Oko (band)
Oko | |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Ljubljana, SR Slovenia, SFR Yugoslavia |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1972-1978 (reunions: 2000) |
| Labels | ZKP RTLJ, Jugoton |
| Past members | Pavle Kavec Jani Tutta Miro Tomassini Dejan Gajić Toni Dimnik Franjo Martinec Zlati Klun Igor Bošnjak Ernie Mendillo |
Oko (trans. Eye) was a Slovenian and Yugoslav hard/progressive rock band formed in Ljubljana in 1972. Formed and led by guitarist and vocalist Pavle Kavec, Oko was a prominent act of the Yugoslav rock scene in the 1970s.
Band history
1972-1978
Oko was formed in 1972 in Ljubljana by guitarist and vocalist Pavle Kavec.[1] Kavec started his career in 1966, as a member of the band Rož'ce (Lil' Roses), with which he performed on the Zagreb Guitar Festival.[1] Influenced by the works of Jimi Hendrix, in 1967 Kavec formed the power trio Yeti Experience, and in 1971 moved to the band Skarabeji (The Scarabs), whose sound was inspired by Deep Purple.[1] Kavec formed Oko with drummer Jani Tutta and bass guitarist Miro Tomassini, who was previously a member of the band Boomerang.[1] They adopted the name Oko after a suggestion by fellow musician Janez Bončina.[1] Initially Oko performed hard rock, but later started to move towards progressive rock and introduce jazz elements into their music.[1]
In 1973 Tutta was replaced by Dejan Gajić.[1] The new Oko lineup made their first recordings, for Radio Ljubljana.[1] In 1975 Gajić and Tomassini both moved to the band Jutro, Drummer Toni Dimnik and bass guitarist Franjo Martinec becoming new Oko members.[1] This lineup of the band recorded the band's debut release, the 7" single "Vse dal sam ti" / "Spet nazaj" ("I Gave You All" / "Back Again"), released in 1975 through Jugoton record label.[1] This lineup of the band also recorded the material for their first studio album.[1] All the songs were written by Kavec, with the exception of the instrumental "Tema IV", composed by Martinec.[1] The lyrics for the song "Sam sam" were written by Dah frontman Zlatko Manojlović, who also appeared on the track as guest vocalist.[1] The album was produced by Dečo Žgur, and it featured guest appearances by Izvir keyboardist Andrej Konjajev and percussionist Miha Vipotnik.[1] However, Oko disbanded a year later, before releasing the album, as Dimnik moved to Buldožer and Martinec decided to dedicate himself to his studies.[1] Kavec rerecorded the vocals with new lyrics in Serbo-Croatian (they were originally in Slovene) and released it in 1976 under the name Raskorak (Gap) through PGP-RTB record label.[1] At the time of Raskorak release, Oko was inactive, as Kavec was playing with the band Boomerang.[1]
At the end of 1976, Kavec reformed Oko with drummer Zlati Klun and bass guitarist Igor Bošnjak.[1] They performed until 1978, when Oko disbanded, making several one-off reunions in the following years for anniversary concerts.[1]
Post breakup, 2000 reunion
After Oko disbanded, Kavec mostly retired from performing, dedicating himself to his guitar school.[1] However, in the early 1990s he returned to the scene with his solo album Hočeš z menoj (Wanna Come With Me), which he recorded with his son Mitja Kavec on bass guitar, his former bandmate from Oko Dragan Gajić on drums and his friends.[1] In 1998 Max Plus record label reissued Raskorak on CD, with the band's early recordings as bonus tracks.[1] This re-release led to reformation of Oko. The new lineup featured Pavle Kavec (guitar, vocals), Ernie Mendillo (bass guitar) and Marko Bertoncelj (drums).[1] On their performance in the Hound Dog club in Ljubljana they recorded the live album Oko (Live December 2000), which they self-released in 2001.[1] The album featured only one Oko song, "Raskorak", and covers of rock hits from the 1960s.[2]
Discography
Studio albums
- Raskorak (1976)
Live albums
- Oko (Live December 2000) (2001)
Singles
- "Vse sam dal ti" / "Spet nazaj" (1975)