Romeo and Juliette by Emir Kusturica and the No Smoking Orchestra Recorded live at Warehouse C during the 49th International Film Festival of Thessaloniki. Although the group enjoys success worldwide, at home in Serbia their new ethno sound received a lukewarm reaction as many of the band's longtime fans had trouble accepting the shift towards ethno/folk/gypsy sound. During the first homecoming with the new sound in early July 2004, the band was essentially forced off stage at the large open-air concert at Belgrade's Ušće Park by agitated fans who pelted the stage with plastic water bottles. The concert that attracted a large crowd of 40000 fans also had Riblja Čorba on the bill and was conceptualized as a joint anniversary of sorts - 20 years of Zabranjeno Pušenje and 25 years of Riblja Čorba. However, despite being announced and promoted as a "Zabranjeno Pušenje" gig, the band haven't played a single song from the Zabranjeno Pušenje era during the first 40 minutes which prompted the fans' aggressive reaction. |
by Manolis Spanakis
by Manolis Spanakis