Panta Rei

Panta Rei je najvece iznenadjenje do sad u Balasevicevom katalogu. Smjesten izmedju dva, po mom misljenju, najveca njegova albuma, prije slusanja sam imao osjecaj da ce dijeliti istu sudbinu sa 003, a to je da ce i ovaj album biti filer epizoda sa 1-2 pjesme koje bi mogle da koketiraju na dnu liste Balasevicevih evergrina.

Album zapocinje sa "Soliter", pjesmom koja opisuje multietnicko stanje u soliterima socijalisticke Jugoslavije kroz koje su starije generacije prosle, jedina pjesma s ovog albuma koju sam vec slusao, i jedina koja ima veseliji ton. Ostale pjesme dijele istu atmosferu koju daje omot: melanholicno crnilo i jedan oblik prolaznosti i tok vremena, poput rijeke. Naravno, tu je jos udaraca na vlast, ali vecinski su pjesme usmjerene ka nekom osjecaju starenja, sto je razumno jer socio-politicka situacija zajedno s cinjenicom da je Balasevicevu ovdje bilo zrelih 35 godina je dovelo do toga.

Imam blagi burnout od ovog tipa muzike koju je Balasevic stvarao u ovom trenutku. Potentni Bezdan je usavrsio tu tehniku stvaranja sociolnog komentara u obliku albuma, a Panta Rei je tu vise kao ekstenzija. Ali iako je ponovljen tematski, jako je lijepo uradjeno, i odlicno se uklapa u njegov opus.
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Panta Rei is the biggest surprise so far in Balašević’s catalog. Placed between what I consider his two greatest albums, before listening I had the feeling it would share the same fate as 003—that is, to be a filler episode with one or two songs that might flirt at the bottom of Balašević’s list of evergreens.

The album opens with Soliter, a song that portrays the multiethnic life in the apartment blocks of socialist Yugoslavia, something older generations lived through. It’s the only track from this album I had already heard, and the only one with a more cheerful tone. The rest of the songs share the same atmosphere suggested by the cover: a melancholic darkness, a sense of transience and the flow of time, like a river. Of course, there are still jabs at the authorities, but most of the songs lean toward feelings of aging—which makes sense, given the socio-political situation and the fact that Balašević was a mature 35 years old at the time.

I admit I feel a slight burnout from this type of music Balašević was creating at that moment. The potent Bezdan perfected the technique of crafting a social commentary in the form of an album, and Panta Rei feels more like an extension of that. But even though the themes are repeated, it’s beautifully executed and fits seamlessly into his body of work.