platform for gathering a broader fanbase. The only important fact right now is that Šajzerbiterlemon are capable of assembling perfect songs in whatever underground genre they come up with at the moment. Their themes, leads, melodies, harmonies, chord progressions, riffs, basslines, and rhythmic sequences are arranged with so much sense of balance, so you’ll have a fun time listening to Na Dugačkim Poljima.
Lyrically, Šajzerbiterlemon are a wise band fully aware of their surroundings. Their lyric content spans from self-awareness, self-critic, socio-political critic and commentary to a wide array of nearly abstract and philosophical themes. Na Dugačkim Poljima explores every topic that bothers each one of us on a daily basis, and Šajzerbiterlemon delve deep into the core of the neverending, unsolved problems, which will probably bother us for eternity. Each composition comes with a set of skillfully written lyrics that will tickle your interest and force you to think about it for a while. Na Dugačkim Poljima is a logical move forward, or should I say, a natural progression of a band that clearly knows its direction. The album is available via Geenger Records or Pop Depresija, so head to their web stores for more information about ordering this garage punk gem.
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