Listen to Dubioza Kolektiv and Hear their Message

In 30 minutes of good music and straight to the point lyrics, seven boys from Bosnia and Herzegovina, calling themselves Dubioza Kolektiv, have managed to paint a picture of the country and the region better than many academics, correspondents, and experts.

And they are doing it pretty loudly, with anger in their voice that makes you stop and listen. They hope people will not only listen but hear what they have to say on their newly released album, ‘5 to 12’.

The musicians describe themselves as a group “that preaches peace, understanding, tolerance, and extreme criticism of the nationalism and injustice carried out in Bosnia and Herzegovina”. They add that “with the state of the world today”, their message seems more relevant than ever before.

Anyone with a more than basic understanding of Bosnian or regional politics who listens to the lyrics sung by Dubioza will hear that people are finally waking up from the nightmare that has lasted over two decades:

“Time has stopped and only days are counted/I can’t believe it has lasted for over two decades/the most important thing is the name/is it shameless that people who think in that way will decide my child’s future”.

They sing about politicians who are up to their necks in corruption, about leaders who are careless, and who use people for their own purposes: lying, stealing, and finally trading a state away for almost nothing. The group openly calls on Bosnians to go out on the street, to oust these leaders, but to do it with their vote.

It is a perfect message in the election year; it needs to be heard. And that is the problem. Will enough people hear the message of this group?  

Dubioza Kolektiv has been together since 2003. They have always been politically active and openly critical of the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, calling for action and reaction. But they have not achieved much for their efforts.  Young people who follow the group are often satisfied with good music. And while the Kolektiv does play well live and is able to transfer its energy and message to the recorded versions of its works, the group has not yet woken Bosnians from their apathy.

And Dubioza addresses this apathy directly: “How is it possible that people never understand anything/and it is even worse now than it was before/if we only start thinking about that now before it is too late/I cannot understand all that.”

At the same time, Dubioza is a very popular band throughout a region that is disunited in everything but troubles - corrupt politicians and nationalism.

However, eight years of their work may be producing some results. More and more young people, at least in Bosnia, sing and write about politics and often have the same message- a call for action. Perhaps this day of change will indeed come.

But even if it doesn’t, one day someone will be able to say – we tried.  

5 to 12 is available for free online at their official web site. More than 10.000 people downloded it in first 24 hours since it was released.