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In the end of 50's a vehicle named Trabant was born in the German Democratic Republic and in the same years a style called rock'n'roll was given birth in America. In the year 1995 something called Traband was born. "Play as you can, the rest will come by itself," the musicians said. "Rock with clever lyrics," someone wrote about the band. "Elvis and the Sex-Pistols, country-punk," some others guessed. "By the way, what is it all about?!" curious people kept asking. Things could have gone on that way if some futile events hadn't steered the band in other directions. In the year 1999 the end of the world was at hand. Traband metamorphosed into a raft exposed to wild waters and this un quiet trip brought about the discovery of a world far from America. The lands that came alongside had names such as The Coast of Pale Mornings, Southern Agony, la Kotchichina. By common accord, the musicians chose the Kotchichina and decided to settle down in a town called Le Grando, organising expeditions to the ends of the world. That gives them the possibility to bring home rather surprising souvenirs: a Gipsy minor tone scale, a Czech trumpet, a Jewish clarinet, a circus brass-band, a funeral march, five violent beats on a drum, the evening call of the muezzin, a G-minor chord, a French 'r', Turkish honey, a military march, a voice calling in the desert...

"The group's music takes its source from Balkan and klezmer traditions, while adding a modern folk twist to the melodies and making the best out of very unusual instrumentation. Imagine clarinet, trumpet, banjo, tuba, and drums partying through sailors' songs and Jewish wedding music. While the roots of the music can recall groups like the Klezmatics or France's Soldat Louis, the actual sound is closer to a klezmer version of Ceux-Qui-Marchent-Debout or Polemic Bazar, something between cabaret and street fanfare. Moreover, Svoboda's vocal delivery, when added to the all-acoustic lineup, can evoke the Violent Femmes or Louise Attaque. The arrangements are inventive and often verge on circus music... It's not the most original music among the much-populated field of the late-'90s back-to-trad movement in alternative European (and Qu»bec) music, but CD Kolotoc comes through as a thoroughly honest and enjoyable record. Don't miss it on account of the Czech lyrics; they are not essential to appreciate it." (François Couture, All Music Guide)