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Zabranjeno Pušenje () is a Bosnian rock band formed in
Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...
in 1980. The group's musical style primarily consists of a distinctive garage rock sound with folk influences, often featuring innovative production and complex
storytelling Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing narrative, stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatre, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cul ...
. Currently, the band consists of founding member, vocalist and guitarist Sejo Sexon, longtime drummer Branko Trajkov, guitarist Toni Lović, bassist Dejan Orešković, and violinist and keyboardist Robert Boldižar. The band was formed contrary to the then prevalent Yugoslav punk rock and new wave, closely associated with the New Primitivism cultural movement and the radio and television satire and
sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches" or, "skits", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. While the form developed and became popular in ...
show '' Top lista nadrealista''. They were one of the most popular musical acts of the 1980s in Yugoslavia, selling hundreds of thousands of records. Many times they got in trouble with the authorities for their, usually mild and sympathetic, criticism of the
socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
system, and the habit of making light of issues considered sensitive at the time. The band's first lineup, originally named Pseudobluz bend Zabranjeno Pušenje, featured guitarist Sejo Sexon and vocalist Nele Karajlić, alongside drummers Fu-Do then Šeki Gayton, bassist Munja Mitić, keyboardist Seid Mali Karajlić, saxophonist and flutist Ognjen Gajić, guitarist Mustafa Čengić, and synthesizerist Zoran Degan. Their debut studio album '' Das ist Walter'' (1984) was initially released in limited circulation; the final count was 100,000 copies sold, setting a record for exceeding the initial release by 30 times. Their subsequent album '' Dok čekaš sabah sa šejtanom'' (1985), also released through Jugoton, was boycotted by the mainstream media due to troubles with Communist authorities. In 1986, Šeki Gayton, Mitić and Čengić chose to leave the group, while drummer Faris Arapović, bassist Darko Ostojić, guitarist Kowalski and keyboardist Dado Džihan joined in. During the second half of 1980s with the new lineup of the band released two albums '' Pozdrav iz zemlje Safari'' (1987) and '' Male priče o velikoj ljubavi'' (1989) through Diskoton. During 1992, the band split followed the
Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...
, Nele Karajlić continued working in
Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
under the names Nele Karajlić & Zabranjeno Pušenje and Emir Kusturica & The No Smoking Orchestra, while Sejo Sexon and other members rejoined in Sarajevo, using the original name, continuing the band's career released the fifth studio album '' Fildžan viška'' (1997) with the changed lineup. The band's 1990s lineup alongside Sejo Sexon featured the leader of the New Primitivism movement Elvis J. Kurtović, vocalist Marin Gradac, a guest on the 1987 album bassist Dragan Bobić, guitarist Sejo Kovo and violinist Bruno Urlić. After one temporary drummer, Branko Trajkov joined the group in 1996. The same lineup recorded the album '' Agent tajne sile'' (1999). In 2000, Kurtović, Kovo, and Gradac left the group, while guitarist and producer Dragianni joined the group and played on their subsequent album, '' Bog vozi Mercedes'' (2001). That album was followed five years later by '' Hodi da ti čiko nešto da'' (2006). In the mid-2000s, Dragianni, Bobić, and Urlić chose to leave the group, while guitarist Toni Lović, bassist Dejan Orešković, and violinist Robert Boldižar came to their seats. The band's ninth studio album, '' Muzej revolucije'' (2009), was released on the Anniversary of the
October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...
in almost all former Yugoslav countries, on the same day. The band released their tenth studio album, '' Radovi na cesti'', in 2013. Their eleventh studio album was released in 2018, titled '' Šok i nevjerica''. The twelfth and another double studio album '' Karamba!'' was released in 2022.


History


Background

What would eventually become Zabranjeno Pušenje was started in 1979 by sixteen-year-old Nenad Janković (later to become known as dr. Nele Karajlić) and eighteen-year-old Davor Sučić (later Mr. Sejo Sexon), two teenage friends and neighbors who had been attending Sarajevo Second Gymnasium secondary school while residing in the same
apartment building An apartment (American English, Canadian English), flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), tenement ( Scots English), or unit (Australian English) is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) ...
on Fuad Midžić Street in the Sarajevo neighborhood of Koševo. Already infatuated with and deeply immersed in
rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...
, the two fanatically absorbed various musical influences from Yugoslavia and abroad, all the while desperately trying to achieve a basic level of technical proficiency on their instruments—at this stage, Nele Karajlić played the
piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...
, an instrument he had previously studied in
music school A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger in ...
for a short time before dropping out, while Sejo Sexon played the
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
. Both possessing very limited musical knowledge, despite displaying boundless enthusiasm, the duo struggled with everything from simply tuning their instruments to producing the simplest of melodies. Sexon and Karajlić soon expanded their setup by adding Ognjen Gajić, another neighborhood teenage friend who possessed some basic musical knowledge having attended a music school. Though by Karajlić's own admission, Gajić played the piano better than him, Gajić decided to switch over to
flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...
as an homage to his favorite band Jethro Tull. He managed to become comfortable on a new instrument fairly quickly, soon becoming a bit of a musical authority among this now three-piece. Since each of the three teenage members of the group (by now informally known as Pseudobluz bend) lived with their parents, the band rehearsals also took place in their parents' apartments, mostly Karajlić's and Gajić's. Before long, Sexon brought in Zenit Đozić (a.k.a. Zena, later to become known as Fu-Do), his new classmate at Second Gymnasium who had recently moved to Sarajevo from Bugojno, to be the band's drummer. Adding percussions, that actually consisted of pots and pans, to their setup created new problems as the noise during rehearsals became unbearable for Karajlić's parents and Gajić's mother so the members set about looking for a suitable rehearsal space.


1980–1983: Early years

In fall 1980, in accordance with the newly passed Yugoslav law requiring high school graduates to immediately report for their compulsory military service in the Yugoslav People's Army, nineteen-year-old Sexon left Sarajevo and was away from the band for a whole year. With Sexon temporarily gone, the band got a new member – Mustafa Čengić (a.k.a. MuČe or Mujo Snažni) who, in turn, brought in Mladen Mitić (a.k.a. Munja or Mitke) on
bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...
. They were occasionally accompanied by Mirko Srdić (later to become known as Elvis J. Kurtović), Zoran Degan, Boris Šiber, Samir Ćeremida, etc. In December 1980, MuČe and Munja managed to get the band on the bill of a
Želimir Altarac Čičak Želimir "Čičak" Altarac (21 August 1947 – 26 March 2021) was a Bosnian singer-songwriter from Sarajevo. Early life Widely known as Čičak (burdock) for his curly hair, Altarac attended the from 1961 until 1965. During this period he grew ...
-organized new music showcase at Sarajevo's Dom mladih, held under the "Nove nade, nove snage" ('New Blood, New Hopefuls') mantra. The event would be the band's first-ever live public performance though they did play a small show at Sarajevo's Fifth Gymnasium for their social circle a few days earlier on 30 November 1980 as preparation for the Dom mladih gig. Shortly before Čičak's show at Dom mladih, the band changed its name to Pseudobluz bend Zabranjeno Pušenje. Over time, they dropped the first part and continued as just Zabranjeno Pušenje for brevity. Their first recording, song "Penzioneri na more idu zimi" (), was made for Radio Sarajevo in early 1981. Additionally, from May 1981, Karajlić and occasionally a few other band members became involved with the '' Top lista nadrealista'' radio segment, which aired weekly as part of the ''Primus'' program on Radio Sarajevo's channel two. "Penzioneri na more idu zimi" began getting some modest airplay on Radio Sarajevo throughout the year, leading to an increasing number of youths in the city making the connection between the band and the weekly comedy radio segment. In early fall 1981, along with a number of upstart Sarajevo bands such as , , Ema, , , Super 98, Negra, Žaoka, Ozbiljno Pitanje, Linija Života, Lucifer, Tečni Kristal, Tina, and Bedž, Zabranjeno Pušenje were booked for a multi-act gig as opening acts for headliners Indexi, Bulevar, Paraf, Zana, Aerodrom, Laboratorija Zvuka, and Bijelo Dugme – all part of the 'Mladost Sutjeske' event commemorating and celebrating the Battle of Sutjeska from
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Held at Skenderija sports arena on 3 October 1981, it was the band's biggest show to date and the youngsters left a memorable impression as singer Karajlić and drummer Đozić were about to leave for their mandatory army services just as guitarist Sexon was completing his.


1984–1989: Breakthrough and rising fame in Yugoslavia

The band performed around Sarajevo for two years before beginning to record material for a debut album during Fall 1983 in producer a modest studio owned by "Paša" Ferović. The shambolic recording process took seven months before the album named '' Das ist Walter'' got released by Jugoton in April 1984 in the small print of 3,000 copies, clearly indicative of the label's extremely low commercial expectations. The line-up was altered and now Nenad Janković's younger brother keyboardist Dražen Janković (a.k.a. Seid Mali Karajlić) and drummer Predrag Rakić (a.k.a. Šeki Gayton). Though the album was initially released in the small print, the final count was 100,000 copies sold, setting a record for exceeding the initial release by 30 times. In Autumn 1984, they embarked on a 60-concert nationwide
concert tour A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often, concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific ...
, making them one of the biggest Yugoslav rock attractions after just one album. During that tour, at their concert in
Rijeka Rijeka (; Fiume ( �fjuːme in Italian and in Fiuman dialect, Fiuman Venetian) is the principal seaport and the List of cities and towns in Croatia, third-largest city in Croatia. It is located in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County on Kvarner Ba ...
on November 27, 1984, Nele Karajlić declared, referring to an amplifier that had just broken down, "Crk'o Maršal. Mislim na pojačalo." (), which was recognized as a pun on Marshal Tito's death, landing the band in trouble. They were criticized by the media and a campaign against them resulted in the canceling of their concerts and the removal of ''Top lista nadrealista'' from the air. The affair got attention of the Yugoslav Security Administration (UDBA), as well. They were rescued by some leading liberal intellectuals, and magazines such as Polet, Mladina and Slobodna Dalmacija, who raise their voices in the defense of the group members and that affair snaps without prison sentences. Later, Sexon said that their amplifiers weren't even Marshall, and that it was a joke. In this atmosphere, the band recorded their second, double album '' Dok čekaš sabah sa šejtanom'' () in the infamous SIM studio and released it in July 1985. The album has received widespread acclaim from critics, but was boycotted by the media. Following promotional tour had extreme difficulties due to concern of the concert hosts and the enormous presence of the state police, as a reflection of the Marshall Affair. Despite several top concerts such as at Pionir Hall in Belgrade, Poljud in Split or
Dom Sportova Dom sportova (), is a multi-purpose indoor sports arena located in Zagreb, Croatia. The venue was built in 1972 in the Trešnjevka neighborhood, in the western part of the city. It has 32,000 m2 of floorspace, and it features six halls. The se ...
in Zagreb, tens of thousands sold tickets, the tour had a rather disappointing conclusion as the following year Šeki Gayton and Mustafa Čengić left the band in search of a more secure means of making a living. Mladen Mitić left in late 1986 after contributing to the development of the third album. The rest of the band was working on a subsequent album and slowly assembled a new band lineup, featured drummer Faris Arapović and guitarist Predrag Kovačević (a.k.a. Kova or Kowalski) and bassist Emir Kusturica. At the time, Kusturica was notable filmmaker who won the Palme d'Or at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...
with the '' When Father Was Away on Business''. This refreshed lineup, in collaboration with some studio musicians such as bassist Dragan Bobić and back-vocalists Dado Džihan and Darko Ostojić, released '' Pozdrav iz zemlje Safari'' () through Diskoton in 1987. Diskoton censors had some objections and the song "Our Proposal for the Eurovision Song Contest" had to be renamed, since the song included comments on the depressed state of the economy and the lack of freedom of expression. The album again included a number of hit songs, such as "Pišonja i Žuga", "Hadžija ili bos", "Fikreta", "Dan Republike", and returned the band to stardom. The album was recorded in Sarajevo and mixed in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, UK, while the
record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...
was Sven Rustempašić, a Seattle-based producer born in Sarajevo. The following tour, which included 87 concerts, was the largest Zabranjeno Pušenje tour thus far and the band was by that time regarded as one of the Yugoslav rock powerhouse alongside Azra, Bijelo Dugme and Parni Valjak. In January 1988, the band received a
gold record Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
for 100,000 copies sold. In October 1988, the band released their fourth album '' Male priče o velikoj ljubavi'' (). The songs were mostly written and produced by Sejo Sexon. The album featured opera singer Sonja Milenković, violinist Dejan Sparavalo and Goran Bregović as
backing vocal A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are used ...
and guitar player. The album was an average success. The band embarked on the tour with Bombaj štampa and the rest of ''Top lista nadrealista'' crew (those who didn't play in the band already). The tour (a combination of
theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...
and rock and roll, an idea by Sejo Sexon, was a great success and regarded as the best tour of 1989 with around 60 concerts and more than 200,000 visitors.


1990–1995: Band split and transitional period

Nele Karajlić and Sejo Sexon, the band's leading duo, were getting on increasingly colder terms and the Yugoslavia-wide tour with Bombaj Štampa and ''Top lista nadrealista'' during early 1990, though hugely commercially successful, only exacerbated their fractured business and personal relationship. The band broke up in late summer 1990 when Sejo Sexon informed Karajlić about no longer being interested in playing with him. Sejo Sexon, Darko Ostojić and Faris Arapović left the band due to different views on the band vision more than the political differences in Yugoslav leadership in the late 1980s. In that time, Sejo Sexon and Ostojić worked on their solo record for Diskoton, but that studio album went unreleased due to the start of the
Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...
. Arapović joined the Sarajevo-based
alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
band Sikter. In April 1992, the
Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...
began. Nele Karajlić had fled to
Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
and continued working under the name Nele Karajlić & Zabranjeno Pušenje, later better known as Emir Kusturica & The No Smoking Orchestra. Sejo Sexon, along with Elvis J. Kurtović, Zenit Đozić, Boris Šiber and the band's
album cover An album cover (also referred to as album art) is the front packaging art of a commercially released album, studio album or other audio recordings. The term can refer to: * the printed paperboard covers typically used to package: ** sets of a ...
designer Srđan Velimirović, remained in besieged Sarajevo, taking part in the wartime spinoff of ''Top lista nadrealista''. In late June 1992, ''Top lista nadrealista'' crew started to work on a 15-minute weekly radio shows. In August 1993, after 50 odd shows on radio, the group shot and aired four television episodes. Sejo Sexon produced a soundtrack for TV series and a theater play ''Top lista nadrealista''. After the
Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...
Sejo Sexon moved to
Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...
, Croatia where he lived for some time. Later he came back to Sarajevo and together with Elvis J. Kurtović, who occasionally worked on the band's recordings, restored Zabranjeno Pušenje. After reunion of the band in 1996, Sejo Sexon and Elvis J. Kurović had more than 300 occasions where then performed live ''Top lista nadrealista'' across Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,
Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
,
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,
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,
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, and
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. That tour was supported by the
USAID The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an agency of the United States government that has been responsible for administering civilian United States foreign aid, foreign aid and development assistance. Established in 19 ...
office in Sarajevo.


1996–2001: New beginnings in the post-Yugoslav area

In 1996, Sejo Sexon and Elvis J. Kurović accompanied with members of the ''Top lista nadrealista'' pit orchestra such as Sejo Kovo, Đani Pervan, Dušan Vranić, and Samir Ćeremida had become the core of the renewed band's lineup. During that time, the band works on their new studio album. The fifth album of Zabranjeno Pušenje '' Fildžan viška'' () is released through Dallas Records and Nimfa Sound in 1997. Sejo Sexon produced the album and wrote all songs with some help of Elvis J. Kurtović. ''Fildžan viška'' was produced four singles; "Možeš imat' moje tijelo", "Mile Hašišar", "Pubertet" and "Fildžan viška". Music videos for those single are produced by the band members. Production know-how from ''Top lista nadrealista'' has proven to be valuable in recording music videos, which were rated very well in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and
Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
where the band performed regularly. Touring musicians were Sejo Sexon, Elvis J. Kurtović, Predrag Bobić, Zoran Stojanović, Nedžad Podžić, Marin Gradac, Bruno Urlić and Branko Trajkov, while Samir Ćeramida and Đani Pervan performed occasionally. The same lineup released the first live album '' Hapsi sve!'' through Croatia Records and A Records in 1998. The songs are recorded over two nights at
Dom Sportova Dom sportova (), is a multi-purpose indoor sports arena located in Zagreb, Croatia. The venue was built in 1972 in the Trešnjevka neighborhood, in the western part of the city. It has 32,000 m2 of floorspace, and it features six halls. The se ...
, in Zagreb on July 10, 1997, and at the Metalac schoolyard in Sarajevo on September 25, 1997. In the same time, the band had two guest appearances of Rambo Amadeus at their concerts for the ''Fildžan viška'' album promotion in Sarajevo. Those appearances were the first
post-war A post-war or postwar period is the interval immediately following the end of a war. The term usually refers to a varying period of time after World War II, which ended in 1945. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum, ...
performance by a Serbian-Montenegrin artist to the Bosnian Federation. In early 1997, Dario Vitez became
executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...
,
public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. Pu ...
manager and tour manager of the band. The writing and formation of the band's next album, '' Agent tajne sile'' () began immediately following the culmination of the promotional tour for ''Fildžan viška'', in the start of 1999, at the Bjelolasica Olympic Centre in Gorski kotar, Croatia. The album was recorded in Rent-A-Cow Studio in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
, the Netherlands in March 1999 and produced by Sejo Sexon and Zlaja Jeff Hadžić. ''Agent tajne sile'' is released in June 1999 through TLN-Europa, an
independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small and medium-sized enterprise, small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels ...
founded and own by Sejo Sexon. The record produced four singles; "Pos'o, kuća, birtija", "Agent tajne sile", "Jugo 45" and "Pupoljak". The record's third single, "Jugo 45", was the band's fastest-selling single, debuting on top of the Bosnian and Croatian charts. The band began another tour in support of ''Agent tajne sile'' in 1999, beginning with promotional concerts in Bosnia and Croatia with the touring lineup: Sejo Sexon, Marin Gradac, Elvis J. Kurtović, Predrag Bobić, Bruno Urlić, Dragomir Herendić, and Branko Trajkov. In a short while, Marin Gradac and Elvis J. Kurtović chose to leave the group due to other commitments. Gradac went to finish
Sarajevo Music Academy The Sarajevo Music Academy or Music Academy , University of Sarajevo ( or MAS) is a Faculty of Music of University of Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina. History Sarajevo Music Academy was founded by the Decision of the National Assembly of ...
and joined Radio Sarajevo
Orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...
, while Elvis J. Kurtović began writing his solo album. In early 2000, the band came back to the Bjelolasica Olympic Centre to work on the band's seventh album. In the meantime, the band got a new member; world-class percussionist Albin Jarić, better known as Jimi Rasta, who worked previously with musicians such as Dave Stewart and
Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...
. '' Bog vozi Mercedes'' () was record by home made production in improvised studios in Bjelolasica and Ivanić Grad from March to June 2001. This record was planned to be a noncommercial break from the major music projects. No one expected that it would become one of the most selling Zabranjeno Pušenje albums. The album is released in December 2001 through TLN-Europa and Menart Records, and went on to sell more than 35,000 copies. Sejo Sexon wrote and produced four music videos, out of six released. For the song "Arizona Dream" the band won the 2002 Davorin Award for the best rock song. The concert tour by the band in support of their seventh studio album had 250 concerts. In 2001, the band members took a part in a social responsibility project in which they organized music workshops for children and youth who were victims of
land mine A land mine, or landmine, is an explosive weapon often concealed under or camouflaged on the ground, and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets as they pass over or near it. Land mines are divided into two types: anti-tank mines, wh ...
s. Project was supported by embassies of
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, Norway and the U.S. in Zagreb.


2002–2011: Continued success

In 2002, the band went on the
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n tour. On May 26, they had recorded the band's second live album at the Casa Loma Ballroom in St. Louis,
Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...
. In 2004, the band released ''Live in St. Louis''. This live album featured two new music videos, "Zenica Blues" and "Posljednja oaza (Fikreta)". They made the video for their 1980s hit ''Zenica Blues'' following the 20th Anniversary of the song's release. The video was shot in the Zenica prison. In 2003, Zabranjeno Pušenje was awarded for their outstanding live performance on the Baščaršija Nights festival in Sarajevo. During 2004, Albin Jarić, Bruno Urlić and Dragomir Herendić left the group due to other commitments. Jarić devotes himself to family life in
Kranj Kranj (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, fourth-largest city in Slovenia and the largest urban center of the traditional region of Upper Carniola (northwestern Slovenia) and the Slovene Alps. It is located approximately northwest o ...
, Slovenia. Herendić completed his own studio in Ivanić Grad and get focused on his production career. Urlić took over band-leadership of the Macedonian folk band Ezerki & 7/8 from Zagreb. and started his studio music and production career. In a short period without guitarists and violinists, Sejo Sexon, Trajkov, and Bobić began the writing and formation on sketches of something that will evolve in three years to the double-full-length studio album. In a short period of time, violinist Robert Boldižar and guitarist Toni Lović joined in. Boldižar was touring musician in 1997, while the band's violinist Urlić was on leave to
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, France. The new lineup immediately began to wrap up music for the next album and went on a short tour. Meanwhile, keyboardist Paul Kempf step in the empty seat. In 2005, right after record producer Denis Mujadžić (a.k.a. Denyken) joined the record project, Sejo Sexon got the opportunity to write a
film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...
for the 2006 Bosnian action comedy film ''Nafaka'' directed by Jasmin Duraković. On that project he got an opportunity to collaborate with prominent musicians of different genres, such as:
Halid Bešlić Halid Bešlić (; born 20 November 1953) is a Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian folk music, folk singer and musician who has been performing professionally since 1979. Bešlić's singing career was one of the most successful in SFR Yugoslavia, Yugo ...
, Arsen Dedić, Lucija Šerbedžija, and the Mosque Choir Arabeske. On June 26, 2006, the song "Nema više", the first single from their upcoming album and ''Nafaka Soundtrack'' as well, was released and became a hit single. Sejo Sexon wrote this song with a Bosnian prose writer and playwright Nenad Veličković. On November 16, 2006, the band released their eighth studio album '' Hodi da ti čiko nešto da!'' (), their first double album since ''Dok čekaš sabah sa šejtanom'' (1985). Although the concert tour was truly enviable as in the time before, the period after the 2006 album release, next to the Australian Tour and the concerts in Paris and London, brought two great disappointments to the band, cancellations of the significant concerts in Belgrade and Sarajevo. At the first, there was a cancellation of the Sarajevo Concert as a result of the voracity of the Sarajevo Film Festival Board, who managed to redirect the concert's sponsorships to the Festival's budget. Next hit was wresting the 29 November Concert in Belgrade by former band members settled in Belgrade and gathered around The No Smoking Orchestra. The band had the ''Day of the Republic'' project in which 29 November should become the traditional concert date for Belgrade fans. In September 2008, a longtime bassist Predrag Bobić left the bend after a farewell concert at Zagreb's lake Bundek. Afterwards, guitarist Dejan Orešković, former bassist of Divlje jagode, joined the group and played on their subsequent album. The ninth studio album '' Muzej revolucije'' () is released on November 7, 2009, on the 92nd anniversary of the
October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...
. The album is released on the same day through various record labels in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,
Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...
, Serbia and Slovenia. The record produced five singles; "Modni Guru", "Kladimo se", "Kada Sena pleše", "Tvoja bosa stopala" and "Samir-time". In 2011, Sejo Sexon directed a
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
for the third single of ''Muzej revolucije'', entitled "Kada Sena pleše". It was his directorial debut. Also, he wrote the script for the same music video. On June 25, 2012, the band released the video for "Samir-time", the fifth and last single of ''Muzej revolucije''.


2012–present: Tenth studio album and recent years

In 2012, Sejo Sexon and Toni Lović entered the studio to begin writing for their tenth studio album. On October 10, 2013, '' Radovi na cesti'' () was released through Croatia Records and Dallas Records. The album was met with mostly positive reviews from the critics. The record produced six singles; "Boško i Admira", "Ti voliš sapunice", "Tri kile, tri godine", "U Tvoje ime", "Klasa optimist" and "Kafana kod Keke". On December 28, 2013, Sejo Sexon and Zabranjeno Pušenje celebrated 30th Anniversary of the band with their fans on a concert in Skenderija, Sarajevo. In January 2016, saxophonist and flautist Lana Škrgatić joined the band. As a new band member, she appeared for the first time in the 2016 music video for the fifth ''Radovi na cesti'' single "Klasa optimist". Keyboardist Paul Kempf left the band in early 2017. The band appeared on two biggest Serbian music festivals in 2017, they performed live at the EXIT Summer of Love 2017 in
Novi Sad Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; #Name, see below for other names) is the List of cities in Serbia, second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pannoni ...
, and at the Belgrade Beer Fest. On October 31, 2018, the band released their eleventh studio album '' Šok i nevjerica'' (). The songs were mostly written and produced by Sejo Sexon and Toni Lović. The album featured Bosnian
rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...
Sassja and Bosnian singer and composer Damir Imamović. In November 2019, Lana Škrgatić parted ways with the band to join a female music band. In 2020 and 2021, during the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, band members recorded 16 new songs for the new studio album. All songs were written and produced by Sejo Sexon and Toni Lović, while the arrangement is jointly signed with other band members. For the first time in 15 years, they collaborated with Elvis J. Kurtović, a former band member. Thus, in June 2020, they released a single and a music video for the song "Korona hit pozitivan" (), which was made in collaboration with Kurtović. In April 2022, the third live album ''Live in Skenderija Sarajevo 2018'' was released. The new studio album, the twelfth and the double, '' Karamba!'', was released on June 3, 2022. The album was announced with the song "Ekrem" and its new music video, directed by Tomislav Fiket, and in the title role of Ekrem was the actor Asim Ugljen.


Musical style

In the early 1980s, when the rest of the Yugoslav popular music scene followed the trends in
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
of the early 1980s, chiefly
punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
and new wave, Zabranjeno Pušenje were part of a unique rock movement centered in
Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...
that forged its own path. This movement, for the most part, centered on simple, youthful,
garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock music that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is ...
, with folk influences and a distinctive Sarajevo urban feel called New Primitivism. The songs range from punk rock to rock, frequently arranged to feature trumpets and saxophones, adding to the band's unique sound, along with many samples and soundbites from the period. Zabranjeno Pušenje captured the feel of Sarajevo, its idols and local heroes along with tales of love and loss, in a distinctive and often humorous way. Very visual and cynical, the band's lyrics were progressive enough to show the last stages of Yugoslav socialism (songs "Dan republike", "Srce ruke i lopata", "Abid", "Guzonjin sin"), alternate clubs ("Pišonja i Žuga u paklu droge", "Javi mi"), as well as providing morbid hints for the
Yugoslav Wars The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related#Naimark, Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and Insurgency, insurgencies that took place from 1991 to 2001 in what had been the Socialist Federal Republic of ...
("Kanjon Drine", "Zvijezda nad Balkanom").


Members


Current

* Davor Sučić ( a.k.a. Sejo Sexon) –
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
,
lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...
, backing vocals (1980–1990; 1995–present) * Branko Trajkov (a.k.a. Trak) –
drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...
,
percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...
, acoustic guitar, backing vocals (1996–present) * Toni Lović
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...
,
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked, its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
(2004–present) * Robert Boldižar
violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...
, keyboards, backing vocals (2004–present) * Dejan Orešković (a.k.a. Klo) – bass (2008–present) Source
Zabranjeno Pušenje
/small>


Former

* Faris Arapović – drums (1987–1990) * Kristina Biluš – backing vocals (1999) * Predrag Bobić (a.k.a. Bleka) (credited as Dragan Bobić) – bass (1996–2008) * Mustafa Čengić (a.k.a. Mujo Snažni) – guitar, backing vocals (1980–1986) * Samir Ćeremida – bass (1996–1998) * Zoran Degan (a.k.a. Poka) – keyboards (1980–1983) * Zenit Đozić (a.k.a. Fu-do) – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1980–1983; 1985) * Dado Džihan – keyboards (1987–1990) * Ognjen Gajić
saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...
, concert flute, keyboards (1980–1987) * Marin Gradac (a.k.a. Mako) –
trombone The trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the Standing wave, air c ...
, vocals (1996–1999) * Dragomir Herendić (a.k.a. Dragianni) – lead guitar (1999–2004) * Dražen Janković (a.k.a. Seid Mali Karajlić) – keyboards, backing vocals (1980–1981; 1984–1987) * Nenad Janković (a.k.a. Dr. Nele Karajlić) – lead vocals, keyboards (1980–1990) * Albin Jarić (a.k.a. Jimi Rasta) – percussion (2001–2004) * Paul Kempf (a.k.a. Pavo) – keyboards (2005–2017) * Predrag Kovačević (a.k.a. Kova / Kowalski) – guitar (1986–1990) * Sead Kovo (a.k.a. Sejo) – guitar (1996–1999) * Emir Kusturica – bass (1987) * Mladen Mitić (a.k.a. Munja) – bass, backing vocals (1980–1986) * Darko Ostojić (a.k.a. Ogi) – bass (1987–1990) * Đani Pervan – drums (1996) * Nedžad Podžić (a.k.a. Počko) – keyboards, backing vocals (1996–1998) * Predrag Rakić (a.k.a. Šeki Gayton) – drums (1983–1986) * Mirko Srdić (a.k.a. Elvis J. Kurtovich) – backing vocals (1996–1999) * Zoran Stojanović – electric guitar (1996–1998) * Lana Škrgatić – saxophone, concert flute, backing vocals (2016–2019) * Bruno Urlić (a.k.a. Prco) –
violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...
,
viola The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the ...
, keyboards, backing vocals (1997–2004) * Dušan Vranić (a.k.a. Duco) – keyboards, backing vocals (1996–1997)


Timeline


Awards and nominations

, - , rowspan="2" , 2002 , , "Arizona Dream" , Best Rock Song , Davorin Awards , , ''Bog vozi Mercedes'' , , - , '' Bog vozi Mercedes'' , Best Album Cover Design , Davorin Awards , , Dario Vitez & Srđan Velimirović , , - , rowspan="2" , 2003 , , ''www.zabranjeno-pusenje.com'' , Best Artist Website Design , Davorin Awards , , Dario Vitez , , - , Zabranjeno Pušenje , Outstanding Live Performance , Baščaršija Nights , , , , - , 2004 , , 20th Debut Album's Anniversary , Honorary Award "50 Years of Popular Music" , Davorin Awards , , , , - , 2005 , , ''Live In St. Louis'' , Best Live Album , Davorin Awards , , , , - , rowspan="9" , 2007 , , '' Hodi da ti čiko nešto da'' , Rock Album of the Year , Davorin Awards , , , , - , rowspan="2" , "Dobro dvorište" , Rock Song of the Year , Davorin Awards , , ''Hodi da ti čiko nešto da'' , , - , Rock Music Video of the Year , Davorin Awards , , ''Hodi da ti čiko nešto da'' , , - , rowspan="2" , "Nema više" , Rock Song of the Year , Davorin Awards , , ''Hodi da ti čiko nešto da'' , , - , Rock Music Video of the Year , Davorin Awards , , ''Hodi da ti čiko nešto da'' , , - , Zabranjeno Pušenje , Rock Performer of the Year , Davorin Awards , , , , - , Sejo Sexon , Best Male Singer , Davorin Awards , , , , - , Zabranjeno Pušenje & Arsen Dedić , Collaboration of the Year , Davorin Awards , , , , - , Toni Lović , Best Pop/Rock/Urban Guitarist , Status Awards , , , , - , rowspan="2" , 2010 , Dejan Orešković , Best Pop/Rock/Urban Bassist , Status Awards , , , , - , Robert Boldižar , Best Pop/Rock/Urban Violinist , Status Awards , , , , - , 2015 , Dejan Orešković , Best Pop/Rock/Urban Bassist , Status Awards , , , , - , rowspan="2" , 2017 , Toni Lović , Best Guitarist , Mega Muzika Fender Awards , , , , - , Zabranjeno Pušenje , Best Band , Mega Muzika Fender Awards , , , , -


Discography


Studio albums

* '' Das ist Walter'' (1984) * '' Dok čekaš sabah sa šejtanom'' (1985) * '' Pozdrav iz zemlje Safari'' (1987) * '' Male priče o velikoj ljubavi'' (1989) * '' Fildžan viška'' (1997) * '' Agent tajne sile'' (1999) * '' Bog vozi Mercedes'' (2001) * '' Hodi da ti čiko nešto da'' (2006) * '' Muzej revolucije'' (2009) * '' Radovi na cesti'' (2013) * '' Šok i nevjerica'' (2018) * '' Karamba!'' (2022)


See also

* Top lista nadrealista * Shaderwan Code * The No Smoking Orchestra * New Primitivism


References


Notes


Citations


Bibliography

*


External links

*
Zabranjeno Pušenje
at
Discogs Discogs ( ; short for " discographies") is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. Database contents are user-generated, and described in ''T ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zabranjeno Pusenje 1980 establishments in Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina rock music groups Garage punk groups Musical groups established in 1980 Yugoslav punk rock groups New Primitivism