Boris Novković - official web site

Although in his latest album "Ko je kriv" one can see that Boris has returned to the succesful mainstream formula as well as to his musical roots and inspite of winning the domestic singles charts with his singles "Zlatna jabuka" and "Pijesak" the famous rocker and a romantic songwriter isn't resting. Last week he has published his second "The best of" compilation on which some of his most known singles from the tome period form 1995 untill 2003 can be found. Among others: "U dobru i zlu", "Sve mijenja se", "Pjesma moja to si ti", duet "Daleko" with Kemal Monteno, duet "Ko je kriv" with Severina and one new single "Godinama nema radosti". A bonus present for every buyer is a special DVD edition with nine videos, discography, biography and documentary films made during the making of the video for the single "Pijesak" in Tunis. The video and DVD director is Boris' producer and manager Dragan Hamovic. His fans and all who are interested can visit his Web site and find the more information on this new adress: www.borisnovkovic-official.com

What inspired you in publishing your second "Best of" compilation?
I I decided to publish it as a kind of a pause between two albums because I find it stupid when people publish albums one year after another. After looking over the last eight years of my work I came to the conclusion that there are enough interesting singles to make such a compilation. There is also great interest for these song on the ex-jugoslawian market since these countries weren't able to hear the singles at the same time as the croatian audience did. There are great number of things on the album: aside from 12 singles and the new single "Godinama nema radosti". There is also a DVD with the video numbers of these songs, the documenatry we made in Tunis while making the video for the single "Pijesak", my biography and complete discography. The CD itself is produced in an interested artistical manner, and the photos from the journey to Tunis made by Sandra Vitaljic can be also found on the CD. Cover design was made by Niksa Martinac.

The first "Best of" compilation dated 1986-1995 and the second one 1995-2003, does that mean that you will celebrate a 20 year annivesary of your musical carreer in 3 years?
Yes, yes.although you'd never guess, admit it! I started my carreer when I was 18 so I'm still not that old!

Still, don't you feel like it has been that long?
I'm glad that the things I craved for for a long time have come true. I'm glad that people see me through my music and not through some physical aspects, sex appeal, clothes or trends. For example, the other day I have played at the prom in Cakovec and the graduates came to listen to my songs and that alone made them happy. That is a beautiful feeling. I am not Suka or Tironi or some other TV star from LIVE TV. In the begining, with the exception of a few fans, they were even sceptical but then they loosened up and dived into the story. At the end I even played a few uncoures. The most important moment of all is that moment of truth which the audience always recognizes, and which is also my goal in life. I would like to have a huge number of singles so that when I'm forty I can make a great concert. Although I'm old!

Is honesty with the audience the key factor of succes?
I I think so. I personally didn't follow the music trend of the eightees: the new romantics of the eightees, the terrible make up, even breakdance. I always remained faithful to the Beatles, Dylan and Springsteen. I remember the time when for the first time I have discovered Bryan Adams, who had just published his first album. All these things together probably resulted in my mainstream musical direction.

During your career you went through phases when you were one with your audience as well as the phases of differences, but it seems that you have found a balance.
True, the critics were bad and good, but we all have stages in our lives during which we are trying to find ourselves. The croatian market is a small market and one has to be constantly in the public eye if you don't want the people to forget you which will result in the loss of financial security. Past work doesn't matter at all. This is very hard for me and that is the reason for my wonderings. On the other hand if you always offer to the people one and the same thing they get tired as well. For example the album "Direkt" was a step away from my sound and vision of life, a sort of time off, but today I wonder if it would have been better if I had never recorded it.

People mostly see you as a romantic songwriter. Do you see yorself that way as well?
The fact is that problems are a often inspiration in writing songs and I didn't grew up in the part of the city named Dubrava, have never developed "street life style" and was never a rebel against the social problems. I grew up in a wealthy family and had a pretty worriless childhood. So I guess that's why I was troubled by love and wrote mostly about it. But I always tried to see things globaly, not just through my community but through the human society, so that the themes in my songs are very diverse. With time people got used to seeing me in a specific way and I'm afraid that can't be helped anymore, no matter how big of a rocker I am in terms of my gang or my band. I can't tear down a bar with my good guy image, because that would look very bad. Others can do something like that and no one will even care.

Did you ever feel like tearing a place down?
Maybe I've even done it and nobody knows! Ha-ha... What I wanted to say was that even if I find it harder to express some things in my songs a lot of people don't even want to recognize it and don't follow it. From "Tamara", which was my first song and in which the love theme was mixed with the ways of thinking of a anti-war generation, to "Bijeli golub" or "U dobru i zlu" there were many lines that were more than just romance. I often regret that I wasn't there at the time of the hippie generation, because I would have felt just like home. They made love and protested aginst war and that's my moto.

Do you find the slowenian audience, as most of our preformers do, a much better audience?
Slowenia was for a while a very lucrative country for many of croatian performers, which is also understandable since they were constantly bombarded with our music. They even had a reason to act spoiled to an extent since anybody from the former state could perform in their country. Now the interest isn't like it used to be and it will take time for hings to eventually move forward. Although my personal opininon is that Slowenia will never again be the Eldorado for the croatian musicians.

How would you describe your current audience?
Today that si a targeted group that likes my music. The ones who know that my CD came out, go to the store and buy it. You can also find the teenage girls who like this kind of music, as well as more mature ladies but also boys going wild in the first rows. I like that very much beacuse before I was constantly frustrated thinking that only women listen to my music. Of course an 18-year old kid won't come up to another 18 year old kid performing and be in the first row. That's music as well as jelaousy.

It is a well know fact that you lead a pretty secluded life. You dont go to clubs or promotions. Why is that?
I I don't get of at these kind of things. I am often invited to different promotions and I always promise to come and at the end I don't show up. I don't like enviroments where everybody knows each other so that my showing up would be irrelevant when compared with a politican who might come. Our country is too small and most things happen in Zagreb so that these things don't excite me too much since I know and see most of these people at similar promotions. Personaly I find it terrible. Every time I have e feeling like I have spend a tone of energy. By the way we have made many mistakes while trying to come closer to Europe, we have lost the feeling for certain things, which annoies me. I find it normal when somebody whom I don't even know stops me in the street and asks me to give him my new CD or when someone from the people I spend my time with asks me to sing something. Our colleagues who have allowed our profession to loose it's meaning also bear the guilt for these things.

Did you watch Eurosong and how do you coment the results?
As long as musical profession doesn't have the lead and instead of them officials and amateurs make the decisions we won't get very far. I' ve watched Eurosong and I think that it is a very well organised contest, on a very high level and it has it's importance. Maybe these songs won't be around forever but for the fun of it it is very interesting. Firts ten places were won by songs which have evolved and are special: from turkish to belgian. They incorporated certain ethno elements. I thing it was a great idea to sing the turkish song in english. Ex-Jugoslawian countries made the same mistake: they followed the generall trend. The croatian contestant Claudia is a talented girl but her song doesn't have that special touch. For Europe it is important to choose a different song that will stand out. It doesn't matter at all if it is modern or not.

Do you think about compeeting on the next Dora?
Why not? That is of course if in the future this festival will still live and if it will be organised on a apropriate level.For us Eurosong is still the best way to sell, even if only one song, abroad.

I heard that you were getting married soon. Is that true?
I plan to marry but I still don't know the exact date. No matter what others write about it.


VLADIMIRA PALCEK