| Kozmetika | |
| Type: | Studio |
| Artist: | Kozmetika |
| Cover: | Kozmetika (1983) album cover.jpg |
| Released: | 7 March 1983 |
| Recorded: | 1979–1982 |
| Studio: | Jovanova St. 56, Jevremova St. 45, and MS studio, Belgrade |
| Label: | ZKP RTLJ |
| Producer: | Kozmetika |
Kozmetika (trans. Cosmetics) is the only album by the Yugoslav new wave/art rock band Kozmetika, released in 1983.
The album Kozmetika was polled in 1998 as the 98th on the list of 100 Greatest Yugoslav Popular Music Albums in the book (YU 100: The Best Albums of Yugoslav Pop and Rock Music).[1]
Kozmetika was officially formed in 1978 by Vladimir Jovanović (guitar, vocals), Marko Pešić (synthesizer), Slobodan Konjević (bass guitar) and Mihajlo "Miško" Mihajlovski (rhythm machine programming), although Jovanović, Pešić and Konjević had been working together since 1974, first in the band Dijamantski Psi (Diamond Dogs) and then under the name Spajalice (The Staples).[2] At the time of Kozmetika formation, Jovanović, Pešić and Konjović were all already notable figures on Belgrade cultural scene: Jovanović was a painter, Pešić was a director and Konjović was a music editor at Studio B radio.[2] Due to their individual activities, as well as their work on the pop culture magazine Izgled, the band did not have continuous work on the album recording.[2] They have spent four years recording the album, working patiently on each track with numerous guest appearances.[2] The album featured guest appearances by Goran Vejvoda (guitar) and Dragana Šarić (vocals) of the band Annoda Rouge, Srđan Šaper (vocals) and Nebojša Krstić (vocals) of the new wave band Idoli, Raša Đelmaš (drums) of the hard rock band Zebra, Zlatko Manojlović (guitar) of the heavy metal band Gordi, Goran Bregović (guitar) of the rock band Bijelo Dugme, Đorđe Ilijin (flute) of the progressive rock band Tako, Vuk Vujačić (saxophone), Zoran Radetić (electric piano) and Bora Pavićević (percussion).[3] Inspired by the works of Brian Eno as well as the current musical trends, the band used a technique in album production similar to the one which would later be known as sampling, creating their own vision of art rock.[3] However, due to uncommunicative sound, the album failed to reach much feedback from the audience, with only the song "Utisci", featuring Nebojša Krstić on lead vocals, becoming a minor hit.[2] After the album release, the band did not perform often, and soon ended their activity.[2]
All songs credited to Kozmetika.
Kozmetika was polled in 1998 as the 98th on the list of 100 Greatest Yugoslav Popular Music Albums in the book (YU 100: The Best Albums of Yugoslav Pop and Rock Music).[4]
In 2006 the song "Utisci" ("Impressions") was ranked No. 99 the B92 Top 100 Domestic Songs List.[5] The song has also been used as the theme song for the Olja Bećković's political talk show Utisak nedelje (Impression of the Week), initially broadcast on RTV Studio B, and later on B92 and Nova S.[6] For the 20th anniversary of the talk show the Viva Vox Choir from Belgrade covered "Utisci" and the version has become the new theme song for the show.[7]
In 2015 Kozmetika album cover, designed by Jugoslav Jovanović, was ranked 47th on the list of 100 Greatest Album Covers of Yugoslav Rock published by web magazine Balkanrock.[8]