Kosovni Odpadki in Slovene not only means ‘dustbins’ but it was also the name of the most important music band from Friuli, the multilingual region in North-eastern Italy in the early 2000s. Their songs dominated air-time on the cult program ‘Caterpillar’ on national radio-station Rai 2.
The trashcans or dustbins (this is the exact translation from Slovenian) represent the other face of globalization and strong consumerism, the systematic waste of resources. Some kind of large cases inside which you can find again all your old treasures: the worm-holed chair or the used couch, ancient music or the forgotten languages of the world.
“Our name is ‘Kosovni Odpadki’ because we recycle sounds, rhythms, languages and traditions. Some people consider these as waste and garbage, but for us it is the raw material for creating something new and alive,” explained Mauro Punteri, the lead singer of the band.
“Using Friulan and Slovene in our songs is natural for us. These languages are our mother tongues and are autochthonous expressions of our territory, a part of the world of which we are citizens,” adds Punteri.
He expressed a point of view which is common to a wide range of bands in Friuli. Kosovni Odpadki with its multilingual, cosmopolitan ‘patchanka'(mixture), was considered by some as representative of a whole new Friulan scene.
This scene included other important bands in the region: the combat-folk combo ‘Arbe Garbe’, the klezmer-oriented (East European Yiddish music), multilingual group from Gorizia ‘Zuf de Zur’, the punk hard-core quartet ‘Inzirli’. Lastly, ‘Bande Tzingare’, a music and poetry project between Friuli and Argentina, where there are many descendants of Friulan immigrants.
Another characteristic of ‘Kosovni Odpadki’, and typical of other bands, was the link between its music and the new Friulan literature, in particular with the poet’s collective ‘Trastolons’ who represent a kind of original Friulan ‘beat generation’.
“From ethno-jazz to hard rock, from rap to new-folk, there are many bands using Friulan in their lyrics. Fifteen records per year have been written in the ‘mother tongue,” commented Mauro Missana.
Mauro Punteri – vocal, acoustic guitar; Michele Bregant – clarinet, tenor sax; Adriano Coco – violin, vocals; Jvan Moda – drum, percussion; Alan Malus” Magno – electric guitar, vocals; Davide “Virus” Drius – accordion, vocal; and Ispettore Gianmarco Calendula – bass, vocals.
Discography:
Kosovni Odpadki (Alfamusic, 2002)
Bye Bye Bombe (Egea, 2006)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
